nicozone - Jun 23, 2016 11:26 am Date Climbed: Jun 19, 2016
Twice climbed, twice summited
After having an awesome time on the Mountaineer's Route in 2013, my girlfriend asked if I would take her up the mountain as well. Since Pinnacle Ridge divides Lone Pine Creek drainage from North Fork Lone Pine Creek drainage, I decided that the Whitney Trail would be an interesting exploration this time. Luckily, lottery results were in our favor again and we were able to get a 4-person permit for the weekend. Some new snowfall the weekend before gave us a bit of pause, but other than some early morning ice along the chains, we only had to contend with a biting cold wind all the way to the summit. Great views from the summit as always!
ScottWhitneyBound - Jun 20, 2016 10:23 pm Date Climbed: Jun 19, 2016
VERY windy and snow/ice around the cables
My third attempt and my third successful summit. Extremely windy at Trail Crest and from there to the summit. Snow and ice on the trail around the cables made micro spikes a good idea. Also snow for a 100 yards below Trail Crest was another good place to have micro spikes, then a bit of scrambling over the rocks to bypass the snow in the pass. Seven out of nine hikers from the Malibu Hiking meetup group summited.
Mike D' - Apr 3, 2016 11:49 pm Date Climbed: Apr 3, 2016
Spring Ski Mount Whitney Trail
Departed portal lot ~1:30pm Saturday with skis on back, about an hour hike to consistent snow ~1/2mi. past wilderness boundary...soft snow for easy skinning, had to take skis off just a few times till Mirror Lake...contrary to standard route, traversed climber's left of lake, then ascended a steep snowfield ("variation 2" on the Whitney Trail page), too steep & icy, had to remove skis and posthole to boulders on climber's left, a grueling but somewhat short ascent to link back with standard route...continued upward and set camp just north of Consultation Lake ~6:30.
Lazy sunny Sunday awaiting snow to soften, decamped ~1pm and the spring corn was prime...eventually went skier's right of the rocky outcrop ("variation 1") that most hike over, some really nice turns out there but take care not to cliff out if you stay close to the big outcrops, furthest right is safest...from there it's however you can get down as the snow thins out, still some fun trees to get down through...skies off at 2:30, another hour down on the trail.
Cold night. Snow seemed good & soft around noon and thereafter. Good times.
I've hiked the trail (up and down), climbed the East Face (solo)and East Buttress and descended the Mountaineer's Route. Still more I'd like to do.
MaverickMerk - Mar 21, 2016 1:39 pm Date Climbed: Mar 20, 2016
via Mountaineer's Route
Great conditions beautiful mountain... what more can you ask for.
jboldt1971 - Mar 19, 2016 2:51 pm Date Climbed: Oct 3, 2013
Summit
Beautiful cold day. Amazing!
SchwartzOn - Feb 12, 2016 11:39 am Date Climbed: Sep 3, 2010
PR is getting better
I do this every so odd often years. First it was in Summer, then in Fall, and I'd like to run it in a day now. Every time is different. Every time unique.
Malesore - Jan 28, 2016 9:08 pm Date Climbed: Oct 31, 2015
SandyWright - Jan 16, 2016 5:49 pm Date Climbed: Aug 6, 2013
Great Friends
Definitely a trip to remember. About half way coming down I did get tired. Breathtaking and amazing!
Nikki - Oct 25, 2015 6:01 pm Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2015
First Attempt
My husband and I attempted Whitney and were turned around by a thunder storm about halfway up. We were bummed because we planned and trained so much but we didn't want to risk it. Whitney will be there next year!
Routine hike on the Whitney Trail. I took a detour to do Muir as Well.
Joeyroo - Oct 21, 2015 8:06 pm Date Climbed: May 25, 2014
Last Minute Trip
Associate got the lottery for the permit, but two of his friends bailed. He asked if I wanted to go, so I got a spot to go few days before the trip. Weather was great.
My first non-winter conditions trip. Unlike my past winter Whitney trip where there was an overnight wind storm. My friend's tent pole snapped and the tent collapsed from the weight of the snow. Woke up to 2-3 feet around the tent with some snow on top.
elcy79.gp - Oct 20, 2015 4:11 pm Date Climbed: Aug 13, 2013
via JMT
Started Onion Valley on the 8th (32 wedding anniversary, sorry honey) with our group of 6. All but one made it to the top (got dysentery in CT Meadows). Great day and beautiful weather the entire 6 days of the hike.
