Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board 2026

Some updates trail clearing to about Mirror Lake then mostly snow till trail crest , system yesterday May 27 did cover most of the trail from trail crest to the summit but that should blow out or get tracked in.
I think the first couple finished the HST yesterday , they used the switchbacks and said the cable area was risky with spikes and poles.

Up tick in traffic the last month since we have had warm weather, several systems and one working it's way in and out today mid 30's in the Portal and would expect teens at the upper elevation.

Bear brake in's now and many leaving food in the vehicles.

Repeat about groups leaving people on the mountain and not understanding until there is a valid injury or location rescues may not be started for hours . GET THE CAR KEYS. Stay together ! stay in communication . Have a device that sends and will receive messages .

Don't blindly follow your trail app and don't follow tracks if you can't see a logical reason why they go THERE.

The weather isn't the issue it is your understanding of the conditions and events the weather may create .

Same with gear others have suggested you need .If you don't have the gear , never used the gear and plan on the discovery method of learning a snow covered alpine mountain with miles from a rescue resource can be risky. Travel to a zone you feel secure and use the experience as training hike , do this many times before attempting a winter climb.

Not much to report , very little snow left on the trail short section at the cables that people are using the "tunnel" and a very short patch above . Cold air mass moved in yesterday afternoon and temp this AM in the Portal about 50 so could be freezing in he higher elevation, wind light this am.

Cabin for sale in the Portal rare to have one for sale Call Jennifer 760 876 1000 for details .On the upper road so no traffic and cabin is in great shape.

Jim F did a great report several days ago on trail conditions check that out.

I thought we should give a run down on late hikers , groups and solo hikers Many hikers think the trail will take 8-10 hours and tell people see you around that time frame , 16-20 hours is a good average for first time climbers , many reasons but often the down time is longer than than up, also they get lost /off trail in the dark going up or down.

We are talking with people that have waited hours for a hiker to return , they assume the person needs a rescue, , First no one has reported a person down or in trouble ...


the trail is 11 miles , where would the rescue start? We suggest the concerned person call dispatch and report an overdue hiker without a location or known injury most often Dispatch takes the report and suggest call back if they have more information and wait at the trailhead for the person to return . Often the following morning for another call to dispatch with updates did the person stay on the mountain are they moving down and any reports of other hikers seeing the person.

IF YOU DID CALL Dispatch and make a report ,and the party member comes down you need to call dispatch back and report the person is down and needs no help. 760 878 0383 option !


We are still below average temperature and ice has formed on the upper section a short duration of rain about 10 PM the other night , lite snow on the upper elevation. We are watching the monsoon build up forecast for a wet summer , these forecast are often click bait and never develop but just in case .

Yesterday I started seeing clouds ,wispy but clouds weather says no rain but I would watch if we start to see a build up and the clouds turn to a darker grey.?
Ok a person ask yesterday if it was cold on top , I answered mid 30's most likely at night , they ask if that was cold ? hard to answer question walking/moving with lite layers ,head cover , lite gloves and no wind upper body cover not pumping out your heat 30''s are often a gift vs hot days.
The problem is stopping to rest or eat ,30 is cold quick and above tree line as soon as the sun sets it is chilly .Low 40's and below sets you up for hypothermia, moving your body creates heat maybe 7-8 times of at rest plus your clothing may be moist from sweating and as you stop to cool down you open your wind breaker. So 30's become a serious concern, How long you stay at rest and are your retaining some of that generated heat? Notice often you will start to shiver after a few minutes of rest?


As with most of the issues outdoors it isn't the out it is the human element that hasn't been out in changing conditions or are prepare for the changes , going from sea level to alpine your body needs to be aware of all the levels of exposure you will encounter and you need to focus on these changes as you travel. Best way to train is be in the element , you can do body training that is great but the adaptation back to the outside is needed.

Strong cell passing through the area , north fork getting hit and the main trail canyon. Trail will turn to a river and expect wide fast moving water at the stream crossing until this system passes. Portal has had a short rain but that can change quickly' Doug Jr posted on his FACEBOOK page the main waterfall and water flowing into the pond from the North Fork AND THE POND OVERFLOWNG this is normal during these systems , avoid parking in the lower lots as often silt/mud will pack around the cars.
Facebook Doug Thompson

Badwater race going on the winners women and men records were set today , very hot temps this year so this adds to the win under harsh conditions.
Runners will be on the road tonight and all day the 29 th parking will be a mess as support crews come and go .

