For years, Google users have relied on the company's popular "Street View" technology to get a sidewalk level view of shops and restaurants. Now that concept is going vertical, with a unique 360-degree digital trek up Yosemite's El Capitan with some of the world's top climbers.
Earlier this year the company enlisted Lynn Hill, Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell to use Street View camera to document their climbs. Caldwell made international headlines earlier this year when he and Kevin Jorgeson completed a record 19-day free climb up El Capitan's "Dawn Wall."
Among the El Capitan climbs captured in the project are an ascent of "The Nose" as well as the "Texas Flake."
The company says the project is the first time the technology has been used to document a vertical ascent.
Climber Lynn Hill described the experience on Google's official blog:
Yosemite’s driven so much of my life that I’m excited to be able to share it with the world through my eyes. These 360-degree panoramic images are the closest thing I’ve ever witnessed to actually being thousands of feet up a vertical rock face—better than any video or photo. But my hope is that this new imagery will inspire you to get out there and see Yosemite for yourself… whether you travel up a rock wall or just down the trail.
In addition to the interactive Street View images, the company has also prepared a "Yosemite Treks" pagewhere users can learn more about climbing and the project itself.
