Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Winter Access Forum Questions on Mt Whitney Climbing Nov. 14/15

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? I note the area to the right of the switchback area as a straight up route...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 anyone 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....Thanks for your input........

Similar to Sgt Mac, I just want to follow up on his question as I am considering the same thing but on the day after Thanksgiving, 2 weeks later. --- Also, I am looking for a hiking partner(s) during this time. I am a normal backpacking enthusiast and if you are interested please email me at kern.placentia@gmail.com. --Dan

Dan -
See the post entitled: "Whitney Summit-Nov 14th". Same question, more answers.