Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Driving time from San Francisco

OK, now that our route is settled (NAP and Miter Basin), it's time to think about getting to the trailhead. From San Francisco, Yahoo Maps sends me on 580, 5, and then a long stretch on 120 over Tioga Pass, then down 395 and times it all at 8.5 hrs. Is this faster than taking 99S to Bakersfield, 58 to Mojave and coming up 395? And will it really take over 8 hrs? We'd like to get to Lone Pine by early afternoon.

I believe 120 to 395 ought to be faster than going down 99 and 58 to 395.

8.5 hours is a fair estimate. Yahoo Maps tends to be somewhat conservative. Perhaps, if you don't stop anywhere and drive very fast (i.e. well above posted speed limits) you could be there in under 7 hours. Typically, it should take between 7-8 hours.

It takes me 7 hours (406 miles) to drive from Vacaville (east of Fairfield on the I-80) to Ridgecrest going down I-5, over 58 to Mojave and up hwy 14. Ridgecrest is 80 miles south of Lone Pine, and takes me 1 1/4 hrs to drive that.

One time I drove from Ridgecrest to Vacaville by going up 395, over Sonora Pass, then up the 99. It took 11 hours. (That means had I left Lone Pine it would have been just under 10 hours).

I know it's not exactly what you wanted, but I hope it helps nevertheless.

My buddy and I hiked Whitney a couple of years ago. We drove from Santa Cruz. It took us 8 hours to get there. We were under the impression that it was the fastest route (through Yosemite on 120 and then down 395).

John

It's just under 8 hours.
I usually do 580->5->58->14->395
I've driven this route 3 times.

Though as a variation you could do
580->205->99->58->14->395

We come back through Yosemite (we have a yearly pass, if you don't it will cost you $20 to drive though.) via 120. I don't know if it takes longer to take the winding 120 road, but it sure seems to.

Remember that you have to get to Lone Pine Ranger Stn by 5pm to pick up your permit unless you call them to put it out in the night box.

Ellen

I think Yahoo is probably correct about it's time estimate. However I believe it does not factor into it's estimate summer traffic, day of the week, time of day and the number of vacationers and RV's on 120. There are stretches of 120 where passing is not practical if darn right impossible.

Obvious choices here are mid-week travel, early in the morning or later in the evening.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think the rangers at the entrances close their kiosk around 7 PM but you can still enter the park. You can pass through Yosemite at night without having to pay the entry fee.

The rangers seem to be keeping the kiosks open later with the longer days. I had to show my pass at 8pm two weeks ago. Be careful speeding in the Park. I usually see 3 rangers running speed traps on a give trip thru the park. Two weeks ago I was headed home from Mt. Whitney and was passed in Tuolomne Meadows by a speading SF bound 4 Runner that was pulled over by Tioga Lake. I would hate to see what the fine was because when I was passed in a 35 mph zone she was going atleast 70. I would be curious to hear from those who have been caught what the feds charge for speeding in the park. I just set the cruise control on 5 over and I haven't been pulled over. I would suspect a radar detector works fairly well. I don't suspect the rangers have to work very hard to catch people because they always have someone pulled over and there are plenty of speeders. They have a nice looking unmarked white Tahoe that has no visible lights or other identification, but I have seen it with plenty of cars pulled over recently. It seems to be new this year. Best of luck and watch out for the deer.

Bill Strand
Modesto, CA.

Over the years, I've done all the composite portions of San Francisco-to-Lone Pine using both of the main routes being discussed here. Barring any problems on one route or the other, I would pick going through Yosemite as being quicker (and more scenic overall).

A "San Francisco to Lone Pine" driving directions search on MapQuest takes you through Yosemite (shortest). That route, from city center to town center is 355 miles. To get the MapQuest total for the southern/longer route, I did "San Francisco to Bakersfield", "Bakersfield to Mojave", and then "Mojave to Lone Pine". Each of these three searches generated the expected routes, which when added together, produced a total mileage of 464 -- over 100 miles longer than through Yosemite.

I live in Benicia.

80 to 680 to 120 to 395. 7+ hours.

We live in San Jose. We traveled through Yosemite (CA-120) to US-395. Driving time is about 8 hours. Plan on an additional hour for breaks.

In winter, when all passes are closed, it's practically the same distance (close to 500 miles). In summer time I would never consider going south. I like the scenery along 395, especially between 108 and Lone Pine, it is also significantly shorter in distance, and so I always go through Tioga Pass or Sonora Pass (my favorite beauty). However, distance is not the only factor related to the traveling time; traffic may slow you down significantly. Sometimes I get stuck for 2-3 additional hours before even getting to I5. In Yosemite N.P. one may end up following leisurely RVs that often don't let others pass them.

If you choose to go through Yosemite/Tioga Pass (as many are suggesting on this board, and is our favorite route from Stockton) be sure to stop at Tioga Pass Lodge for homemade pie - usually at least 5 choices - all delicious!
Great pre-hike trail food.

They have great breakfasts, too. We have left Lone Pine early for return home, stopped at Tioga Pass Lodge a few hours later for HUGE breakfast to restore glycogen levels post-hike.

Enjoy the ride up, and the hike.
Safe trip.