Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Ho hum, another permit question.

But it's like the airlines: you can call them 5 times and get 5 different answers. So i'm going to get my 5th opinion here.

If you are entering at a non-Whitney location, like Kearsarge, summitting Whitney, and then exiting a non-Whitney Trail route, like say the Mountaineers Route, do you need any kind of Whitney Zone // Trail Crest // Exit permit?

If the answer is yes, what kind of success rate is there for getting them walk-in in August? And, do rangers really check people AT the summit? I'm still planning my JMT trip with person(s) joining me en route to the finish. My permit is easy, but theirs might be trickier.

thanks

From what I understand, you only need an "exit permit" if you are finishing your hike on the main Mt. Whitney trail over trail crest.

If you come out the Mountaineers Route you will need you get a "whitney zone" sticker on your permit. There are not as many forest service personal on the MR but the last time I was there I ran into one coming down close to Lower Boy Scout Lake.

I am unsure about the walk in question that time of year.

TomC is right -- you won't need the exit permit if you go down the Mountaineer's Route.

I am guessing, but the walk-in availability for the exit permits may be pretty good -- especially since they would need to get one 3-4 days before they exit.

By the way, the exit permits are designed to limit the number of people exiting AND camping on the way out. You might call the Inyo NF people and ask if they still require one if you exit in a day, without camping. By not camping, you are effectively the same as a dayhiker, and you can see from the slots available after the lottery, that most days have space available, except weekends July-Sept.

From my personal experience...

I have alway gotten the permit I want in the Inyo National Forest walking in the day before the entry date.

The exit/Tral Crest permit can be tricky but there is a work around if you don't mind a bit of chicanery. If they don't have the day you want ask for a day on either side of the day. I came out 3 days earlier than an exit permit once. The faux ranger who checked the permit said go on your merry way. I would suggest you have a story ready just in case the ranger gives you a hard time. Personally, I think the Trail Crest permit bureaucratic nonsense. I became convinced of it after talking to couple of folks at MWRS over the last few years.

If you get fined for this bit larceny will not pay the fine ;-).

I have seen one example of rangers AT the summit. A couple of SEKI rangers on their day off were out on a pleasure hike. Went up the main trail without ranger markings until Trail Crest. They were then in their "territory" and the female checked every hiker on the trail as she headed to the summit. Checked permits on the summit, but didn't say anything to the woman feeding candy to the animals. Have seen many rangers on the trail between the Portal and Trail Camp, but that was the only time on the summit. I think the chances are slim that you will encounter one there and if you do, probably the worst thing will be that they order you off the mountain. Of course, if you make them mad, they can issue you a fine.

Bob, you have a picture for everything! Love it - keep 'em coming!