Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board road to portal open?

Hi all, I come to the Portal every year. Some remember me as the one who found a body in Lone Pine Lake. I am wondering if the road to the portal is open yet? I used to come every year with my dad to fish. Since his death a few years ago, I now come every year with my son. Thankx for any info you might have.
-Rel

Yes, easy access.

The road was clean prior to last weekend, but at this time of year, debris is still falling on to the road, so there may be a few rocks to negotiate around.

You found a body in Lone Pine Lake????? Gee, that is not a common everyday discovery. What happened? What time of year? You have raised our collective curiosity.

This happened shortly after D, E & D took over the portal store. I actually thought it was a blue tarp at first. Earlene had to use a radio-phone to call it in. I had gone up there to try the lake for fishing. Anyways, glad the road is open, I think I will head up. Oh yes, and as best I remember, it was about this time of year.

When I drove out from the portal last night, the crews working on the road had enhanced the "Road closed" sign by stringing a line across the road, and had created a little berm/barrier (more like a speed bump) of rock and dirt across the road just beyond this. To get out I had to drive over this and was able to drive around the line / sign. One could still easily drive around this on the way up (after work hours) and make it to the portal. They aren't ticketing cars at the portal, although a road crew person left a hand-written note on my windshield saying that the road was CLOSED and to watch out for equipment on the way out. There was no equipment parked in the road, but sand and rocks had been bulldozed from the edges of the road into piles, obstructing the uphill side. So going in, you would have to drive on the wrong side from time to time.

When I was at the Lone Pine Ranger Station Saturday morning to pick up a permit, they said the road was closed and the CHP was ticketing vehicles up to and at the Portal.

Same for the Onion Valley road. I inquired about the gate on the Horseshoe Meadows road and they said it was still locked.

Just as Bob R said. When I got a NF day permit on Sat evening the ranger warned that the CHP were ticketing cars at the portal.

On Sat evening there were about 12 cars at the portal, but none had any tickets on the windshields.

Talk to some guys that had driven up on Thurs afternoon and said that the construction crew warned them that the road was closed and that they could shuttle their stuff up to the portal but had to park below the ROAD CLOSED sign. They just drove back up after the crew had left.

Rangers didn’t have any estimate on when the road will open. He said it’s up to the county to decide when the road will open.