Trip report in 2012
https://summitsofthestates.wordpress.com/2012/07/27/mt-whitney-ca-44/
Lots of people, blue bags suck....But otherwise beautiful, cute marmots, physically exhausting but fun! Way more enjoyable to do it in 3 days
Jonodo - Aug 26, 2015 8:19 pm Date Climbed: Aug 23, 2015
Main Trail
Nice hike, great views, met some real nice people.
dan-o - Aug 11, 2015 11:24 pm Date Climbed: Jul 15, 2015
Whitney
Great end to the JMT!
Scott - Jul 21, 2015 4:47 pm Date Climbed: Jul 3, 2015
Whitney
July 2
The original plan was for Kessler and I to climb Mount Whitney in one day, but the permit office in Lone Pine had three overnight permits, so my dad wanted to come.
We set off up the trail fairly early in the morning and enjoyed the scenery up to Trail Camp. At Trail Camp we were hit by a storm right after the tent was set up.
The weather was quite bad and other people climbing the peak were turning around. We were glad that we were attempting the peak the next day.
Kessler and I decided to check out Wotans Throne when the weather cleared in the evening. We climbed up the northernmost gully on the west side, reaching a chockstone not far from the summit. It was a nasty route and I didn’t want to climb the chockstone since I was afraid that we would pull loose rock onto us. We then checked out the gully to the south, but eventually the exposure became too great considering the loose rock (either route might make a good early season snow climb). We the bench around to the south side and explored along the South Chimney Route (we had no guidebook or beta since it was an unplanned ascent), but it too was pretty exposed considering we didn’t have any climbing gear or helmets. Thus, we returned unsuccessful since we ran out of time. We should have gone around to the north side which is much easier.
We also discovered that the marmots at Trail Camp are relentless and luckily bear canisters keep them out our your food.
July 3
In the morning, Kessler, my dad, and I set off to climb Mount Whitney. The weather was clear, unlike the day before. My dad (71 years old) lagged behind, so Kessler and I spent quite a bit of time on the summit waiting for him. He eventually caught up though.
On the descent, Kessler and I took off ahead so that we could climb Mount Muir. Mount Muir was rated class 3 and although I knew that class 3 was generally harder in California than in Colorado, we underestimated Mount Muir. It was harder than I thought it would be. It was quite exposed as well. Since we weren't planning on climbing Muir until we happened to get the overnight permit, I hadn't brought any good climbing shoes and we just had old running shoes. We also didn't have any beta and didn't bring helmets. We probed two different routes before climbing one in the center of the summit block. It wasn't too bad until we had to do a slab traverse to the left with our low-traction shoes (sticky shoes would make this a piece of cake). We got up to the rappel anchor at the overhanging rock, but with our old running shoes we didn't want to stand on the summit. It was fun, but I wish we had brought better shoes (and a helmet).
Still ready for more action, we descended Muir and climbed what our map labeled as Trail Crest Tower. Either the map was wrong or there is a non technical route up the tower, because we didn't do any technical climbing. It was still a great viewpoint.
After climbing the tower, we descended and caught up with my dad on the switchbacks above Trail Camp. We packed up camp and headed down the mountain. One sore point is that a lot of people seem to leave their poop bags at Trail Camp. I took two garbage bags and put the extra poop bags in them and tied the garbage bags to the outside of Kessler's pack. We don't like packing out other's human waste, but it needed to be done. People who leave the bags are scum and shouldn't be allowed on the mountain.
The rest of the descent was routine, but at the end, Kessler and I went ahead of my dad in order to get drinks and ice cream from the store. It was a good climb, but the only sore point was the extra waste bags.
nicozone - Jun 23, 2016 11:26 am Date Climbed: Jun 19, 2016
Twice climbed, twice summitedAfter having an awesome time on the Mountaineer's Route in 2013, my girlfriend asked if I would take her up the mountain as well. Since Pinnacle Ridge divides Lone Pine Creek drainage from North Fork Lone Pine Creek drainage, I decided that the Whitney Trail would be an interesting exploration this time. Luckily, lottery results were in our favor again and we were able to get a 4-person permit for the weekend. Some new snowfall the weekend before gave us a bit of pause, but other than some early morning ice along the chains, we only had to contend with a biting cold wind all the way to the summit. Great views from the summit as always!
