from todays yosemite report

WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers who blanched at a $700 billion financial rescue package have found time to honor the brave men who climbed Yosemite National Park's El Capitan peak a half-century ago. Kicking off a round of commemorations, the House this week approved a resolution saluting three climbers who were the first to scale North America's tallest free-standing granite monolith. The resolution sets the stage for a 50th anniversary...The House resolution honors Wayne Merry, Fresno resident George Whitmore and Warren J. Harding, who took 47 daysin 1957 and 1958 to climb El Capitan's so-called "Nose Route." Theirs was a full-blown siege, complete with sizable support crew, fixed ropes and established camps along the vertical way.