Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Weather concerns next week

Hi all,

I'm a Whitney newbie planning a day hike summit attempt via the Main Trail next Saturday, the 14th. The heat wave is suppose to persist until at least the end of next week and I'm worried about thunderstorm activity on the mountain.

Do you think it would be wise to cancel the trip and try another time or should I go for it anyway and evaluate the conditions while on the mountain? I'm okay with turning around on the mountain if it gets bad but I don't really want to attempt it if there isn't even a reasonable chance of making it. I plan to start my hike at 3am and get off the summit well before noon. Will I avoid most thunderstorms by doing this? Are people canceling their permits right now because of the weather? What do you think I should do?

Thanks a bunch!

Tim:

Having logged about 450 miles on the Whitney Trail in the last 30 something years and been caught in numerous unexpected storms,I've gotten REAL weather savvy to save my skin.

I've noticed a phenomnenon that happens in the dawn light over the mountain that is a sure precursor of a storm. For want of a better term, I call it "heavy sky." Meaning even though it's crystal clear both east and west, over the Sierra ridge the blue sky has a slight tinge of grey and pink.The air literally looks thick. It's very slight,but it's there. Four times I have seen this sky on a crystal clear (we thought) morning and by 10AM the puffy baby cumulus clouds start building. By mid afternoon each time it was snowing on the other side of Trail Crest. Obviously it denotes a lot of moisture in the air. It's not scientific, but it sure has kept me out of trouble.

Also monsoon season officially starts about the middle of July when (i Read this in the paper) the water in theSea of Cortez in Mexico gets to 80 degrees. The Sea of Cortez is pretty much a straight shot down from Owens Valley and apparently the hot wet air from down there gets sucked up north.

I'm going for a chance on this Tuesday, sleeping at Outpost Camp and leaving around 2-3AM if not earlier. Snag the summit, get down before the storms.

Good luck and watch the skies!

If you leave at 3 am and hike at a good pace you have a reasonable chance of making the summit before the time most thunderstorms arrive. Just be extra alert above Trail Crest. If you have never been to the summit before, you will get a lot of experience just going up to Trail Crest. Don't try and wait for the "perfect day" to hike the trail.

Red sky at morning, sailor take warning.
Red sky at night, sailor's delight.

http://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/weather-sailor.html

Dale B. Dalrymple
http://dbdimages.com

I turned back at trail camp a few years ago because of T-storm threat and I got tired of being rained and hailed upon. Had enough of my shoes hissing and making sparks.

This year I go up in a week (7/16) I hope this moisture leaves for a little bit. I think I might leave at around 10 p.m. or so on the 15th, can't think of too many more pictures I need below Mirror Lake. Should hit the Whitney Zone right at midnight, as slow as I walk, and then the day hike permit is valid

Cya up there

Wow, thanks Sherry and everyone else. This is exactly the helpful information I was looking for. I am now determined to continue with the trip and I figure it will be a great adventure anyway, even if I don't make it to the summit.

In my early, naive days of hiking, I foolishly hiked into a thunderstorm on Mt. Baldy and had an in-cloud lightning strike discharge right above me just a few hundred feet from the summit. It was the scariest thing I have ever experienced, yet was the best lesson ever to not underestimate the power of the weather. No amount of "got-to-get-there-itis" will ever make me mess with a thunderstorm again!