My friend Ed and I just returned from a 3-day trip to Langley (1. Long Lake, 2. Langley and back to Long Lake, 3. TH and home). I made the summit, Ed came close.
It may have been reported on this forum before; if so I didn't see it, but you now need a special permit for the Langley trail and there is a daily quota. Ed and I got the last 2 permits for Sunday. I don't know what, if any, reservation system there is or what the daily quota is. But if you don't have a reservation and show up at the Lone Pine Visitor Center hoping for a permit it would be good to have a plan B.
This was my first summit of Langley so I can't do a before and after comparison, but there is now a clear route to the top. At the bottom it is a trail and above a certain point it is indicated by giant cairns.
The route is Class 1 (walking on a trail or route with no cross country skills required) for all but about 30 vertical feet. That little stretch requires finding hand and foot holds so I think that makes it Class 3. If the rule is that a whole route is defined by its hardest stretch then the Langley route is Class 3. I think that's too strict, though. I believe the trail builders could have swung further west and avoided the little Class 3 stretch but it would have added considerable distance.
I think the cairns are great. They really are creative. It looks like the builders had a contest to see who could make the best likeness of Jabba the Hutt out of stone. Above the sandy trail the cairns are placed so that from one you can always see the next one in the series. That doesn't seem to be true lower down where there are both cairns and clear trail. I wonder if the lower cairns are there to show us what to look for, or to be visible if snow covers the trail.
B.