Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board MR advice on where to camp and climb strategy?

Although I've been reading this post for the past few months, this is the first time I am writing a question to ask assistance in our climbing and camping strategy. I appreciate any feedback as some of those contributing to the post seem to be very experienced with the route, area, and the Sierras. I feel we are well prepared, but never hurts to get more information.

My friend and I are going to attempt the MR during the 3rd week of July. Some background info on us.

1. We arrive on a Tuesday in LA and will drive to the Portal.
2. I live in Georgia, but will be coming from the Tetons (OS and Exum Ridge)with about 4 days of acclimatization sleeping between 6K and 11k. Skill about a 5.9 leader and 5.10 if I am following.
3. My friend will be flying in from sea level (Central Florida). Little climbing experience, but can get up 5.8.
4. We've been training for legs and lungs. 25 miles/week running. 40 lb pack 150 flights of stairs 2xweek.
5. I've climbed up to 12K many times and 13K a few times. My friend has gone skiing that high a few times. I've been to the Sierras 4 times and probably logged 50 total pitches of climbing and probably 50 miles of hiking in areas ranging from Tuolumne, the valley, Bear Creek Spire area, and a few other places.

Questions to the message board:

A. If we arrived on a Tuesday, reach the portal around 3pm and set up camp...I am trying to decide between two options. Try to summit MR on Wednesday vs. hike all of our gear up Wednesday to higher ground on a slow hike day up to probably UBSL (or LBSL or Iceberg Lake) and then summit on Thursday.

Advantage of summit on Wednesday is that we will have a very light pack (probably 5lbs or less). Less time at high altitude (not sleeping high) with just a single day push.
Disadvantage is my friend coming from sea level might get hit with the altitude with only one night at the portal. The portal might actually be too low at only 8K for acclimatization.

Advantage of hiking slowly on Wednesday is that it will give my friend another day at altitude and another night (depending on how high we can/should camp on his second night.
Disadvantage is that we would have to hike a 30lb pack to UBSL and we risk sleeping too high for a night on the second night. Climb high, sleep low, right?

We leave on Friday at around 4pm, but we were thinking about doing the East Ridge of Mt. Russel. I'll save those questions after hearing some advice on this post, but thought to mention it because high camp at UBSL would be advantageous for attempting Russel after Whitney. Might be too much though, eh?

B. Approach shoes or boots? We both have bad ankles from years of basketball, is the trail that rough on the ankles?

C. I am assuming that we should precaution for bear and marmot for our food, is this correct? I heard the bears are smart enough for hanging food so if we camp high, do we need a bear canister? Are there boxes at the Portal?

D. The class 3 looks fairly easy on the MR, but should I bring a short rope, couple of pieces, and harnesses for my friend who isn't an experienced climber? I am wondering how exposed the ledges and the top class 3 are. How about Mt. Russel East Ridge?

We would be grateful for any advice and guidance.

Hi veritas247,

These are good questions. Here are a few thoughts about it based on my experience...

1 day vs 2: The route up the MR isn't as obvious as the Main Trail. If you do it in one day you'll want to scope it out in daylight first. If you do it in two you'll probably start in daylight and have more time to find the route.

Acclimatization: Given that your friend won't be acclimated I'd be careful about doing it in one day. Either way make sure you drink plenty of fluids ahead of time so you show up well hydrated. Also be sure to take a slower pace than you guys are capable of going. It might feel good at the time to go faster but I promise it always catches up with people. Go slow, keep drinking water, eat lots of snacks, and be discipled with pacing and pressure breathing.

Bears and marmots: There are no bears on the North Fork canyon. There are places to hang food out of Marmots reach at LBSL, UBSL, and Iceberg. Bear canisters aren't required and will save you a couple pounds of weight in your packs. There are boxes at the Portal to store food. UBSL is the most logical camp if you plan on doing the East Ridge of Russell too.

Ropes on the 3rd Class: It sounds like you are plenty experienced with rock climbing but your partner isn't. The moves are all there and fairly straight forward but a rope is nice psychology for a novice. Especially at 14,000+ feet where someone's balance can get harder to maintain the rope might be a nice safety net for you and him. The exposure isn't huge by Sierra 3rd class standards but a fall in the wrong spot could still have consequences.

Footwear: Boots or approach shoes work. You need to gauge what your ankles tolarate more. I've had ankle issues over the years as well (one had to be operated on). Sometimes I like approach shoes and other times boots are preferable. It depends on the make and model of the boot or approach shoe. Speaking from someone who has dealt with ankle issues I can say this route can be a bit hard on them. If your ankles are not trust worthy you might tape them ahead of time and have some trekking poles in case something does happen.

East Ridge of Russell: It's another excellent climb. Camp at UBSL if you plan on doing both. There is a lot more exposure on this route than on the MR. I'd bring that short rope for your partner.

