Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Memorial Day Weekend Trip Report

Since I’ve been the beneficiary of so many great stories and photos from those who went before me the last few weeks, I thought I’d add the tale of my experience up the Main Trail this past weekend, for the benefit of the first-timers who will follow me, if no one else. My teenager and I set out for Lone Pine from San Diego early Saturday morning (5/29/2010) with a Sunday day-hike permit in hand. We had planned to nab one of the walk-in campsites at the Portal and do an acclimation hike up the Main Trail that day, then set out for Trail Crest at 3:00 am on Sunday, but we decided instead to swap the day permit for an overnighter when we reached Lone Pine. On arriving at the Portal, we feasted on the biggest darned pancake the planet has ever seen (thank you, Earlene and Doug!), and then we hit the trail at 11:30 am. Having done San Gorgonio and several smaller SoCal peaks before, we were not newbies to tough day hikes, but we were new to this strenuous a hike at these elevations carrying the weight of overnight packs full of winter gear.

On the advice of members of this board, we set out on the Old Trail from the west end of the Portal parking lot instead of the Main Trail on the east end. Doing so cuts the hike to the John Muir Wilderness sign roughly in half, from about a mile to about half a mile. Apart from that first half mile, though, and again very briefly climbing out of Mirror Lake, we stayed pretty true to the Main Trail all the way up. (Tidbit for those carrying GPS devices: My Garmin device apparently “freaked out” with too many reflecting signals in the narrow canyon leading up to the JMW sign, as it shows us bouncing all over the place, up and down the path, often backtracking, over that initial climb. It added almost a full mile to the distance between the parking lot and the JMW sign!)

We set out with the goal to cover about a mile per hour and hit the Whitney Zone sign (about 2.5 miles in) in about 2.5 hours. Things slowed considerably, though, as we crossed 10,000 feet and hit the switchbacks up to Big Horn Park. We broke for a small lunch at Outpost Camp, four hours and roughly three miles into our day. Little did we know that this would be the last meal of any substance that we’d eat all day.

The climb out of Mirror Lake (10,660’) up to Trailside Meadow (11,000+) really took its toll on my son, and we needed two hours to cover the final mile to Trail Camp (12,000+). We finally reached Trail Camp (roughly 6.3 miles for us) at 7:30 pm, eight hours after we started. We made camp in a gorgeous twilight and then struggled to choke down a few bites of food at 9:00 before turning it in for the night.

The weather at Trail Camp Saturday night was just stunning. The temperature dipped well below freezing, but it was dead calm -- not one breath of wind -- and a full moon illuminated the surrounding bowl in an absolutely heavenly glow (thank you Mother Nature for the gift of that wakeup call at 1:00 am!). The crystal clear night gave way to a very warm morning -- my cheapy handheld thermometer/compass read over 40°F at 8:00 am -- which made for very soft conditions all day Sunday.

I knew overnight that my son’s climb would end there at Trail Camp, and after feeding him a little breakfast (and managing to eat some myself), I knew that he was fine to rest up at the camp while I attempted the chute. I set out at 9:15 and finally reached Trail Crest just after 11:30. I learned during that climb the importance of proper ice-axe and crampon technique, as I had to rely on my axe several times to steady myself when the slush gave way beneath me. Slow ascent notwithstanding, the climb was well worth the effort, as the views from Trail Crest are spectacular. The summit was not an option with an exhausted teenager waiting for me at Trail Camp, so I still have plenty to look forward to next time!

Having read many cautionary tales on this board about the perils of glissading, I descended about 300 feet on foot before deciding that the slushy conditions wouldn’t allow me to gain enough speed to really injure myself, and I was right. I managed to slide 600 vertical feet or so before the slush made it too much work to keep going. In all, the return to Trail Camp took about 35 minutes.

After packing camp, with my son still very beaten by the altitude, we started back down just before 2:00 pm. This time we took advantage of the shortcuts others have recommended (e.g., bypassing Mirror Lake and Bighorn Park by taking the steep slope to the south), as well as a few glissading opportunities, and cut the return trip to about five miles, which we covered in roughly 3.5 hours. My son himself noticed somewhere south of 11,000 feet that he suddenly felt more energetic, seeming to confirm that the altitude above was indeed taking its toll. We reached the Portal just after 5:30, which (unfortunately, while still in May) meant that we missed burgers at The Store by mere minutes. So, we headed back into Lone Pine, showered up at the hotel room we had booked months before, and (with appetites very much restored) devoured some pretty scrumptious burgers at the Mt. Whitney Restaurant on Main Street.

I’m sure conditions on the trail will improve rapidly over the next several weeks, but for those of you climbing for the first time in the near future, here’s what my two cents buys you: (1) heed the advice of the pros on this board, (2) pack proper ice gear and use it deliberately on the chute, (3) make sure you have waterproof boots and a good waterproof outer layer (REI Ultra Light pants and jacket did just fine), (4) take your time from the outset -- do not rush to the top, and (5) snack often, especially at lower elevations, because you just might find yourself struggling to do so closer to the top. Oh yeah ... and make sure you load up on water before Mirror Lake or have the means to boil snow higher up. Most of all, be safe, and have fun!

I’ve posted a few pics on Flickr just for grins. Enjoy!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42739917@N02/sets/72157624058377941/

Thanks for the post. We are first timers to Whitney and have a multi-day permit for June 10 - 12. We've hiked the usual so cal trainings including MMT at San Jacinto last weekend (where crampons are still required above 9,000 feet).

We're thinking of camping at outpost camp instead of trail camp. Are the trails clear to there or will we need our crampons at that level.

Thanks,

JDinSD,

thanks for posting a great TR! one never knows when altitude is going to smack you, but you understood it and had a great trip despite the circumstance.

the shortcut to the south (which is the base of the north slopes of Candlelight Peak) really is a nice alternative, but again it is steep and those that take it should have an ice ax in hand, crampons and know how to use them.

you mention that you are sure conditions will improve rapidly. on Saturday at 10am, the snow on the chute was not slushy and was good to crampon up. you mention that you started at 9:15am Sunday and had slushy conditions. that shows a change in just one day due to the high temp and cloudless sky of both Sat and Sun. also, before the snow fully melts out for those who would rather avoid it, not only will it be quite some time, but there is ice in the late afternoons through morning, slush as you indicated and suncups to negotiate in areas and that makes travel tricky and slower. in my opinion, the conditions will decline (snow wise) before they improve (dry wise.) Aslo, as soon as the switchbacks are open there will be the gnarly ice present at the cables that turns back hikers each year that aren't prepared for it.

your words and advice should be read by all first timers. i hope you come back soon!

Great TR! Thanks!

Thank you, Norma.

Cliff: I can only report what we experienced and surmise that, unless you're in deep freeze next week, your experience won't be much different. I suspect, too, that it depends on what time you're traveling. We didn't use crampons at all between the Portal and Trail Camp. The snow was patchy at worst before Big Horn Park, and the snow was so soft on the switchbacks into and out of Mirror Lake and again up the icefield from Trailside Meadows to Trail Camp that crampons weren't needed. We didn't use them on the way down either. I did need them for the climb to Trail Crest; I was hearing mixed stories about the trek along the west side to the summit - some apparently were using them, others weren't. All that said, if you're planning to take the steep shortcut that Norma talks about, I suspect you will need crampons, at least for the ascent. You should have them on you, but don't be surprised if you don't need them before the chute.