Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Winter Access Forum Whitney Summit-Nov 14th

Hi Summiters,

We are planning to summit Mt Whitney thru Standard trial during Nov 14th weekend. Our itinerary goes like this

Day 1(11/14)
a. Get Permit around 10AM
b. Start Hiking around Noon. Trailhead (Mile 0.0; 8,637')
c. Hike 6.3 miles and setup tent around 5 PM @Trail Camp (Mile 6.3; 12,039')

Day 2 (11/15)
a. Start Early like 5AM
b. Hike 5.7 Miles by 10AM up to Summit (Mile 11.0;14,497.61')
c. Head down around 11AM
d. Hike down 5.7 Miles by 3PM, Reach Trail Camp (Mile 16.7; 14,497.61')
e. Hike down 6.3 Miles by 6PM, Reach Whitney Portal Trailhead (Mile 22; 14,497.61')

We are 3 adults, average physique, (did 15 mile river trial in Grand canyon in 12 hours during last new year). I need your expert opinion about my itinerary?

I'd appreciate it.

Thanks,
Jo

I think the times are reasonable. One question I would ask: Do you have crampons and axe?

People are still making it up the Main Trail route without, but it's not a good idea.

Thanks for the supporting words Richard.

Absolutely, based on peoples's comments, we are planning to go with winter gear Crampons, Ice Axe ,Water proof wear/shoes.

Question that i have is,is it necessary to have snow shoes, crampons of c2 or c3 type?

Thanks,
Jo

I had to go and look up the C ratings. It's been a long time since I've seen someone mention them.

If there isn't anymore snow between now and then, and you have winter experience on icy trails, something like micro-spikes will work. If you want more secure footing than that, c1 or c2 will do the trick. You don't need anything like a c3 crampon for the Main Trail.

As conditions exist right now, the snowshoes would be extra weight that you won't need to use.

Watch the postholing between Trail Camp and Trailside Meadow during the afternoon. A lot of people have been going down to the creek because of soft snow during the warm part of the day.

See you up there hopefully Jo, three of us have planned to summit via the MR on the 14th.

I live in the North East and I will be in the Mt. Whitney area on the weekend of Nov. 14/15. I was planning a climb and had a few questions. Clearly it appears that full winter gear is needed at least in several sections of the climb. My thought is to attempt the least technical route up as I will be traveling alone, I assume this is the Main Whitney Trail. How well is this trail marked? How challenging is the switchback area? Do you have any idea of slope degree? Any suggestions on times/ camping places overnight....ect. I am an experienced winter moutaineer and not willing to take unnecessary risks, especially while I am alone. Any thoughts you can provide would be appreciated.Are full crampons needed for the whole time or just some icy spots? Do I need plastic boots (crampons fit these) or can I get away with heavy leather boots and micro spikes? Is the Main trail a relatively safe climb compared to the MR route? I see that there are several groups going up on that weekend....weather permitting...so I am some what comforted by the fact there will be other climbers on the mountain. I climbed the Emmons Glacier route on Rainier this past summer if you are familiar with that maybe you can use it as a reference to this climb>>> Jo 's timeline was helpful...

Richard is really the best source of info due to his breadth of experience on both routes, but I can't help putting in a few words. I have been up the MR 3 times, 2 in snow, once dry. It is a straight forward route and there is good camping at Upper Boy Scout Lake (UBSL). Unless there is recent snow, there will be tracks and the route will be obvious. The crux is the last 400' from the "notch" at the top of the chute leading up from Iceberg Lake. This portion is the steepest, and if it is similar to 3 wks ago you will go from snow to rock and back to snow. Class 3; caution but not protection necessary.
I have not been up the Main Trail in snow so cannot comment with first hand knowledge. I did speak with a climber on the summit 3 weeks ago who was surprised at the number of people climbing the trail with crampons, but no ice ax. His point was that the crampons will improve your traction and adhesion to the mountain, BUT if you do slip you MUST have an ax to arrest your fall. His adage: if you need crampons, you need an ax and the knowledge to use it!
Compared to Rainier, if there is not a weather problem, either Whitney route should be much easier. On Whitney there are no crevasses, rare rock or ice fall danger, and your starting elevation is about 3000' higher.
Leather boots should be fine.

Regarding my comment about "protection not necessary", comfort level varies widely from person to person, so one may want protection and a rope where another feels fine.

I agree 100% with this. The MR is definitely the way to go if you can deal with the Final 400'. It's shorter and the climbing is whole lot more fun. With the number of people who head up there these days, route-finding really isn't an issue unless you happen to be the first one up after a big dump. (Advice in this case is to wait until someone who knows the route heads up and puts in a good track, so that there aren't a bunch of tracks leading to nowhere.)

I've been spending most of my time lately on the Main Trail because I think it's a better workout.

In regard to the axe and crampons combo: I'm one of those who doesn't carry an axe until the steepness of the terrain requires it. I carry a fairly short axe, and using it on something like the Main Trail makes balance more difficult than two poles. And, contrary to what some people think, I can arrest with a pole on less severe terrain. (I've had to do it!) (Mike told me a couple of weeks ago that Peter Croft talks about using the pole/crampon combo in one of his books.)

How about the pole/crampon/ax combo? Our guide on Rainier had an ax/pole combo on one pole. IE: One pole had an ax head on the top of it. Covers all of the bases I guess! I've not seen one since.

I have a pair of Black Diamond Whippets for Backcountry Skiing. They have an axe blade integrated into the pole handle for self-arrest. They're too heavy for everyday use.

I am looking for a hiking partner(s) during Thanksgiving weekend. I plan to start the ascent in the morning the day after Thanksgiving. I am a normal backpacking enthusiast with winter gear. If you are interested please email me at kern.placentia@gmail.com. --Dan