Route Climbed: East Face Date Climbed: October 9, 2004
Climbed with Bill - beautiful route, just a little trouble route finding (we did the Fresh Air without knowing it). Somehow we skipped the class 3 to the summit, veered too much to the right (I think) but the benefit is that you top out directly on the summit...
Route Climbed: Walk-Up Date Climbed: August, 16 2002
A long long long walk. Started at 12am when our permits became valid. But well worth it. I encourage everybody to start at night...you'll get a good start and hiking at night is truly underrated.
Route Climbed: Main Trail from Whitney Portal Date Climbed: 9/30/2004
My husband and I are 62 and 65. We climbed Whitney as a 3 day backpack trip. We were the last people to summit in September. We summited at 3:30 p.m. in a snowstorm. We were the only ones on the peak and saw no one on our trip back to Trail Camp. There was about 4 inches of snow on the trail all the way back to Trail Crest. While we missed the summit veiws because of the weather, it was a fantastic experienceto be on top. The day after we made the summit we woke up to 6 degree temperatures at Trail Camp. On our trip we saw many people who were much younger than us who turned around. Most of them were totally unprepared for the cold weather.
Route Climbed: Main Whitney Trail Date Climbed: June 13, 2003
Set out at rush hour (4am) to dayhike Whitney. I was not aware at the time of the madness of this, especially considering the fact that I was about 15 pounds overweight at the time. This is an amazing climb, and however many trip reports and photos you see, nothing compares with being there, especially in the silent, cobweb hours before sunrise. After losing all 15 of those overweight pounds (it must have been water weight!)we turned around a few switchbacks before Trail Crest, a mix of my bad knee, my brother's growing altitude sickness, and our being badly out-of-shape at the time. I would go there again in a heartbeat. In fact, it's easy to find myself fantasizing about being there. I did see much of the mountaineer's route this year on the way to Russell, but can't wait to go with our group next year on the Main Trail...(but probably won't try dayhiking!!)
Route Climbed: Muir Trail through to Whitney Portal Date Climbed: Augsut 2001
Hiked Mt Whitney, starting at Horseshoe Meadow, via Cottonwood Pass, Soldier Lakes, Crabtree Meadow, et al, and out at Whitney Portal. The weather was quite unstable throughout, and we got chased off the mountain by thunder/lightning/hail... very exciting! An incredible trip!
Route Climbed: Mountaineer's Route Date Climbed: Sept. 19th, 2004
Headed up the NFLP on Saturday hoping to get Whitney/Muir on Sunday. Saturday night came crashing in with an early Sierra storm. Camped at Upper Boyscout without much wind shelter. Struggled through the early morning snow and departed for the couloir about 6:30. The hike up to Iceberg gave little warmth. Entered the chute a little before 8 am. The wind and the 15 deg temps made life tough going up the chute. Made the summit by 10:45 after taking the Class 3/4 gulley just past the top of the chute. Great climb, would be much more fun if it was warmer!
Diggler - Sep 16, 2004 9:35 pm Date Climbed: Oct 8, 2000
Route Climbed: trail, E Face Date Climbed: 28 August, 2004
Mt. Whitney was my first SIerra summit (well, after Pothole Dome). Even by the tourist route, I was impressed by the sheer verticality of the cliffs, the huge foxtail pines, & sparkling white granite that seemed to glow in the dark under a full (or close to) moon.
1st time: w/ my buddy Zathan from college (who was stationed in SD at the time). We left our camp (slightly below the standard one at the lake) @ 11.10 (8 October, 2000), summiting Muir ca. 13.45, & Whitney @ 15.03. We left the summit at 15.43, & arrived back in camp @ 17.54. Beer & burgers were enjoyed upon our return!
2nd trip: w/ homeboy Gordon. Only roping up for 3 pitches, we were slowed by excessive route description review, but things went at a good pace aside from that. Leaving Iceberg Lake @ 7.00, I started up the first pitch from the 1st Tower notch @ 8.40. Tower traverse was the psychological crux of the climb- easy, but well-protected (by 2 pins & somebody's unrecoverable Alien!) & exposed!! Roped up again for the Fresh Air Traverse, which I dreaded leading due to its infamous reputation. Luckily, I cruised right through it with no problems- over-rated (Tower Traverse was more stimulating!), but still fun! Roped up for the strenuous off-width- by far the crux of the route, with the most interesting climbing. Dicked around with some fairly easy 5th above that, before weaving our way to the summit. Summited @ 14.58, & chilled for quite awhile. Started descent @ 16.24. After almost getting killed by rockfall in the Garbage Chute- I mean, Mountaineer's Route, made it back to tent @ 18.30. Great route, great company, great day!!
3x
Did the E Buttress with my man Eric. Deciding to camp at Upper Boyscout meant the approach was longer, but it still went smoothly (great place to bivy, btw). I wonder if the squirrel who raided our food bag survived his trip??? >:) Although we belayed every pitch, we made decent time. Started the route at ~9.10, summited at ~18.15. Great day, spectacular location, & a fun climb! Climbing a great route with a good friend is what it's all about. The Moose Burger (& beer, of course) upon our return was off the hook!
