At 14,497 feet in elevation, Mt Whitney is the highest point in the Continental US. The 22 mile hike can be a daunting 1 day attempt, but it was worth every second.
Mt Whitney had been on my list of hikes to do for quite some time and with free time right now, I thought I better give it a shot. Obtaining a permit was quite a process. I missed the February lottery system for giving out permits which meant that all 160 spots per day were completely filled from July through September. The Ranger told me that there were occasional cancellations, so between checking the Mt Whitney website and constantly calling in to find out about any last minute cancellations, I was pretty much on a first name basis with the staff…
I ended up getting the permit about 5:15pm on Tuesday for Friday of the same week. So I determined that I would leave the next morning so that I could get somewhat acclimated to the altitude.
I left about 9:15 Wednesday morning and got to Lone Pine to pick up the permit at the ranger station/information center at the corner of Hwy 395 and Hwy 136 at about 3:15 (2:15 CA time).
As a child, my family loved to vacation at Rock Creek, just about an hour and a half north of Lone Pine and at an elevation of 9750 feet. I decided that it would be a fun trip down memory lane, a great way to get acclimated, and a good way to take a short day trip the next day to Yosemite.
After spending the next day in Yosemite, I drove back to Lone Pine that night and tried, to no avail, to secure a camp sight at the Whitney Portal. The Whitney Portal Campground is located adjacent to the trail head to Mt Whitney, up Whitney Portal road – the only road with a stoplight in town. The camp sites were all taken there so I went back down 2000 feet in elevation to Lone Pine Camp Ground at 5900 feet.
I set up camp and got to bed early, as I knew I would have to get up early the next day to make the attempt on Whitney.
I had read that only 1/3 of the hikers that attempt to summit each day make it. That number seemed incredibly low to me, but I would find out why the next day!
I woke up at 4:53, took down camp by 5:35, and arrived at the trail head (elev 8360 ft) where I had to park in the overflow parking, at 5:53. I started on the trail at 6:01 and it was already starting to get light outside. The trail head is easy to spot located by a strange looking wood structure on the North (right) side of the
parking lot as you’re driving in. Restrooms are located just across the road from the trail head and there is a little store just up the road a few hundred feet.
As I started hiking, I realized that it wasn’t nearly as cold as I expected it to be, and I quickly shed some layers of clothing. As the sun crested the White Mountain range to the East, the suns rays seemingly turned the pine forest a brilliant orange color, and I was already remembering how beautiful the High Sierras were.
I quickly came
to and crossed a small creek on my way to the North Fork Creek Sign about 1 mile into the hike. I arrived at the creek at 6:22 and my GPS marked the elevation at 8627’.
As I continued, I passed a sign indicating that I was entering the John Muir Wilderness and another sign with hiker information on it. Soon after this section of the hike, waterfalls dominated the landscape and the sound of the water crashing down dozens of feet could be felt throughout my body. The 2010-2011 winter saw record snowfall so the creeks were high and powerful.
My next point of interest I came to was Lone Pine Lake located at 9920’ and about 3.06 miles in, according to my GPS (My pre-hike research indicated that it was 2.8 miles and elevation 9900. As there was consistently a discrepancy in the mileage and altitude between my GPS
and what I had read before I left, I’ll continue to put the researched value in parentheses after my GPS reading). Leading up to the lake is a unique and fun “train” of logs to aid in crossing a large, but shallow, stream/marsh. I never actually saw the lake as the main trail passes by on the North, but a sign marks the way down to the lake. I arrived here at 7:22.
Past the lake a few hundred yards is a sign indicating that I was about to enter the Whitney Zone. Hiking beyond this point requires a permit and all solid waste must be carried out with you in the baggies provided when picking up the permit. Although I had read that there are frequently rangers present checking for permits, there was not one there on my attempt. I noticed a drop in temperature as I entered a small canyon immediately past the lake and saw the first snow pack remaining from winter.
After another 30 minutes of hiking through more breathtaking scenery and rock hopping across another river, I came to Out Post camp, another primitive camping spot, which is marked by a sign. One of the first things I noticed was that the people camped there who were just getting up in the morning were limping around as if in considerable pain. I stored that memory away in my memory bank, and would reflect on it later… My GPS recorded the elevation as 10255’ (10400) and 4.33 miles (3.8).
