Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Late August Jacket Suggestion

Scheduled for a day hike up Whitney during the last week in August. Does anyone have a suggestion for the best type of jacket to wear? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.
Smitty

Synthetic shorts, synthetic t shirt, synthetic rain-proof (not just rain-resistant) pants and parka with good hood, synthetic fleece top, synthetic gloves, synthetic balacalava. All this fits on your body or in your fanny pack. You may need some or all of these but should always take them all. Wool socks I still find better than synthetic but otherwise synthetic for everything else.

Did I mention no cotton? You can be encased in sleet, or have a dry walk in the park. "Hope for the best, be prepared for the worst." Harvey

Depends somewhat on the temp and weather forecast, but I would typically bring a soft shell jacket and a rain shell (Marmot Precip being my current favorite). If it was expected to be cold, I would also bring a down 'sweater' (I like Feathered Friends Hyperion or Helios) which add less than a pound of weight and stuff down very small.

Weather forecast is good for the next 20 minutes.

All it takes is for a localized storm cell to pop up and you are out there with Mother Nature. Had that happen to me at Trail Crest on the way down in late August myself (and a lot of other mountains)

It's always a compromise between taking too much stuff, and not enough and end up being a statistic.

Harvey, Have you (or anyone else) ever had a problem with a rain resistant jacket keeping you dry? Just curious. I haven't put mine to the test yet in a downpour. I suppose I could turn on the sprinklers to find out. I didn't like the waterproof jackets because the ones I saw didn't breathe and you might get just as wet from your own sweat not being able to evaporate. Waterproof ponchos seem to be better ventilated and don't seem to condense that much sweat since they're farther away from the skin than waterproof jackets. But I don't know too much about it so I'm open to ideas. Bob

boils down to what the definition of water-resistant is.

I want Goretex (or other similar)fabric in a jacket with hood, some storm flaps to keep my pockets and zippers dry (or not iced closed), and lots of netting layer on the inside for airspace and to keep the fabric from clinging tight against the skin. My North Face climbing jacket comes to mind.

On the other hand, I have used an lighter weight Oakley Sofware anorak in rain forest of New Zealand and stayed dry. But temps were 40-50, and only up to 4,000 ft. On Mt Cook, I went back to my North Face jacket.

Also have a Golite unlined flimsy shell. Weighs nothing. Good for water resistant and warm weather hikes only. In wind it clings to your skin and even if mostly dry, it conducts the water's coldness to you. brrrr.

Whitney is 14,000. When I was there, 35 degree at Guiter Lake and 59 degrees by the time we got to the top, no wind, t shirts, sunny day in August. By the time we got to Trail Crest on the way down we were encased in sleet and 30 mph. Could have been worse. Can happen any day. Any mountain. Glad I had my North Face that day. Harvey

You have not provided enough information. Is it a day hike or backpack and what time to you expect to be on the summit? I've been on the summit in August when the temperature was about 10F and when it has been about 60. One was predawn the other was after noon.

You have to bring extra clothes to the Portal with you for hike time decisions.

I really appreciate all the responses & suggestions. This is on of the best message board forums on the web. The day hike is on August 30th with my two other brothers. We plan to start from the portal @ 0200. This trip is part of a two week vacation. Thanks for all your advice & I'll post to let you know how we made out.
Smitty

For a day hike like this I'm usually torn between bringing an ultralight shell:

http://www.sierradescents.com/gear/2005/golite-ether-windshirt.php

or my full-service gore tex shell:

http://www.sierradescents.com/reviews/the-north-face/ama-dablam-jacket.php

The light nylon shell saves a hefty chunk of weight, but will eventually soak through in heavy rain. Depending on your willingness to turn back when the weather looks poor (and/or be cold and miserable), this can be a reasonable day hike choice.

The gore shell offers a lot more security if things go really bad--ie, a forced overnight.

Either way, I usually carry a zip capillene top and a windstopper vest to wear underneath.

Hope this helps,

Andy