I soaked my feet in the shallows, listening for distant rumbles. Then Mark and I headed for the high country.

At Olmsted Point, along Tioga Road, we found a rock scape scoured by ancient ice and peppered with "erratics," stray boulders nudged into strange places by glacial advances. From there, Half Dome is a far-off rounded lump that sometimes glows red at sunset. For us it turned a faint orange.

Another day, we drove to Glacier Point, which is only 7,214 feet above sea level but feels like the roof of the Earth, with jaw-dropping views of the valley. From there you seem to be even with Half Dome (though you're really 1,600 feet below it), and the spectacle is an invitation to consider eternity and forget petty human affairs.

But then you'd miss the hooded photographer fussing with his 8-by-10 camera, or the British tourist dropping to one knee and proposing to his girlfriend (who says yes), or the guy who is about to throw a pebble into the abyss until a second guy threatens to throw him instead.

It got quieter when the sun dipped and set the dome aglow. Then the moon and stars took over. We stayed for hours.

But that's not the view that destroyed my ranger's-hat idea of Half Dome. It was Washburn Point, less than a mile from Glacier Point, that did it.

There, as at Glacier Point, you are reminded how puny Yosemite Valley is: 7 miles long and a mile wide, surrounded by nearly 1,200 more square miles of rugged high-country parkland. But Washburn Point also has a different angle on Half Dome, an angle that shows it isn't a dome at all. To my eyes, it's a thick, uneven slice of bread, maybe the heel of the loaf. Of course, it's epic and all that, but you'd never make it your logo.

The Half Dome we love is the well-rounded idea of Half Dome, as seen from the valley, Olmsted Point and Glacier Point. Seeing its unrounded backside is like being told that Humphrey Bogart never said, "Play it again, Sam" in "Casablanca." Part of you doesn't want to know. And the other part figures that's a good reason to watch the movie again.

HIKING HALF DOME: WHAT YOU NEED

To hike Half Dome, you need a clear, summery day, a permit, strong legs, strong lungs, food, water, a flashlight and a plan.

A few things you need in order to hike Half Dome:

-A clear, summery day. Because hiking Half Dome can be dangerous, the park service strongly discourages hiking it in the rain, when there are storm clouds or any time but in summer. Rangers say five hikers have died on the trail in the last decade, most losing their footing, often in the rain. To make things easier for hikers in the summer months, rangers put up removable steel cables just before Memorial Day most years to help climbers ascend the last 400 feet to the top. The cables come down around Columbus Day (in October).

-A permit from the National Park Service. To keep the trail from clogging with traffic when the cables are up, rangers require that you have a permit, and they set a limit of 300 hikers a day. Fees are $12.50 (if you apply online) or $14.50 (by phone). Check the Yosemite website for more details at www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm.

-Strong legs, strong lungs, food, water, flashlight and a clear plan. Rangers recommend you start at sunrise or earlier and set a non-negotiable turnaround time in case the afternoon drags on and you haven't reached the top. It's a 16-mile round trip from the valley with about 4,800 feet of elevation gain. Most people do it in 10-12 hours.

-Details: www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm

Christopher Reynolds: chris.reynolds@latimes.com