Let us know if you have more questions. I can also email you some photos of the East Ridge and MR that'll give you an idea of exposure and the kind of terrain your ankles will endure.

All the best,

Kurt

Kurt, as always, is giving expert advice. UBSL is an excellent choice for your basecamp, and not that far or difficult to lug your packs up the MR. Over the years I've torn up my ankles in basketball and have broken my legs in other sports. (Ah, the joy of sports!) And since you travel up a lot of scree above Iceberg Lake, boots would give better protection and help prevent getting rocks in your shoes (which ankle gaiters could help, too).

Third-class climbing above the notch has bomb-proof hand and foot holds. Once I led a nine-year-old up the route without a rope, and he did just fine. But, everyone has different sensitivities, and if your partner is not used to exposure, a short rope would help. The climb should be exceptionally easy for you. I'm sure it will be great fun for you.

Altitude does strange things, so it will be interesting how it affects the two of you. I am affected immediately on Mt. Whitney, and without medicinal treatment ahead of time, it takes me three days to acclimate without extra help.

Best wishes for a great trip! Please post a report afterwards.

The big unknown factor is your friend, and his reaction to the altitude. For all the effort you are going to, to do this climb, I'd think you want to pile the cards in your favor.

Kurt is a professional guide, who often guides this route. His advice is sage.

I'd certainly think overniting at UBS would be vastly preferrable. For the acclimatization portion, I'd strongly recommend the advice of another I've read, who suggests stopping hourly to rest, even if you don't need to rest. Remember, it is the rate of ascent that is most correlated with developing AMS. Slower is better.

One other thing I'd suggest you re-think: Your overnite pack weight. If your daypack weight is about 5#, which seems about right, what else should you need? Tent, consider a bivy for this assault-1#, sleeping bag-1#, perhaps 3# of extra clothing, extra food-2# (go cold, you don't need the stove for 1 day), misc that I'm forgetting-3# Total, 15#, 1/2 the weight. Makes a big difference in altitude climbing. 60# of gear for two people just seems like an awful lot.

While the rope seems reasonable, you are not talking about lead falls. I don't think a harness is needed, if you know how to tie on directly. The exposure on Russell is awesome.

There are boxes at the Portal.

Some people will tell you a rope isn't needed and others will say it's a good idea. Since it's your first time there and you have a beginner with you I'd suggest bringing it. It would be better to have it and not need it than the other way around.

The ankle thing is a concern. From so many years of skiing and wearing big boots my ankles have given out sometimes on trails because my hiking boots don't have the same support as a ski boot. I like to have a role of tape with me just in case. The terrain up there is certainly capable of giving ankles problems.

I'd do it in two days. It is such a beautiful area you will want to spend the time to enjoy it for a night. Seeing the sun rise out of the east from the MR is beautiful. It would be easier to climb both peaks too.

Have a great time!

Your friend will be at least a day short in aclimation time. He should be sure to get some Diamox, and take it two days before arriving at Whitney Portal.

Usually the recommended dose is low: 125 mg (half a tablet) twice a day.

I would like to say first, thanks to all who have read and responded to my post this morning. All of the information has already helped a great deal and this community is a valuable resource.

I am leaning towards portal first night, slow hike with lots of water and rest to UBSL day two, day 3-summit attempt MR with a daypack, day 4 East Ridge/Russel if we are feeling good or use it as a backup day for the MR for anything unexpected (weather, acclimatization, etc).
Tie food for marmots and no bear precautions.
Pack ~20M of 9 ml rope and bring harnesses and very small rack.
Boots and will keep approach shoes in the daypack.
We already have our diamox and will take 2 days before.


To Ken's post about 30 lbs. My thought of 30lbs was shoot from the hip as my Teton gear is 38 lbs with full climbing gear. My tent is less than 3lbs and only one pair of clothes per trip (Teton, Whitney). I might be able to get the Whitney pack down to 20-25.
Things on my Whitney list that weren't on Ken's suggested 15# list.

Helmet, stove (for 4 days, it will be nice to have hot dinners) and fuel, rope, very small rack, rain gear, sleeping pad, first aid (very small), cell phone (emerg only, but it may not work anyway), gatorade powder (enough for 2 gallons), sunscreen, 2 hats (sun and warm), topo info, tape, more food, 2 ziploc bags for trash and the larger backpack. Some of these things are light, but do add up.

My daypack supplies has the other essentials (headlamp, 2L water, extra batteries, compass, knife, etc).

Thanks again for the posts so far and will look out for even more reponses.
Very much appreciated.

Ah, most of those additional things I'd assumed you had in your day pack. And for food, I'd been thinking of an overnite, not along the 4 days that you appropriately describe. That all makes sense.

