Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Everybody's favorite: Another snow question

Planning on doing a trip first weekend in October. If there is snow, is it possible to get to Trail Camp without crampons? I have some friends going with ice climbing gear, but I do not. I have experience camping in snow, but not climbing. I won't try to summit if there's too much ice. Here's hoping to a warm next couple of weeks.

Getting to Trail Camp without crampons the first week of October should be no problem at all. Snow usually does not start to become an issue until mid to late October, and not until you get higher up the 97 switchbacks.

Michael T.

We were there on Oct. 11, 2004, and encountered a freak snowstorm between Outpost and Trail camps. Two guys in our group made it to Trail Camp but ultimately decided to turn around. The rest of us made it down from just above Mirror Lake or from Outpost Camp. The problem wasn't so much footing (since it was the first snow) but the white-out conditions. I know someone had to be rescued on that day by helicopter.