ScottWhitneyBound - Jun 20, 2016 10:23 pm Date Climbed: Jun 19, 2016
VERY windy and snow/ice around the cablesMy third attempt and my third successful summit. Extremely windy at Trail Crest and from there to the summit. Snow and ice on the trail around the cables made micro spikes a good idea. Also snow for a 100 yards below Trail Crest was another good place to have micro spikes, then a bit of scrambling over the rocks to bypass the snow in the pass. Seven out of nine hikers from the Malibu Hiking meetup group summited.
Travissmith2251 - Jun 12, 2016 12:25 am
WhitneyHST finish
Kevintheclimber - Apr 4, 2016 12:13 pm Date Climbed: Apr 10, 2015
MR routefun climb
Mike D' - Apr 3, 2016 11:49 pm Date Climbed: Apr 3, 2016
Spring Ski Mount Whitney TrailDeparted portal lot ~1:30pm Saturday with skis on back, about an hour hike to consistent snow ~1/2mi. past wilderness boundary...soft snow for easy skinning, had to take skis off just a few times till Mirror Lake...contrary to standard route, traversed climber's left of lake, then ascended a steep snowfield ("variation 2" on the Whitney Trail page), too steep & icy, had to remove skis and posthole to boulders on climber's left, a grueling but somewhat short ascent to link back with standard route...continued upward and set camp just north of Consultation Lake ~6:30.
Lazy sunny Sunday awaiting snow to soften, decamped ~1pm and the spring corn was prime...eventually went skier's right of the rocky outcrop ("variation 1") that most hike over, some really nice turns out there but take care not to cliff out if you stay close to the big outcrops, furthest right is safest...from there it's however you can get down as the snow thins out, still some fun trees to get down through...skies off at 2:30, another hour down on the trail.
Cold night. Snow seemed good & soft around noon and thereafter. Good times.
fatdad - Apr 2, 2016 3:00 pm
Three different routesI've hiked the trail (up and down), climbed the East Face (solo)and East Buttress and descended the Mountaineer's Route. Still more I'd like to do.
MaverickMerk - Mar 21, 2016 1:39 pm Date Climbed: Mar 20, 2016
via Mountaineer's RouteGreat conditions beautiful mountain... what more can you ask for.
jboldt1971 - Mar 19, 2016 2:51 pm Date Climbed: Oct 3, 2013
SummitBeautiful cold day. Amazing!
SchwartzOn - Feb 12, 2016 11:39 am Date Climbed: Sep 3, 2010
PR is getting betterI do this every so odd often years. First it was in Summer, then in Fall, and I'd like to run it in a day now. Every time is different. Every time unique.
Malesore - Jan 28, 2016 9:08 pm Date Climbed: Oct 31, 2015
Retreat!https://suenosong.wordpress.com/2015/11/15/mt-whitney-trip-report/
SandyWright - Jan 16, 2016 5:49 pm Date Climbed: Aug 6, 2013
Great FriendsDefinitely a trip to remember. About half way coming down I did get tired. Breathtaking and amazing!
Nikki - Oct 25, 2015 6:01 pm Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2015
First AttemptMy husband and I attempted Whitney and were turned around by a thunder storm about halfway up. We were bummed because we planned and trained so much but we didn't want to risk it. Whitney will be there next year!
fernandoe@yahoo.com - Oct 22, 2015 3:26 pm Date Climbed: Aug 18, 2012
Whitney TrailRoutine hike on the Whitney Trail. I took a detour to do Muir as Well.
Joeyroo - Oct 21, 2015 8:06 pm Date Climbed: May 25, 2014
Last Minute TripAssociate got the lottery for the permit, but two of his friends bailed. He asked if I wanted to go, so I got a spot to go few days before the trip. Weather was great.
