Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Chute or Switchbacks?

I was at REI looking to buy some crampons during their sale over the weekend. There were some other couples who were planning to climb Whitney during Memorial Day, like myself and a friend.
The REI sales clerk who did Whitney a week ago said that we should buy crampons and go up the chute instead of the switchbacks. Then on the way down he said to get some strong garbage bags and slide on your ass down and use the ice axe to slow yourself instead of walking down the switchbacks.

Question 1: Are these the same switchbacks that is the "97 Switchbacks"?

Question 2: Sliding down the chute on your ass? Is that safe? Or isn't there a risk of sliding down the whole mountain to your death?

Please advise.

Above trail camp, most take the chute until the 97 switchbacks melt so that you can actually see the trail. This early much of the 97 switchbacks are still under the snow.

I personally wouldn't slide down on a garbage bag since that might cause you to go faster and offers no additional protection. I always just slide down on my rear end, but you need to have an ice axe to keep from going too fast. Better to go a little slower then get out of control and crash at the bottom. You can keep a watchfull eye out for rocks sticking out of the snow...that helps. Usually others have already made a path you can just get into and slide down.

I you haven't glissaded this isn't the place to learn. Do a search on a hiker dying last June who had no business glissading down from Trail Crest.

There is more to glissading than meets the eye.

Bill

Use cheap coated nylon rain pants to slide down in. Garbage bags will rip to pieces. Unless you are rich, don't use Gore-Tex or any expensive fabric. They aren't very abrasion-resistant.

Better to at least read a good manual on how to use crampons. It's not as simple as they tell you. There's French technique, front-pointing, and all sorts of things to learn to use them effectively. Don't glissade with crampons on; you can break a leg or ankle if they catch. And that doesn't work very well. People stick themselves with their own equipment, too. If you're not used to them, you can trip yourself, and cause a slip or fall. When you really need them, it's pretty serious snow.

And yes, you need to learn how to use an ice axe if you do a glissade there. Little point in having one if you can't self-arrest during a slip. People die on lesser terrain, sliding out of control. The conditions can vary greatly. One day, it can be the best fun, then to be death for another party. You need experience and judgment to tell!

To re-iterate an important, no, CRITICAL point:
Do NOT glissade with campons on!!!

This is one of the most common causes of serious injuries that have been reported for Whitney in "Accidents in North American Mountaineering".

Thanks for the warnings. The death in June last year is quite ***ering. I WILL NOT WEAR CRAMPONS WHILE GLISSADING.

http://www.whitneyportalstore.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=000001

Do you use your ice axes to slow down? The ice axes also seems quite dangerous to have out. I was thinking to just use my ski poles.

How fast is the decent? Or high many miles per hour will you reach while glissading?

Thanks for all the warnings and advise.

Higgins - from the questions you are asking, I would suggest that you not glissade. This is not the first glissade you should try. The conditions of the snow not only change dependent on the weather but on this particular glissade can change on the same glissade. You do want to use an ice ax and NOT ski poles to help control a glissade. I believe trying to use ski poles is one of the factors in last year's fatality.

I agree with spinefxr. I have minimal glissading experience and wouldn't even consider glissading from Trail Crest to Trail Camp because of it's high angle yet you want to do it as your first glissade. Yes, the ice axe is used for controlling speed and self arrest. You do know how to self arrest?

There is a saying the there are old mountaineers and bold mountaineers but no old bold mountaineers.

Bill

higgins, agree with the previous two. Glissading is definitely an activity that requires the use of, and expertise with, and ice axe. You are correct, they are dangerous, especially if you are careening down a snow slope. However, poles will just not work.

As for speed, I think it could be described as "terminal velocity".

Oh, and if I came off as being a little forward in mentioning crampons, I wasn't really directing my comments specifically to you, but to our wider audience that is learning from the good questions that you have the the sense to ask, but which others might be too timid to put forth.

Unfortunately,the lottery gave me a June 11th-12th window in which to make my first ever attempt at Mt.Whitney so I'm getting a little nervous about how far I can go safely without crampons.I've never used them before and now seems almost certain by my time to go they'll be needed.
I do however have a great amount of common sense and know better than to do something stupid way up there.I'll just keep checking the posts and keep my fingers crossed and hope for heat.

fish,

it's about time you told me when to meet you for my lift up Whitney. I'll just hang around continuously from 6/10 so that I don't miss you. I've arranged to have some folks (verifiers) there from the Guiness Book of World's Records. They told me that you don't even have a time to beat - it's just considered a world's record to take someone up on your back - period. You just have to go the distance my friend. My daughter is almost done sewing the special backpack, and wants to know - do you want any particular patches sewn onto it - or your name embroidered on it. I'm so stoked - I've got friends and family coming in from all over the country to greet us at the end. The Champagne is on me. You're awesome, dude!

Your good buddy, Talus

we did it a few years back in may. lots of snow. some ice. four of us climbed the switchbacks while our friends slogged up the bowl in waist deep muck. we smoked them by 45min. we had to get creative with our route finding to avoid major ice at the top of the bowl, and i guarantee anyone who does the cables while they're covered in snow and ice is in for a treat. a few snow sections along the traverse were no problem. gliss'd down the bowl in early pm before pm icing. we used trailrunners w/ gaiters but w/o crampons, we did use ice axes, trek poles, and helmets.

regarding the glissading (Sliding down the chute on your ass), i agree with all the above advice. if you're asking how to do it on this board, it probably isn't safe for you. also, this bowl gets very steep near the top and has a fair amount of ice and rock fall, especially below mt. muir.

ps: the trash bag idea isn't a good one for this bowl - too steep

Higgins,
I am adequately experienced with glissading. When I summited Whitney in early April, 2002, I took the chute both up and down. Everything was going well on the glissade down until I hit a patch of ice. The key thing to remember is ice axes do not work well on ice. They have virtually no penetration. After wrestling with the ice in an unsuccessful attempt to self arrest for some harrowing seconds, I slide back onto snow where I regained control. This "lesson" prompted me to plunge step the rest of the way down with a careful lookout for more ice. If you have no previous experience with glissading, the TC chute would not be a good place to learn.

My friend Chris and I did Whitney 3 years ago in May and we went up the shute with crampons and ice ax. When we came down I slipped but was able to self arrest using my ice ax. I did not have my crampons on. I do not suggest sliding down on a trash bag, this if very dangerous and you could hit a rock. You can walk down side ways until you feel its safe to slide using your ice ax to slow you down. Have fun we are going June 5th and want to have a safe trip again.

Talus,

Be there at 4am and be ready to ride.I must warn you,if we get to the switchbacks and they're covered in ice,I'm going to glissade down the chute on you.Maybe we can get the record for longest glissade on a living human being.Have the cameras rolling

That's hilarious. My kids loved it - a little too much - they were rolling on the floor with laughter - "c'mon guys, get up, it's not that funny." I don't have any more comebacks - I give up - thanks!

Talus