After leaving the camp site, the trail once again meandered by a stream and waterfall which drained from Mirror Lake close above. The emerald colored Mirror Lake to me was the mo
st beautiful lake I came to. The trail makes it’s way around and above the south (left) side of the lake and views of the lake got better and better as I hiked higher on the trail. At one point I lost the main trail on the way up for about 100 yards or so, but ended up back on the main trail before I knew it. I had no trouble staying on the main trail on the way back down. I arrived at Mirror Lake elevation 10554’ (10640) at 8:10 after 4.79 miles (4.0).
Just past Mirror Lake, I encountered the first of a few snow fields that I would have to pass through. It was pretty fun and easy going, and once past the snowfield, I came to a granite cirque filled with boulders with lush vegetation growing by the stream in the middle. After about ¾ of a mile, I came to Trail Side Meado
w elevation 11242’ (11400) which is marked by a sign indicating that there is no camping in the area at 8:47 and 5.44 miles (5.0). This would have probably been the last reliable place to filter water in a drier year, but I was able to filter some later from snow melt because of the snow that still remained.
I hiked up
through another snowfield to get up out of the cirque that contained Trail Side Meadow. Off to the south I saw Consultation Lake, which was still partially frozen, at 11670’. The trail doesn’t pass near the lake and as much as it would have been fun to go explore it, my tired body was telling me to keep moving. I arrived at Consultation Lake at 9:11 after 5.95 miles (5.5).
After another half mile, I came to Trail Camp, the ca
mp that many hikers use as their base camp for their Whitney ascent. There were many tents set up, many on rock or half dirt half rock. The only spots for tents were extremely small. Trail Camp is located at an elevation of 11963’ (12000) and I arrived there at 9:33 after 6.44 miles (6.0). After not eating breakfast before I left, I was getting a little hungry so I took 20 minutes for lunch. As I ate, I could see people making their way up the infamous 97 switchbacks. It looked like a daunting task as they disappeared out of view for a while only to reappear a little later a lot higher up.
Once finished with my sandwiches, I followed the trail which took me through the camp in between two snowfields low on the opposite slope. I thought about trying to count the switchbacks at first, but then decided I’d need all my mind power to get through the climb at this high altitude. I decided to keep a slow and steady pace, only stopping to take pictures. This technique worked well as I passed many people on the way up. About a third of the way up, I couldn’t help but think about my Mom since she was the one that introduced me to the High Sierras and would have loved to have been on this hike with me. I’m sure somewhere she was smiling down on me.
The snow runoff created a large stream which at times disappeared under the rocks. The only way I knew it was there was because as I would walk over the rocks which it was flowing under, I could hear the loud rumbling of the water beneath me.
Ab
out halfway up the switchbacks, I came to a section of cable rails that I had seen on the internet as I had done research on the hike. Despite all the snow on other parts of the trail, there wasn’t as much as I expected at the cha
in section. Just previous to the chain section however, snow blocked the main trail. This added a little bit of adventure to the hike as I had to free climb about 10 feet to get to the beginning of the cable section. I was able to walk on rocky ground while not even touching the cables as the snow in this section which usually necessitates the cables was melted for the most part.
Shortly past the cables, I looked off to the right and realized that I had been steadily gaining elevation as the huge snow filled cirque immediately below Mt Whitney came to view. Although the 2 miles of switchbacks are uphill the whole way, it is a gentle grade and I didn’t stop at all other than to take pictures.
Just before reaching Trail Crest was the one treacherous snow field to cross. I didn’t realize just how treacherous until I was about half way across and thought, “I wouldn’t want to drop my hiking pole down there…” (off to the right was about a 60% grade down hundreds of feet, and although it was snow, it would have been impossible to stop without the proper gear). From that point on, I was extra cautious to take every step slowly along the foot wide slushy trail.
At 11:37, after 1 hour 38 minutes and 2.4 miles of switchbacks, I reached Trail Crest and had amazing views for the first time of Sequoia National Park to the west. A sign welcomes you to the top indicating the elevation to be 13600’ which was very close to what my GPS said – 13595’. However all the research I did on the internet said the altitude was really 13700’. Either way from this point on I would be relying on 1/3 less oxygen then I was accustomed to and the going would be a bit slower.
Immediately past Trail Crest the trail descends. I even wondered if I had somehow taken the John Muir Trail which I had read comes up from Sequoia National Park instead of the Whitney Summit Trail. But my fears were soon quelled as I came to the sign marking the junction of the Whitney trail with the John Muir Trail to the Crabtree Ranger Station – a back country ranger station located below in Sequoia National Park. I continued on the Whitney Summit Trail.
