Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Taking kids from Onion Valley to Whitney

I would like to hear from anyone who has hiked from Onion Valley to Whitney with kids. I have done the route myself and want to take my 2 boys (10 and 12) this July. Any input/thoughts would be appreciated.

Age 10 is young. It is felt that pre-pubertal kids may be more susceptible to altitude illness.

First hand info:

I did that route with my son age 14 in 1996. He did fine. His 12 year old younger brother twisted his ankle and had to bail out the day before. Good thing. He never could have made it. We learned over the years (beginning at age 10 on Whitney) that he was very susceptible to AMS at less than 10,000 ft. (The "official" medical definition of altitude illness starts at 8,000). He needed more than the 1-2 days of acclimatization of his brother and father. He needed 4-5 days. Only after several problem trips and restarts did we get the correct combination for him. Now, knowing what to do, he can enjoy much more once acclimatized, like a thirty-mile dayhike from Tuolumne to Mammoth.

Be sure your guys have some altitude experience before you go over 12,000 ft Kearsarge Pass. Day hikes are not enough. The extra work of carrying a pack for a multiday trip really does exacerbate the problem.

It could be worse than not getting over Kearsarge on day one. You could be further into the trip, down in Vidette Meadow, unable to get over Forester, and have to go back up Kearsarge to get out. I have had to carry another's pack and mine in the same situation elsewhere.

Please don't think I am just a naysayer. I am sure that there may be some more positive experiences, but I hope my comments will instill some caution and some experience beforehand.

"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst"

Harvey

PS I see you are from TN, us from VA. We flatlanders really need some days going to CA to un-jetlag, three time zone changes, and adjustment to altitude. I go West 2 to 3 times each year, plus elsewhere high. We keep lengthening our pre-acclimatization regimen. It has made all the difference in the world for those in our circle who are AMS-prone.

Is Kearsarge Pass 12,000 ft. I thought it was around 11,000. Just curious. I took my 8 year old son up there two tears ago and he was kicking my but, and had energy to boot when we got to the top. That boy was climbing all the rocks and ledges up there checking out the marmots while we sat eating out lunch.

11,700 rounded to 12k

greg, was that a dayhike? if so the old adage "climb high, sleep low" comes to mind. It's much, much easier to do a 12k dayhike compared to 12k backpacking, especially a 5-7 day one with passes of 12k Kearsarge, 13k Forester, 14k Trail Crest.

The point I am emphasizing is to get some dayhiking and more importantly backpacking experience with altitude on a shorter trip first, and/or start with an easy day or two or three. That's good acclimatization-to-altitude-advice for adults as well as kids.

From Nathan's and my experience, I believe kids are capable of a lot more than we often give them credit for. The key is to be sensitive to their condition and flexible enough in your plans to react quickly if they do have problems.

We live at about 500' near St. Louis, so we start from scratch on any of our mountaineering trips. Nathan went to Crater Lake, Oregon, when he was about 2-1/2 (only between 7,000' and 8,000', granted) and hiked the trail from the rim down to the lake and back up under his own power. That's about a mile each way and 700 or 800 vertical feet.

Then when he was 5-1/2, we went up to Mt. Ritter, camping above Ediza Lake at about 9,500' and wandering around up to at least 10k. At 6-1/2, we went out to CO and rode the cog up to Pikes Peak, about 14,100'. We had already been out to Aspen and over Independence Pass at that point, so he was well acclimated.

When we did Whitney in '01, he was 12. We spent two nights at Mammoth Lakes (8,000') and did a day hike up Glass Mountain to about 11k in between, then headed down to Whitney and hiked up to Trail Camp (12k) before summiting the next day.

Acclimation is certainly important for all of us, kids probably more so. As long as the child is old enough to tell you accurately where it hurts, and you are watching for potential AMS symptoms, by all means, take them along...they'll slow you down a bit but the enjoyment in their sense of accomplishment is more than worth it and you'll set them up with a love of the mountains that many of us didn't discover until we were adults.

Trip reports for many of our meanderings are on my WWW site.

Chemo, That is a great trip. It is one of my favorites, I have been on that trip with kids aged 10-16 boys and girls. They have all done great. Take your time and enjoy. We usally spend first nite at onion valley trailhead to acclimize.On summit day get up early and you can be on top of Whitney for sunrise and beat all the tourist back to the Portals for a big Juicy Burger,my kids favorite part. Have fun.Magg