El Capitan in Yosemite National Park is the largest granite monolith in the world. When you first see the impressive 917 meter high stone wall, which is also known as the "Dawn Wall" you wouldn't believe that it was even possible to climb this huge vertical rock. Two climbers from the US, Kevin Jorges and Tommy Caldwell managed to prove the opposite. "Free Climbing" the wall, they did not use any tools or climb aids, they used nothing but their hands and feet to reach the top of the wall. For safety reasons the two climbers were attached to safety ropes to prevent deadly falls. It was an extremely tough journey; during the climb they had to battle bloody fingers and due to the warm weather the two climbers often had no other choice than climbing with head lamps at night in order to prevent their fingers from sweating and slipping. If they did not climb at night, they slept in portaledges, tents that are attached to the face of the wall.
After 19 days, 5 days more than they had expected, Kevin Jorges and Tommy Caldwell reached the top of the wall together. Both had trained for this special moment for almost six years, in which they had built a "deep, abiding, lifelong friendship" as they sad.
The two climbers even received congratulations from President Barack Obama, who congratulated them via the White House Twitter account, saying that these two men "remind us that anything is possible".
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