With Bloodied Fingertips, 2 Friends Climb Atop Yosemite And Into History Books

Caldwell, 36, and Jorgeson, 30, became the first to free-climb the rock formation's Dawn Wall, a feat many had considered impossible. They used ropes and safety harnesses in case of a fall but relied entirely on their own strength and dexterity to ascend by grasping cracks as thin as razor blades and as small as dimes.

The two dealt with constant falls and injuries. But their success completes a years long dream that bordered on obsession.

"I think we've been exposed to almost like a drug of like dreaming really big and pursuing those things," Caldwell said. "I know for me I need that,"

At the top, another crowd was waiting for them, including Caldwell's wife and Jorgeson's girlfriend, who welcomed them with hugs and kisses before they hiked down the peak.

President Barack Obama sent his congratulations from the White House Twitter account, saying the men "remind us that anything is possible."

The trek began Dec. 27. Caldwell and Jorgeson lived on the wall itself, eating and sleeping in tents fastened to the rock thousands of feet above the ground and battling painful cuts to their fingertips much of the way.

"You spend all evening thinking about the next day is going to be like and the moves you're going to encounter and visualize yourself doing it," Jorgeson said.

Both men needed to take rest days to heal. They used tape and even superglue to help protect their raw skin. At one point, Caldwell set an alarm to wake him every few hours to apply a special lotion to his throbbing hands.

They also endured physical punishment whenever their grip slipped, pitching them into long, swinging falls that left them bouncing off the rock face. The tumbles, which they called "taking a whipper," ended with startling jolts from their safety ropes.

Caldwell and Jorgeson had help from a team of supporters who brought food and supplies and shot video of the adventure.

The pair ate canned peaches and occasionally sipped whiskey. They watched their urine evaporate into the thin, dry air and handed toilet sacks, called "wag bags," to helpers who disposed of them.

There are about 100 routes up the rock known among climbers as "El Cap," and many have made it to the top, the first in 1958. Even the Dawn Wall had been scaled. Warren Harding and Dean Caldwell (no relation to Tommy) made it up in 1970, using climbing ropes and countless rivets over 27 days.

No one, however, had ever made it to the summit in one continuous free-climb — until now.

The pair are now just beginning to visualize what might be next.