Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Mountaineers Route on June 16

What do you guys think the conditions will be like. My permit date is June 16
It is my first time doing the mountaineers route so I don't know what to expect so early in the season.

As mentioned in my current forecast, we are into a long term trough pattern for this area. So, what will exactly happen on the 16th is any ones guess; BUT you should expect and be prepared for; cool temperatures and the possiblility of icy conditions with hail, snow or rain or all of the above. Gusty winds go along with this. You can monitor my forecasts on this site for any changes to this pattern.


dmatt

Thanks for the forecast

What are the conditions of the route like this time of year. How much ice in the chute above the notch. Will I need crampons, ice axe ... Is the chute above the notch even doable this time of year How much snow is there. Can you get water out of iceberg lake with it frozen over. I've climbed the Grand Teton, How does the chute compare?

Thank You for the info
Mike

We (2 guys from London) are heading up the Mountaineers route on June 14th, hoping to spend 2 nights at Iceberg l
Lake, was counting on water being available, now you have me thinking this may be a problem. I guess we will see how Upper Boy Scout lake looks, if its totally unfrozen, I guess we can deal with Iceberg Lake, if it is frozen, maybe we will switch base-camps, last October the lakes were not frozen, not even close. How many of you are there and when to you plan to summit?

Cheers, Duncan and Simon.

We'll be heading up on the 15th - 16th. I'm hoping for some improved conditions, but its not looking good so far. We were planning the usualy iceburg lake camp, but its looking like Upper Boy Scout may be the way to go.

Good luck you guys and maybe we'll see you up there.

I'm 16 years old and I am planning the hike with my dad and my friend. We plan to summit on the 17th.

Since nobody else is answering...

With the recent storms, fresh snow has fallen on the higher parts of the MR, so crampons and ice axe (and knowledge of their use) is highly recommended. (Check the chute up to the notch in the web cam.)

As for water at the lakes, you would certainly be able to break through the ice with your axe to get to it.

The nasty weather system seems to be stable and here to stay so count on clouds, rain and snow. The best bet for good views is to be on the summit at dawn.

Here's one way to do it that paid off for me.
Invite (trick) a friend into doing the MR (again!). Say you want to maximize the chances for good views.
So we left the portal just before sunset and thrashed up all night.
Made the notch as the sun came up. Magic!

Having a Petzl Myo Xp LED headlamp (or similar) with boost mode really paid off finding the easiest route. Don't count on wimpy little normal 5mm LED type headlamps. You want to be able to throw a spotlight beam when needed then throttle back to save battery power.

Rest breaks were very entertaining as we'd turn the lamps off and gawk at the stars.

Guys, be careful.... Steve C knows of which he speaks; new snow, 5-18 inches over hard pack or ice, at an angle or slope, is very unstable, once you slip self-arrest is very difficult.

We will bring a 60 meter rope, crampons and ice axes. Open to roping up with anyone with previous experience in team travel and self arrest.

Thx for all the advice.

Somers -I'm sure you'll have fun on it. The last few hundred feet
from the Notch to the summit can be viewed here. Not bad for early June 2007 conditions.
http://tinypic.com/r/4rw3kg/5
We were passed by this very fast solo climber, and waited for him to do it ( as well as take advantage of his steps in the hard snow!)

A 2nd tool really saved time on our ascent and descent here. We felt very secure and a rope was not needed with this technique, but you must judge for yourself. Rope 6lbs : 2nd Tool 1lb.

Lacrosse - When was this picture taken? Conditions look pretty good to me.

Thanks,

Thanks
Does anyone know which chute this picture is of. Is it the first?
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/21495132
Thanks
Mike

Mike
Yes that's the first after you make the notch. You can hide from the wind behind a little tower right there and psych up.

Compare the difference in how big the climbers look in your panaramio pic and the same chute pic I posted of the solo climber we saw who was a bit lower down when I took the picture.

Awesome
Is that the amount of snow coverage this time of year. Is that what I should expect on June 16th?
Thanks
Mike

Sure. Very good chance it'll look exactly like that.

Saw a news story today from Colorado where a mtn guide and several
clients (who were roped together) all fell several hundred feet
down a snow slope injuring everyone when they crashed into the rocks at the bottom, when one slipped and pulled everyone off.

Seems they were not setting running belays to prevent such an accident and mistakenly thought they could arrest a fall.

Yeah, looks like we can expect a few thunderbolts up at iceberg on our dates, is there any place to lie low up there? Never been up there myself, last year we only got up to the moraine due to time constraints. Lower boy scout had some trees that might have provided a bit of cover, although there was a downed tree with a blackened bottom which was either lit by people or lightning, I thought is was a black bear in the dark when I went out for a pee.

Ya... What do you do if you are caught in a thunderstorm at Iceberg lake. I was caught in a huge thunderstorm a couple weeks ago in the sierras on Anderson Peak but we had trees. What is the procedure?
Thanks
Mike

Run. Fast. Downhill.

looks like more snow in June than in May - be careful on the mountain for the next week.

weather forecast