Monsoon holding on this week , temperature dropped today and hail on the upper elevation, 50 degrees at the Portal 7 PM on the 12 th. I would expect just above freezing at the ridge and above . another cell moving in sometime in the next 24-36 hours.

Hitting the phone a lot today for missing and late hikers , weather causing groups to split some going up some coming down .

Not much changed the last several weeks , colder nights now and more days of wind than normal. Some talk of a system moving in off the coast so watch for more wind and we may have rain /snow later this week starting sometime Sunday on.

Lost keys or waiting for the group with the keys and rescues about normal if any thing more slips and falls , another 79 year old male finishing the JMT fell near Trailside Meadow hitting his head , many reporting seeing the blood on the rocks , a group hiking down helped the person down and he drove down, So to say that next was a rock fall in the area and many thought that injury area was from the rock fall.


Hikers exiting from the long trips reporting very cold nights in the range below 20 degrees.

Many day hikers not having enough layers are turning around , this is compounded by leaving the trailhead at 12-1 AM and entering the alpine zone before or at sunrise (once the sun hits the east facing slopes a mild current/breeze is common) add that to the 25-30 degrees so shorts light jacket not enough protection.

Expect any system from now on to have snow at the upper elevation.

Recall tows /auto problems will take hours or not till the next day. I think a first a person had her car side swiped in the overflow lot while she hiked the JMT. This isn't the worst vehicle story , a lady came into the store and wanted to call dispatch , someone just ran over her she was saving a parking spot another lady decided she was going to use that spot because she had a car the other lady was bipedal ! We called dispatch and reported the lady wanted to make a report...


Wasp active in the area, we added 2 screened tents to eat in , Dark shortly after 7 pm so we are closing at 7 PM and last food order is 5:30 PM Open is the same time 9 AM

Bears active in the Alabama hills , and could travel up so store your food and packs and clean out your car/vehicles .

Second time we have had someone walk up and urinate on the building during the day happened last week , We did get a nice note he explained he didn't know why he did it and was ashamed how he acted in the Portal and Town , the other person had just finished the Bad water race and said she couldn't make it to the bathroom that she had just passed at the finish line. So the 4 th edition will have the" Rest of the stories"

You know why we don't have a shower/ the naked person sitting on the front porch , the burner that flew up thinking it was short cut to the coast...

https://beta.ngs.noaa.gov/new-datums/index.html


OK so the rest of the story on where and how high , the answer is nearing after some testing and feed back . This adjustment process started years ago and the final selection of a reference datum was established to replace both position and vertical (NAD1983,NAVD1988). The new NSRS (National Spatial Reference System) will be the new datum.


It will adjust both the vertical and horizontal location.

NAVD COULD CHANGE 4 METERS ? Going back to the last published elevation of 14494.164 +/- 13.12 feet for adjusted elevation of 14,507.287 or 14481.044 depended on reference surface published.

Some snow Sunday afternoon/night sticking above 12,000' most will melt off but weather unstable until the hurricane moves out. Watch for scattered showers and chance for high winds .

OK maybe a system with a chance for snow coming Tuesday evening and may stay around till Thursday , the last systems brought cold air , winds but little if any rain/snow.

Watch for changing condition ! When to start hints of storm moving in 5 PM Tuesday so thinking about a 10 PM start might not be a great choice.

As above cold air mass hanging around , short daylight hours now so you will be in the dark for hours , trail is dry now but we could get some coverage at the higher elevation . Not enough coverage or packed down where traction devices might help but bring anyway just in case ,these conditions could change during this system and set the basic gear needs from now on. Maybe...

Our plan is close on the 26 Oct same as the campground and start closing up , The last food day will be Sunday 25 Oct.

From the past we know we are entering into the serious hiking season , many will assume it is still a summer hike and may or will have problems , extended periods of cold ice or snow covered trail and lack of basic winter gear for the conditions. Conditions can change quickly , snow can drift and cover the trail. Often hikes take longer since you are moving slower with the added gear. Water sources may be frozen over , (also your water system may freeze).

Watch the web cam for snow coverage.

Heroes hike is coming up Nov 7 great project please join to support the Vets I will add a link to sign up with the WPSMB team Thanks Doug
https://givebutter.com/climb-for-heroes-2026