Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Side trips

Looking for side trips. My son and I are heading up with the vague plan of Portal->Trail Camp - T.C.->Summit->T.C - Trail Camp->Portal. I want to throw a few extra days/nights in there for photos/exploring etc. and am looking for suggestions. Crabtree Lakes?, Pinnacle Ridge?, Iceberg Lake (not looking for MR...). Suggestions?

Thanks!

Depends on your ability level! I had some fun scrambling to the top of Wotan's Throne in June while at TC, but you need to be comfortable with some route finding, Class 2 (mostly, some Class 3) rock scrambling, etc. It had some wonderful views of Muir, The Needles, Whitney, and Pinnacle Ridge. You might also try the Meysan Lakes trail before you head up the Main Trail. Cool views of Lone Pine Peak, and a different perspective back down to the Owen's Valley. Can't speak to the Crabtree Lakes yet: I'm heading there mid-August.

Have fun!

-L

The last few times up, I've been wondering about the tarns between Pinnacle Ridge and Trail Camp. They sure look pretty from the summit, so I'm definitely going to explore the area sometime in the near future. I'm guessing class 2 terrain, at worst.

My son is only 8, so I can't go too far over the top in difficulty. His confidence exceeds his skill at times, so I have to be careful. Class 2 is no big deal for semi-short stretches.

We made it to just under Keeler Needle last year and had to turn back due to T-Storms brewing . With light hail and cracks of thunder coming down the switchbacks we made the right move... We'll make it this year!

take the detour to Lone Pine Lake - lots of good scenery there

I'm thinking the sideshow after summiting Whitney will be to head to Guitar Lake and explore the Arctic Lake / West side area for a few nights, as opposed to going to Crabtree Lakes.

Does anyone have any opinions of this area?