The views from the trail between Trail Crest and the summit were amazing! Guitar Lake down below really looks like a guitar! And once Mt Whitney comes into view, its giant gentle slope on the west side is revealed. Also visible was the summit hut. Despite the altitude, I received my second wind here and realized that I was so close to summiting the highest point in the continental US.
After continuing on the west side of the summit ridge for about a mile and a half, and crossing one last snow field, I reached Whitney’s west summit slope and quickly made
my way up. I had my head down, trying to ignore the fatigue that was starting to set in when I looked up to see about 100 yards in front of me the same summit hut that I had seen earlier from the trail – only this time much bigger!
I had reached the tallest point in the continental US! It took me 7 hours and 15 minutes and 10.9 miles. The sense of
accomplishment was great! I signed the summit register located just outside the hut and made a tribute to my mom with a comment I left in the space provided. I was one of the last to summit that day as I got started a little later than I had planned. I remembered that only 1/3 of those who try to summit everyday make it, but I was the 60th person to summit and there were a few other names after mine when I left.
The conditions on the summit were perfect – in fact, in all my summit attempts in my past, it was pr
obably the warmest on Mt Whitney. To start the day I was worried about thunderstorms, which had started a wild fire 20 miles south just a week earlier. But this day there was not a cloud in the sky.
I took some pictures and looked around for 38 minutes on the summit, then I decided I better start heading down. The altitude was starting to have a little of an affect on me with a slight headache and by just slowing me down in general.
The trek back to Trail Crest seemed to take forever as would the remaining 8.8 miles. It had been a while since I had been on a long hike and my legs were feeling it. On the way back, near Lone Pine Lake, I spotted a deer just a few feet off the trail. It seemed to be pretty tame as it just allowed me to meander on by without so much as flinching.
I finally made it back to the parking lot with a ton of mosquito bites at 7:29pm. The final piece that made my trip complete, however, would take place as I returned to my car. Everywhere I camped there were bear boxes to keep your food locked up and away from the bears. I had overheard a few conversations about bears in the area and, in fact, when I picked up the permit, the ranger told me that they had been having trouble with a bear chasing hikers around their car to get their food as they were leaving for/returning from their hike.
Well, I ha
dn’t even seen a sign of a bear for the 2 days I had been up there, although I have to admit I was a little nervous to see if any damage had been done to my car since I had left food in the trunk (not advisable) because there were no bear boxes in the overflow parking that I could see. Anyway, just as I returned to the car, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye towards the middle of the parking lot.
As I looked up I muttered, “Oh boy…” There was a black bear walking and sniffing around the cars about 30 yards away from me. I quickly got the keys to my car out of my pack in case I needed to make a quick get away. My next move was to grab my camera. By this time, the bear ad disappeared from sight and I was a little nervous not knowing where it was an
d somewhat disappointed that I hadn’t been quick enough to get a picture.
Not to worry though – just as I had those thoughts, the bear appeared again and looked over at me and started walking in my direction. I quickly snapped a couple of pictures and jumped in the car. My adventure was now complete!
In total the hike registered 21.8 miles and took me a total time of 13 hours and 28 minutes. The scenery was breathtaking but the hike left me completely sore and drained, just in time for the 6 hour drive back to southern Utah.
Lone Pine Camp Site.
wishing I had worn pants as my legs were getting whipped by the tall grass overlying the trail. We had to go up and over 2 small draws and my legs felt every step. Finally at 4:45 after about 3 miles, we came to the edge of Deer Trap which gave us a great view of Zion Lodge below and to the north. We were both shocked to see that we had come so far south, especially considering the fact that the Weeping Rock trail head is two stops past the Zions Lodge stop!
wishing I had worn pants as my legs were getting whipped by the tall grass overlying the trail. We had to go up and over 2 small draws and my legs felt every step. Finally at 4:45 after about 3 miles, we came to the edge of Deer Trap which gave us a great view of Zion Lodge below and to the north. We were both shocked to see that we had come so far south, especially considering the fact that the Weeping Rock trail head is two stops past the Zions Lodge stop!
Inside the summit hut
A closer look at Trail Camp
And yet another closer look...
Mirror Lake from the trail above
