Two free climbers have made history after becoming the first people to climb the daunting El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without aids.
Kevin Jorgeson, 30, and Tommy Caldwell, 36, achieved their epic feat by sleeping in tents suspended from the mountain face.
The 19-day-climb was so grueling they had to stop for days midway to allow the skin on their hands to heal after being torn to shreds by the rock.
At 914m high, El Capitan is legendary in the climbing world for its incredibly smooth granite surface, which makes it exceptionally difficult to ascend.
Caldweel and Jorgeson relied on gripping tiny bumps and grooves to haul themselves up.
Jorgeson's father, Kevin, told of how his son had dreamed of making the climb since he was a boy.
He added: "He climbed everything he could think of. It made us nervous early on as parents, but we got used to it.
The climb nearly broke both men. Jorgensen fell 11 times during a week-long effort to complete one especially difficult section of the route, according to The Associated Press.
Two climbers reach the top of El Capitan
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Kevin Jorgeson and Tommy Caldwell celebrate after completing the climb. (credit:Instagram/Big Up Productions)
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Tommy Caldwell, top, raises his arms after reaching the summit of El Capitan, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson became the first to free-climb the rock formation's Dawn Wall. They used ropes and safety harnesses to catch them 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. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Tommy Caldwell, top, raises his arms after reaching the summit of El Capitan as Kevin Jorgeson, bottom, watches Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. Caldwell and Jorgeson became the first to free-climb the rock formation's Dawn Wall. They used ropes and safety harnesses to catch them 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. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Tommy Caldwell, lower left, and Kevin Jorgeson, lower right, near the summit of El Capitan Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The two climbers vying to become the first in the world to use only their hands and feet to scale a sheer granite face in California's Yosemite National Park are almost to the top. Jorgeson and Caldwell have been attempting what many thought impossible. The men have been "free-climbing" to the 3,000-foot summit for 19 days, meaning they don't use climbing aids other than ropes only to prevent deadly falls. Each trained for more than five years, and they have battled bloodied fingers and unseasonably warm weather. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Tommy Caldwell, top, raises his arms after reaching the summit of El Capitan as Kevin Jorgeson, bottom, watches Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. Caldwell and Jorgeson became the first to free-climb the rock formation's Dawn Wall. They used ropes and safety harnesses to catch them 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. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 7, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Kevin Jorgeson ascends the rope to pitch 17 during what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 7, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Tommy Caldwell ascends from the base camp to climb what is known as pitch 17 during what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 7, 2015photo provided by Tom Evans, Tommy Caldwell, top, climbs what is known as Pitch 17 with Kevin Jorgeson handling the line during what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport0 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 12, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Tommy Caldwell, center, stands with a photographer at a base camp before continuing to climb what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Kevin Jorgeson of California, wearing green, and 36-year-old Tommy Caldwell, wearing blue, near the summit of El Capitan Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The two climbers vying to become the first in the world to use only their hands and feet to scale a sheer granite face in California's Yosemite National Park are almost to the top. Jorgeson and Caldwell have been attempting what many thought impossible. The men have been "free-climbing" to the 3,000-foot summit for 19 days, meaning they don't use climbing aids other than ropes only to prevent deadly falls. Each trained for more than five years, and they have battled bloodied fingers and unseasonably warm weather. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Media members watch as two climbers vying to become the first in the world to use only their hands and feet to scale a sheer slab of granite make their way to the summit of El Capitan Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The pair are closing in on the top of the 3,000-foot (900-meter) peak and if all goes as planned, 30-year-old Kevin Jorgeson of California and 36-year-old Tommy Caldwell of Colorado, should complete their climb early Wednesday afternoon. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 12, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Tommy Caldwell, bottom, watches as Kevin Jorgeson climbs what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Kevin Jorgeson of California, wearing green, and 36-year-old Tommy Caldwell, wearing blue lower right, climb near the summit of El Capitan Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The two climbers vying to become the first in the world to use only their hands and feet to scale a sheer granite face in California's Yosemite National Park are almost to the top. Jorgeson and Caldwell have been attempting what many thought impossible. The men have been "free-climbing" to the 3,000-foot summit for 19 days, meaning they don't use climbing aids other than ropes only to prevent deadly falls. Each trained for more than five years, and they have battled bloodied fingers and unseasonably warm weather. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 12, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Tommy Caldwell, bottom, watches as Kevin Jorgeson climbs what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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In this Jan. 12, 2015 photo provided by Tom Evans, Kevin Jorgeson climbs what has been called the hardest rock climb in the world: a free climb of El Capitan, the largest monolith of granite in the world, a half-mile section of exposed granite in California's Yosemite National Park. El Capitan rises more than 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. The first climber reached its summit in 1958, and there are roughly 100 routes up to the top. (AP Photo/Tom Evans, elcapreport) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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People watch as two climbers vying to become the first in the world to use only their hands and feet to scale a sheer slab of granite and make their way to the summit of El Capitan Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The pair are closing in on the top of the 3,000-foot (900-meter) peak and if all goes as planned, 30-year-old Kevin Jorgeson of California and 36-year-old Tommy Caldwell of Colorado, should complete their climb early Wednesday afternoon, a spokeswoman said. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Spectators gaze at El Capitan for a glimpse of climbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015, as seen from the valley floor in Yosemite National Park, Calif. Caldwell and Jorgeson became the first to free-climb the rock formation's Dawn Wall. They used ropes and safety harnesses to catch them 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. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Tommy Caldwell eats dinner on El Capitan
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Kevin Jorgeson near the top
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Rough rest day on the wall....watchin Netflix 1,200 feet up El Cap.... (credit:Kevin Jorgeson)
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Image shows climb to the summit.; 3c x 3 inches; 146 mm x 76 mm; (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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