Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Whitney cable tram to the top

And in the winter, you take a sled with you. Wheeeeeee!

I doubt most of us would succumb to the "no manmade modifications at all" mantra. Consider the MMWT. Those 97 switchbacks weren't put there without the help of pickaxes, drills and (almost certainly) dynamite.

Similarly, what about bridges across rivers, like the one across one branch of the San Joaquin between Agnew Meadows and the trail up to Shadow Lake? (Or the one on the JMT across the inlet stream to Shadow Lake?)

Where do "use trails" fit in to the continuum?

Manmade conveyances are another issue entirely and the initiation of this current exchange. I must admit that having a couple of mechanical portages that allow a fair-sized power boat ferry you two lakes into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area up on the Minnesota/Canada border is very nice...you get to see places in a week that would take you an extra week each way to get to your current drop-off point and back.

I don't claim to have all the answers but when it comes to such imponderables but I tend to lean toward modest-impact trail improvements and away from adding lots more tourist-access means to more mountains. (Says he, guilty of riding the cog railroads up both Pikes Peak in CO and Mt. Washington in NH.) I also don't see the point in arbitrarily dismantling what's already there, especially historical artifacts like the Mt. Washington cog that is still a hand-shoveled coal-powered steam engine. The fireman on that run earns his keep...according to the literature, he shovels the better part of a ton of coal on every trip...now that's a carbon footprint...

Thanks Wagga. You just gave me an idea.

How about getting rid of the portal road and make everyone walk or ride their bike ? If that doesnt work we'll get rid of the 395 too.
Natural enough ?

I have been reading all about this mountain for the whole summer now its time to go .I will let yall know whet I think about a trail , tram , by way , or highway when I return . Going with a couple friends one can hike the other prefers to sit and watch on the sidelines and drink ( how sad ) but still my friend ,maybe this can help inspire him to change . Sooooooo looking forward to this !!plan to summit On tuesday the 18th.

" what one man can do another man can do " or woman !

Not sure why FujiGuy is so sensitive on handicaps. My mom taught me to fish in Bishop and we fished together for over 30 years. In her mid 60's, she lost both legs, but that didn't stop her fishing. It did stop her from crawling around streams and creeks, but she never complained about it and was very happy that her kids could do it. She kept fishing and enjoyed the Sierra's even when she had no legs, had heart problems and had to carry an oxygen tank on her wheelchair. Yes, she was handicapped, but knew her limits, never complained and enjoyed everyones company while fishing at the lakes. Sorry FujiGuy, but I just got a new hip 10 months ago, got my permit for Whitney and will work my butt off to see the top. But, I know.....someday I won't be able to, but won't take that enjoyment away from others and will still enjoy the wonders of the Sierras.

I, and I believe the rest of the board also, sincerely hope that the "idea" doesn't involve a wheelchair on the ice chute.

(Full disclosure: I have a sister who is disabled and confined to a wheelchair.)

Controversial topic, the ADA. Some would claim it's a waste of money fixing things for so few.

It took a few trips back to Yosemite before I changed my mind about the Falls Trail being made accessible. I like the idea, but I thought the implementation was butt ugly. This latest trip with my nephew a few months back finally had me change my mind. I also saw that they allow vehicles with disabled placards to access some of the closed roads. Cool!

There was discussion a while back about making the top of the Palm Springs Tram (see the connnection? I'm not off-topic) accessible. Any update on that?

I assume you are talking about making the concrete ramp accessible to tired hikers by making the ramp less steep. Hey, that would help folks in wheelchairs too!

(No more info here)

The idea was to post a question on the board (since so many of the people on the board)live in the general area about what is accessable to disabled individuals.

As to your question, I guess I could put chains on the wheels and attach a couple of Ice picks to the undercarriage with some kind of remote deployment button for her... I just got another IDEA...

So far 55 replies, and ONLY ONE addressing the original question.  Thank you Rick Kent!

Now, if anyone has any real info on original proposal, I, and I am sure Plume, would love to see it.

I recall being in a restaurant in the town of Mt. Shasta, and they have a little "newspaper" you can pick up and read that discusses a tram once proposed to the top of that peak. It is just entertaining reading, not anything like a proposal.

We just like to wander all over the place.

Photoshop pwns! Very lulzy, lulzy indeed!