Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Ascension and descension times

Greetings - I climbed Mt. Whitney in one day - barely, if 24 hours is one day. It took me 10.5 hours to reach the summit, and 9.5 hours to descend. With an hour on top, that's 21 hours on the mountain!! I am a 55-year old female, relatively good shape, and I worked out for the year leading into my August ascent, climbed local mountains at elevation, and basically did everything I could to be as ready as possible. I have never heard of anyone taking this long! The descent was grueling - it truly took on it's own persona. My husband did it when he was 41yrs old in 12 total hours, and thinks the time it took me was just outrageous. I felt good about my "achievement", but now am wondering if I hold the record for the longest time! Anyone want to comment? (I left at 1:30a.m., reached the summit at noon. Descended at 1:00pm, and got back to my car at the portal at 10:30pm!)

I've read than a 9-11 hr ascension time is the norm for first-timers and descent time is about 1/3 less.

So what it took you 21 hours? You did it. The question is: did you enjoy yourself? There is too much macho chatter about times. Unless you can run this thing, why worry about how fast you do it? I also suspect that in the age of the no identity internet that many claims about how fast people have done the trail may be slightly exaggerated.

Timing is always different for me. My "norm" has been 8-9 up and about 6 down. But I take a lot of pictures and like to stop for 5-minute breaks about every 60-90 minutes.
This year I was on the summit in 7 hours but I left much earlier. I think that made it faster because I didn't take nearly as many photos...
No need to set speed records - enjoy the walk, the scenery, talk to folks on the trail, be safe and reach the Portal again are the only requirements.

It once took me 26 hours to do the round trip.
Recently, an older gentleman didn't get down before 53 hours had passed.

I don't think anyone know's what the "average" time to do the hike from the Portal to the summit and back via the main trail. Sometimes in summit registers on mountains I see people's times posted next to their names, and I know it has often taken me twice as long to get there as it took those who posted their time. I think you hear more about time from fast people, because they are proud of their speed (nothing wrong with that, but not everyone is built for speed).

No matter what your speed, you should be really proud of yourself because I'm sure the amount of people that can even do that hike is a small minority of the general population.

Kathy

I think that what's outrageous is your husband saying anything besides "congratulations." You did something that 99+% of people couldn't do in any time.

The hike down is really grueling. You're tired and the chance of a misstep and serious injury is very real. If you're like me, your knees are screaming for mercy. It's best to just put one foot in front of the other and let it take it's own time. The worst problem is that you were too late for a beer and burger at the Portal.

You did it. Congratulations.
Harvey


I love mountain quotes - this one seems appropriate for the slowness we all experience in various degrees in the thin air up there.

He abided by the Diemburger theory which maintains that slow, no matter how slow, but constant movement is the best way to achieve progress at altitude.
Joe Tasker, Everest the Cruel Way page 84

Ran into a lady last summer at Outpost Camp who proudly told us she was on her 35th hour of a "leisurely dayhike". This was about 1:00 pm and she had started at 2:00 am the previous day. I'd guess it took her another 5 hours to get back to the Portal at the rate she was moving, so call it 40 hours - at least.

You got to the summit, you got down safe, and you hopefully had an outrageously fulfilling experience. If you start obsessing about your time compared to others, a lot of the satisfaction you feel will evaporate. Hike your own hike and let others worry about theirs. A number of highly confident uber-athletes have been turned back before the summit because they simply couldn't cope with the altitude, so you're one up on them. Congrats!

I'm big on "hike your hike". If it takes 6, 16, 21, 40 or 53 hours, so be it.

Based on the board postings, most would fall into the 13 to 18 hour range.

You got to Whitney Portal 21 hours after your start...and that is the most important thing.

When kiddie and I finished the first time in 16 hours...after thinking we'd breeze through in 12, Kiddie said to anxiously waiting wifey, "We're still alive!"

Your husband was right. Your time was outrageously fantastic for you. I am faster than some and slower than others. I learned a few years ago that trying to hike at someone else's pace that I couldn't keep up with stripped a lot out of me, including some of the fun and most of what I had eaten that day. I try to remember that vomitous experience with people who are slower than me. You shouldn't hike your husband's pace anymore than you should wear his glasses. Congratulations on a great hike.

First - I wanted to wish you huge congratulations on making it in a day. That is a major accomplishment, regardless of how long it takes.

I too, am in my fifties, and the downhill sometimes takes me longer than the uphill, thanks to my aging knees. I think that is more an age thing than anything else.

I have several health issues, including impaired lung functioning, which make me horribly out of breath at altitude. Consequently, I am consistently the slowest person I see anywhere. Once on Mt. Baldy, a rather rude young man looked at my slow pace and said "why bother". Well, I may be slow, but I enjoy every second of it, and take my very frequent breaks as an opportunity to drink in the beauty and scenery surrounding me.

I have never subscribed to the "hiking as competitive sport" attitude, so I am quite fine with always being the slowest. You are certainly not the slowest person on Whitney, and there are always quite a few people who start out really fast, burn out, and then never finish. You have to hike your own hike, at your own pace, and in your own way. Kudos to you! You did great!

Well, first off, good work for summiting and getting down safely, that's the important thing. That is great.

I think the fact that you kept safely pushing on is more important and a show of character. I don't think the best response would be "outrageous", unless the person it came from can run it roundtrip in 4-5 hours like many can.

If the time it took you bothers you for whatever reason, look into ways to shorten it next time in things like gear selection, training, logistics, SLEEP, etc.

The first time I climbed it, Whitney was essentially the first time I was ever that high and I was not properly prepared, in many ways including fitness. It took about the same time up, a grueling 10hrs, though I got down quicker in about 7. My very patient g/f waited for me while I was so slow, while I am sure she could have done it an hour or more faster.

The second time it took 7hrs to get up and 5.5hrs down, third time about the same in the Spring snow.