My first non-winter conditions trip. Unlike my past winter Whitney trip where there was an overnight wind storm. My friend's tent pole snapped and the tent collapsed from the weight of the snow. Woke up to 2-3 feet around the tent with some snow on top.
elcy79.gp - Oct 20, 2015 4:11 pm Date Climbed: Aug 13, 2013
via JMTStarted Onion Valley on the 8th (32 wedding anniversary, sorry honey) with our group of 6. All but one made it to the top (got dysentery in CT Meadows). Great day and beautiful weather the entire 6 days of the hike.
2nd time on Whitney, 42 years apart.
dakine - Sep 18, 2015 5:23 pm Date Climbed: Jul 27, 2015
DayhikeDayhike on the main trail, this time with trekking poles, almost feels like cheating.
fallonclimbs - Aug 30, 2015 1:17 pm
Busy mountain, fun 3 day tripTrip report in 2012
https://summitsofthestates.wordpress.com/2012/07/27/mt-whitney-ca-44/
Lots of people, blue bags suck....But otherwise beautiful, cute marmots, physically exhausting but fun! Way more enjoyable to do it in 3 days
Jonodo - Aug 26, 2015 8:19 pm Date Climbed: Aug 23, 2015
Main TrailNice hike, great views, met some real nice people.
dan-o - Aug 11, 2015 11:24 pm Date Climbed: Jul 15, 2015
WhitneyGreat end to the JMT!
Scott - Jul 21, 2015 4:47 pm Date Climbed: Jul 3, 2015
WhitneyJuly 2
The original plan was for Kessler and I to climb Mount Whitney in one day, but the permit office in Lone Pine had three overnight permits, so my dad wanted to come.
We set off up the trail fairly early in the morning and enjoyed the scenery up to Trail Camp. At Trail Camp we were hit by a storm right after the tent was set up.
The weather was quite bad and other people climbing the peak were turning around. We were glad that we were attempting the peak the next day.
Kessler and I decided to check out Wotans Throne when the weather cleared in the evening. We climbed up the northernmost gully on the west side, reaching a chockstone not far from the summit. It was a nasty route and I didn’t want to climb the chockstone since I was afraid that we would pull loose rock onto us. We then checked out the gully to the south, but eventually the exposure became too great considering the loose rock (either route might make a good early season snow climb). We the bench around to the south side and explored along the South Chimney Route (we had no guidebook or beta since it was an unplanned ascent), but it too was pretty exposed considering we didn’t have any climbing gear or helmets. Thus, we returned unsuccessful since we ran out of time. We should have gone around to the north side which is much easier.
We also discovered that the marmots at Trail Camp are relentless and luckily bear canisters keep them out our your food.
July 3
In the morning, Kessler, my dad, and I set off to climb Mount Whitney. The weather was clear, unlike the day before. My dad (71 years old) lagged behind, so Kessler and I spent quite a bit of time on the summit waiting for him. He eventually caught up though.
On the descent, Kessler and I took off ahead so that we could climb Mount Muir. Mount Muir was rated class 3 and although I knew that class 3 was generally harder in California than in Colorado, we underestimated Mount Muir. It was harder than I thought it would be. It was quite exposed as well. Since we weren't planning on climbing Muir until we happened to get the overnight permit, I hadn't brought any good climbing shoes and we just had old running shoes. We also didn't have any beta and didn't bring helmets. We probed two different routes before climbing one in the center of the summit block. It wasn't too bad until we had to do a slab traverse to the left with our low-traction shoes (sticky shoes would make this a piece of cake). We got up to the rappel anchor at the overhanging rock, but with our old running shoes we didn't want to stand on the summit. It was fun, but I wish we had brought better shoes (and a helmet).
Still ready for more action, we descended Muir and climbed what our map labeled as Trail Crest Tower. Either the map was wrong or there is a non technical route up the tower, because we didn't do any technical climbing. It was still a great viewpoint.
After climbing the tower, we descended and caught up with my dad on the switchbacks above Trail Camp. We packed up camp and headed down the mountain. One sore point is that a lot of people seem to leave their poop bags at Trail Camp. I took two garbage bags and put the extra poop bags in them and tied the garbage bags to the outside of Kessler's pack. We don't like packing out other's human waste, but it needed to be done. People who leave the bags are scum and shouldn't be allowed on the mountain.
The rest of the descent was routine, but at the end, Kessler and I went ahead of my dad in order to get drinks and ice cream from the store. It was a good climb, but the only sore point was the extra waste bags.