I'd just like to get as close to it as I can without a permit, see what the cables look like, take pictures of the pile(s) of discarded gloves and whatever else is there to see, and head back down.
I remember reading that (a.) people who are going up the cables won't be allowed "on the Half Dome Trail beyond the base of the subdome" but that (b.) people who get to the top of Half Dome by another route (i.e., rock climbing) can even go down the cables, all without a permit.
Does anyone know the specifics of what the Half Dome permit authorizes you to do, and where you can and can't go without it? If the permit is about going on the subdome and the only way (besides technical climbing) to get there is the Half Dome trail, maybe that's that. If the permit is about using the cables and I don't intend to use the cables, it seems kind of arbitrary to say I can't get within 1/2 mile (or whatever) of the cables lest I try to sneak up them or something. Or is the purpose of the permit to limit crowding not only on the cables, but on the subdome as well?
How far toward Clouds Rest would I have to go before I get a view of at least part of the cables?