Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board First time on Mt. Whitney

We are planning a mid September backpacking trip up Mt. Whitney. Will we encounter ice on the upper elevations? How long to get from Whitney Portal to Outpost Camp? From Outpost Camp to Trail Camp? From Trail Camp to summit? I've read several books but would like to get some more personal insight.

Thanks.

Alice

Hi, Alice!

O-HI-O? T"O""O" bad there aren't very many "HI" places to train in Ohio. Sorry, I had to do that

I am a dayhiker so here goes...

Given you won't be doing much acclimatizing and factoring in the effects of altitude and your fitness level once you start from the Portal, and carrying 25-35 pounds (maybe more) of gear, and if you pace yourself, I would guess you can reach Trail Camp in 7-8 hours. Then from TC to the summit and back could take you 6 hours total (includes photo opportunities at the summit).

Ice? Well, if Mother Nature speaks, listen. If great weather prevails between now and your trip, and given the sun is lower in the horizon and the temps are cooler, you may experience ice at the cables on the switchers.

Others will definitely chime in to give their thoughts.

Welcome to the Sierra Nevada, and good luck to you and your party. We look forward to seeing the summit pictures!

Have fun.

Hi Alice. I just climbed Whitney last week for the first time with my son and daughter. We started out from the portal at shortly after 9 and arrived at Trail Camp at about 4:00. I think we got to Output camp at about 1:00 or so that day. We were carrying packs that weighed about 30 pounds each.

We are all reasonably fit and did training hikes in the Southern California mountains, up to 10,000 feet. We also spent several nights in Mammoth Lakes, at about 8000 feet elevation, before our ascent of Whitney.

Our summit day took us a little over 7 hours round trip - about 4.5 hours up, about 45 minutes on the summit, and about 2 hours to descend back to trail camp.

If you are reasonably fit and are able to do some acclimation prior to your hike your times should be in the same ballpark. I think acclimation is very important though, especially given the lack of mountains in Ohio. If at all possible, I would try to spend a few days at altitude before your climb.

Regarding the ice: We started our hike on summit day at about 7:30. A few of the spots where the springs cross the switchbacks had a little bit of ice left on them, so I would guess that in September there may be a few more spots, and it will probably last later in the morning. Keep an eye on this message board prior to your hike and you’ll be able to get a better idea of current conditions. It's a great source of information.

Good luck!

We were just out in Washington two weeks ago and hiked up to Camp Muir on Rainier. It was a great hike! We did really well there but of course we were not carrying 30 pounds on our backs. We have been training as much as is possible around Lake Erie sure don't have any altitude around here!

Thanks for the info.