But what is this non-sense of needing a pad????

veritas-

you've gotten some good advice - a few other ideas. Another option to consider is a climb up to LBSL when you arrive (rather than camping at the portal), then up to Iceberg the second day, summit and down on the third. It adds an additional 2000 feet on the first night's sleeping altitude, but then only 2000 feet additional each day after that. The UBSL camp is also a good way to go.

I disagree with the advice to take diamox. Unless you know how you react to a medication and have a physician who knows what they are doing to prescribe it, it doesn't make sense to do a clinical trial on yourself on a climb.

In addition to using a rope for your partner in the class 3 section, I've also found that some inexperienced climbers have a hard time downclimbing the E-ledges with a pack. A rope can come in handy to lower their pack through 1 or 2 sections there.

IMHO: Iceberg at 12,500 is AMS territory. Better to camp lower at UBSL. It is an not a difficult dayhike to the Whitney summit from UBSL.

As for Diamox, maybe try it as soon as you get the prescription. If you experience any bad side effects, then don't use it. (How are you going to "know how you react" unless you try it?) Also, I believe I have read that people who experience the bad side effects are the ones who take way too much, so watch the dose.

I strongly agree.

- Andy

I want to say thanks to all of you who replied to my initial questions a few weeks ago.

We successfully summited via the MR two days ago and it was a great trip. Details below.

We arrived to the Whitney Portal campground on Tuesday night and camped there one night as my friend was coming from sea level and we wanted him to get a chance to get some thin air. I had just come from a successful and very tiring trip from the Tetons (Upper Exum Ridge). I overpacked on gear for that trip and my legs were still hurting from the 7 mile hike. Packs were much lighter on this trip because we decided not to bring rope and climbing gear for the MR.

Wednesday we had the easy goal of making it to UBSL and left around 8:30ish am. The E-ledges weren't that bad and there are a few options to go up to the headwall after traversing past the ledges for about 40 yards. The High Sierra Climbing Supertopo book by Chris McNamara is highly recommended for this hike and gave great pictures/directions for the entire climb.

We made it to LBSL right after 10am and then relaxed in the shade of the trees for about an hour. I had been in the sun for days in Wyoming and we weren't sure how much shade there would be at UBSL, so we wanted to let some of the hot sun pass. We stayed there until after noon. Second benefit was to go up to altitude slowly.

With the guidebook pages we copied (to save weight) and the cairns, the hike to UBSL was easy to find.

***I want to say thanks to ANYBODY who has placed a cairn on this trail or any trail for that matter. When you are out in the mountains, with nobody around, and on a route for the first time, those dang rock piles just give you a small sense of security that you are on the right path. I've been climbing since 1998 and those things still make me feel good about where I am at. Everytime I saw one, I wanted to shake the hand of the person who put it there.***

It was very windy Wednesday and all night. Winds were gusting probably 30-40 miles an hour at UBSL and had us a little concerned about going to the top the next day. My friend said he felt like he was in a hurricane in his tent that night which prevented him from getting good rest.

We started up on Thursday about 5:45am so we didn't have to use headlamps, but was still early enough. About halfway to Iceberg, Whitney came into view exactly when the alpenglow was hitting it from the morning sun. Amazing view.

We started up the left side at the base of the gully and hiked almost to the base of the East Buttress before heading over the small notch to the gully. Up the gully we stayed as far left as possible to hike up rock instead of scree and to try to stay in the shade as much as possible.

When we made the left turn for the last stretch, the first gully looked covered with ice on the bottom so we opted for the 3rd gully. This was a little steep in a few sections and we had to make one 5.4ish move at the very top. My friend wasn't too happy about this, but it essentially was an easy boulder move above a flat area with some snow at the bottom. The fall wouldn't have been dangerous.

The summit was very windy and I think four people had made it to the summit before us that day. We stayed for about 10 minutes and headed down.

Supertopo guide has a good picture of the descent and we opted for the first gully down as the downclimb of the 3rd gully didn't seem fun. We found that the ice was easily avoidable on the first gully and made it down easily. I would go up this chute instead of the 3rd chute next time.

We made it back to UBSL where the altitude caught up with my friend. I actually think it had to do more with dehydration and heat exposure than altitude, but I am sure they all contributed a little bit. He had to take breaks every two minutes to break down camp. Once we got some water in him and headed down, he was back to normal.

I think we made it back to the car by about 5pm and we packed up all of our stuff and made it back to LA by that evening.

I want to say thanks for all the advice from everybody on the message board from our first questions, they information helped a great deal.

We may be back next year to do the East Ridge of Russell.

By the way, Diamox wasn't needed at the pace we went for my friend who came from sea level (Orlando, which is probably 20 feet in altitude).

Congratulations to both of you on a successful climb!