Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Altitude sickness

Hi,

I am 18 years old and have just started backpacking in the last year. I live in Southern Calif. and have hiked San Gorgonio, Jacinto, and Baldy. When I hiked San Gorgonio twice I got sick, but when I hiked Baldy and Jacinto I didn't get sick. Dose anyone know why this is, is it my age or just starting backpacking for the first time. I ask this because my dad dosen't ever get sick when we hike in the thin air.

Thanks, The Great Macho

probably 'cause it's the longest hike of the three, Gorgonio's slightly higher (thus larger elevation gain), you were more dehydrated. Or combination of any two or of all the factors above...

lukasz

XC-Runner,

Next year will be my first chance to get altitude sickness. Haven't had a problem yet, but going to do Mt. Whitney next year. Everyone seems to have a different amount of tolerance to it. There is a pill you can take that will do anywhere from reduceing the altitude sickness to eliminating it. Again depends on the individual. I know some people may not be helped at all. Also allowing yourself to become acclimated to the altitude may sometimes help out. What causes the nausea or the headaches, I don't know. Thin air would be my guess in comparison your daily surroundings and atmosphere would be different for everyone making some more tolerant than others. Just my guess.

Good luck XC-Runner.

As many people on this board know, I'm not in favor of popping pills. You're probably thinking about Diamox, but there are other pills to pop as well.

I live already at 4k feet so acclimation is not as much of a problem for me. In fact, it's not a problem at all for me. But that's me.

If you're coming up from sea level or thereabouts, perhaps Diamox or some other temporary remedy will work for you. There's no real way to find out. I'm sure I would get sick on McKinley, mainly from anxiety and being out of shape rather than altitude. I'm asthmatic and can't breathe most of the time anyway

All I can say is test yourself gradually. I drove my brother to the Ancient Bristlecones (10k ft) a couple years ago and he almost fell down and he lives next door...while I stood and watched him and waited for him to hurry up and quit being dizzy.

The following year, 2001, we hiked the Methuselah Trail in the Bristlecones without even a gasp of breath, but last summer he chickened out and would not climb Whitney with me so I gave the extra pass to someone else.

Well, hate to bend your eyes on this but I'm sure there are many people who would like to see me barf on the Sky Pilots. It's not gonna happen!

I was afraid of Whitney...I'm not any more. I would be afraid, however, if I had to climb the East Face to get there...I want my feet ON THE GROUND.

Vince

A word of caution with Diamox. I tried it a couple of years ago. Started taking it the day before a Whitney attempt. I had such a bad reation to it that the hike was called off. If you are going to try it, take a test dose a couple of weeks before your hike to insure you don't have a reaction to it.

What you describe are classic AMS symptoms. There is no rhyme or reason as to when it strikes. The best you can do is to stay hydrated and take a couple of days to acclimatize.

The drug route is another way to go but I wouldn't go that way until you find out how debilitating the effects of AMS are for you. My experience was almost everytime I went over 10,000' overnight I had an alien trying to crawl out of my right eye but the last straw getting it at 7,500' on a trip to June Lake. The side effects can be mild, tingling of the extremities and soft drinks and, God forbid beer, tasting like crap for duration of the dosing period and 72 hours thereafter, or they can be severe like a previous poster cited. If you want to go the drug route sit down with your doctor and discuss it with him then you can make an informed decision.

Bill

I've climbed Whitney twice and never got AMS. Everyone is different but I think good preparation can make a world of difference. Everyone should take the time to get in shape first. Aerobic training to maximize heart-lung efficiency worked well for me. I jogged two miles a day on the treadmill for 6 months prior to ascent. Also drink lots of water and force yourself to breath more deeply. That's all the drugs really do anyway. If you've had trouble before or it's the first time then take extra days to camp at the Portal and acclimate yourself first. It all sounds simple but I think good preparation works. Lastly, don't psych yourself out, enjoy the surroundings, Whitney is a great place!

Gorgonio is approx. 11,500 ft. elevation.(About 1,000 ft. higher than Jacinto) I have also noticed a big difference between the two.I think that 11K is about where the average conditioned person will begin to really notice altitude. This seems to be largely related to genetics though, so don't take it personally when someone else (even your Father)does better than you on a given day in the mountains! The drug you refer to is probably Diamox. I tried it on Whitney a few years ago and had terrible luck. It made me feel ill, and perhaps worse it totally squashed my appetite. On the advice of experienced mountain types I adopted a routine for Whitney that works very well for me. Starting 48 hrs before trailhead departure I take 2 aspirin every 4 hrs. I continue this until I get below about 10,000 ft on the return from higher altitude. The buildup of aspirin in one's system works well for many, but you have to have a strong enough stomach to handle that much aspirin. It may work well on Gorgonio for you too, you may want to try just a 24 hr. lead time starting the aspirin there. Good luck!