Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board 50 years old

I turned 50 last year. Missed out on Whitney having summited the year before via the MT, but managed to summit Russell via the Rockwell variation as a warm-up for Polemonium; last of the sierra 14ers for me!
Age is not slowing me down, just making me go a little slower!

Turning 52 in a few weeks. I think it is the new 42. But this sudden elevation of age has me thinking of doing my first Mt. Whitney this year. Planning a one day solo. Not sure anybody warned me about getting blisters on my fingers from repeated entery of my password into my online credit card to check for permit charge. LOL


Thanks so much for all the info provided by so many of you,experts and amateurs alike. This resource really should be considered mandatory reading and browsing peace
jeff

Inspiration, move me brightly
Light the song with sense of colour
Hold away despair
More than this I will not ask
Faced with mysteries dark and vast
Statements just seem vain at last
Some rise, some fall, some climb
To get to Terrapin

hunter/garcia

I'll be sure to direct my buddies to this link. Most of my buddies are in their 30s, overweight, lethargic, and speed dialing Death to come and take them away. You guys are truly inspirational.

When I turned 50 three years ago, I was 25 pounds overweight. My 50th birthday present was my first colonoscopy, which resulted in discovery of a polyp the size of a walnut and the consequent surgical removal of one foot of my large intestine. Fortunately all went well and I was able to heal rather quickly.
Fast forward to last year- at age 52 I lost 15 of those pounds, began a regimen of conditioning, hiking and backpacking, and successfully summited last August. Although it wasn't done in one day, the feeling of accomplishment rejuvenated me to continue a healthier lifestyle and another return to the mountain this year, and probably many more before I turn 60. The High Sierra Trail and the JMT are on my list of things to do within the next 5 years.
I firmly belief that we are only old if we allow ourselves to think we are.

You know, it's only once in a great while that I stop and think about having passed through fifty. Most of the time, while I'm out there, I still act and feel much, much younger than that.

Here's hoping that this attitude doesn't eventually bite me in the rear!

mono wrote: "...and speed dialing Death to come and take them away." LOL!

I'll keep going until I can no longer do it, or something happens.
Hopefully I'll have the smarts to notice my limits becoming reduced and at some point slow down.
But why ever stop? I could have decades of enjoyement ahead of me! ( says the 48year old )

More power to those of you 50 and over who still get out and do this. I'm hoping to be one of those who still does this kind of thing as long as I possibly can. Checking in at 44. (I will admit it is kind of fun when I'm in climbing shape to pass up people half my age)

wtny n1 said
>I should record my 60th summit attempt this >summer.

Again from all the info gathered around here I see the wisdom in counting the attempts. Not the summits. I guess the only difference between the two should be elevation.
peace
jeff

Maybe I caused a little confusion when I used the words summit attempts. I've acuatly been sucessful 53 out of 54 times on reaching the summit in 1 day. The One I missed was a double summit day and my hiking partner became sick during the night portion of the hike. I never start a whitney hike not prepaird to make the summit. Maybe when I'm in my 90's I will have to turn around early, but don't plan on it.
See you in the trail!

Jack Northam
San Diego, Ca.

Reminds me that there's one more thing on my Whitney "to-do" list.

I first summitted Whitney 5 years ago, 4 months before I turned 60. Took six hours to get to trail camp. On day 2, five hours to summit and then we went all the way down, got back to the store in time for burgers and garlic fries! I'm not fast, just steady. For my 65th, I hope to be drawn for an overnight permit this year. If not, I plan to do a "modified" day hike. By that I mean, I will spend a few nights at Onion Valley with day hikes above there. The night before the permit date I will leave the portal in time to hit the permit zone around midnight. If possible I'd like to set a good enough pace to be at trail crest by dawn. I am leaning that way even if I do get drawn. Anyone have any suggestions or ideas for night time hiking? Is route finding difficult? Is is realistic to turn off my headlamp and hike by starlight?
Thanks for any advice or comments, Lynn

If you're heading up any time around the full moon, there will be enough light to hike by. (I rarely turn on the headlamp, even in the trees, during a full moon night.)

You need someone who has more knowledge about the setting of the moon over Trail Crest to let you know what time you'll lose the light. (I seem to recall a mid-summer hike up a few years ago where it disappeared around 02:00. My December Full Moon Climb had the moon disappear at about 04:00.)

I did the one day hike last year at age 54. And the year before with my 14 year old son. Leave the Portal early, take your time and you'll be back at nightfall. Just remember it's "up like a tortorise, down like a hare." This year it's the Mountaineers Route.

Hi Some quick answers the moon needs to clear Lone Pine Peak first then covers the area from the Portal to trailcrest for several hours then will tend to go behind trailcrest and you are in the dark from about 2AM till sunrise about 4-5 AM and the same happenes with the sun not hitting the trail on the backside of trailcrest until later in the day so if you hit all the wrong spots you can travel in the dark and cold for many hours, leaving the Portal around 3AM keeps you out of the long cold section from trailcamp to trailcrest in the dark and having sun on you from trailcrest to the summit. Also first light starts the rocks heating and air tends to move early morning you would be low enough that the trees would block the wind ,(off the surface) Thanks Doug