Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Decision, Decisions (Clothing)

We are now in the "shoulder" season where the weather can get seriously ugly and cold quickly. There seems to be a lot of questions about what goes up the trail this time year. What follows is what goes into my decision making process as to what goes to the Sierra with and what makes the final cut once there.

Last weekend the the forecast was for highs in the thirties and lows in the twenties, sustained winds of 25 MPH and 20% chance of snow showers at 11,250'. Actual highs were in the forties and lows in the thirties, the wind was spot on both days but no snow.

Here's what what went up the trail and what stayed in the truck.

Headwear taken...
Baseball hat
Windstopper Fleece Hat
Power Stretch Balaclava
Nothing left in the truck

Core Clothing taken
Micro Grid Fleece top
Lightweight Zipper base layer top
Mid-weight Zipper base layer top
Windstopper Vest
Lightweight High Fill Power Down Jacket
Left in the car...Windshirt and Softshell hoody

Pants and underwear...
Softshell Pants
Left in truck...Convertible Pants
Note: I only take tights or long johns in the dead of winter; therefore, they did not travel with me from SoCal.

Shells taken...
PreCip Jacket and Pants
Nothing in the truck

Gloves taken...
Wind Pro Gloves
W/B Primaloft Mitts
Left in truck...Softshell gloves and W/B Mitt shells

Footwear System taken...
Midweight Backpacking Boots
Low Gaiters
2 ea. - Merino Wool Socks and Liners
Left in truck...Mountaineering boots and High Gaiters

These decisions were made based we saw when we arrived in Whitney Portal. I wish I took the Softshell gloves and left the mitts because it was not as cold as we anticipated.

We do the same thing with gear and packs.

Couple questions... what was the length of the trip and any guess on the weight of your pack?

The trip was 5 miles up the Meysan Trail to Grass Lake.

My guess the pack tipped the scales between 35 and 40 pounds. However, I did not concern myself with weight this trip. The forecast called for extremely high winds, snow showers and lows in the low twenties. With those conditions, the safety/weight scales tip towards safety.

At this point in time in my life, in camp comfort is still winning out over using my boots as a pillow, foam pads and sleeping with 3/4 of my clothing to supplement a higher temperature rated bag. My down jacket makes a really, really comfortable pillow. I am, however, open to change when it comes to backpacking gear and clothing.