4x 6.12.'12
Another climb of the Sunshine Peewee route, with Faith (who'd never been up Fisherman's before & was stoked to do it). Was again reminded of what a great route it is! Coincidentally ran into Mike D's friend Sailor on the route with his girlfriend, whom we'd happened to meet ~a week prior. Small world! Beautiful, cloudless sky, & a great climb (& summit) with a wonderful partner!
left portal at 2:45 AM, didn't see anyone until trail camp - a nice hike under the stars. trail crest 7:00 AM Muir Summit 8:30 (really poor routefinding) Whitney Summit 9:50, back at car 14:30. 14er #3 for me after Russell then Muir. Will do MR next year - just wanted to guarantee the summit this time.
What a beautiful day for my Birthday hike! Got sung to by a motley and throughly nice bunch of guys. Took highest altitude piss ever likely to. Mount Whitney has the crapper with the best views!
Route Climbed: Mountaineer's route Date Climbed: September 1, 2002
First 14-er for me. Learnt some lessons the hard way. Two novices going straight at Whitney mountaineer's route coming from sea-level. Got sick due to altitude, still pushed to the summit, and had to return by the main trail. If you're an experienced hiker/backpacker thinking of making that next step, better save some time (two nights at high altitude) for acclimatization, even if you're super-fit. Climb was enjoyable still (till the altitude hit me at 13,500 ft:)
Route Climbed: Whitney Trail Date Climbed: July 22, 2003
Our party of 6 summitted about 10:00AM. Real cool thing was the high altitude helicopter rescue to retrieve a climber that darkness trapped on the summit. Helicopter takeoff from the summit was something to watch.
ChuckO - Oct 12, 2004 10:44 pm
Route Climbed: standard Date Climbed: sep 1998Great time. 13 hour round trip.
kovarpa - Oct 11, 2004 10:59 pm
Route Climbed: East Face Date Climbed: October 9, 2004Climbed with Bill - beautiful route, just a little trouble route finding (we did the Fresh Air without knowing it). Somehow we skipped the class 3 to the summit, veered too much to the right (I think) but the benefit is that you top out directly on the summit...
Michael Crofford - Oct 7, 2004 12:18 pm
Route Climbed: Walk-Up Date Climbed: August, 16 2002A long long long walk. Started at 12am when our permits became valid. But well worth it. I encourage everybody to start at night...you'll get a good start and hiking at night is truly underrated.
elott - Oct 6, 2004 10:56 am
Route Climbed: Main Trail from Whitney Portal Date Climbed: 9/30/2004My husband and I are 62 and 65. We climbed Whitney as a 3 day backpack trip. We were the last people to summit in September. We summited at 3:30 p.m. in a snowstorm. We were the only ones on the peak and saw no one on our trip back to Trail Camp. There was about 4 inches of snow on the trail all the way back to Trail Crest. While we missed the summit veiws because of the weather, it was a fantastic experienceto be on top. The day after we made the summit we woke up to 6 degree temperatures at Trail Camp. On our trip we saw many people who were much younger than us who turned around. Most of them were totally unprepared for the cold weather.
Mgross - Oct 3, 2004 9:45 pm
Route Climbed: Main Whitney Trail Date Climbed: June 13, 2003Set out at rush hour (4am) to dayhike Whitney. I was not aware at the time of the madness of this, especially considering the fact that I was about 15 pounds overweight at the time. This is an amazing climb, and however many trip reports and photos you see, nothing compares with being there, especially in the silent, cobweb hours before sunrise. After losing all 15 of those overweight pounds (it must have been water weight!)we turned around a few switchbacks before Trail Crest, a mix of my bad knee, my brother's growing altitude sickness, and our being badly out-of-shape at the time. I would go there again in a heartbeat. In fact, it's easy to find myself fantasizing about being there. I did see much of the mountaineer's route this year on the way to Russell, but can't wait to go with our group next year on the Main Trail...(but probably won't try dayhiking!!)
n8jojohnson - Oct 3, 2004 12:37 pm
Route Climbed: Whitney Trail Date Climbed: 01 Oct 04Two fourteeners down ... and a lot more to go.
ironmike - Oct 2, 2004 11:15 pm
Route Climbed: Mountaineer's Route Date Climbed: Sept 20, 2004Descended via the trail. Up in 6 hours from Portal.
Al - Sep 28, 2004 3:48 pm
Route Climbed: Main Trail Date Climbed: Sept 24, 2004Great weather!
Dennis Poulin - Sep 22, 2004 7:05 pm
Route Climbed: Whitney Portal Date Climbed: 9 August 2003I had so much fun last month, that I had to come back and summit a second time. It was even better the second time. 9 August 2003
Dennis Poulin - Sep 22, 2004 7:03 pm
Route Climbed: Whitney Portal Date Climbed: 12 July 2003Beautiful weather. I did get a Altitude Sickness above Consolation Lake, but I pushed on to summit.
k2link - Sep 22, 2004 5:08 pm
Route Climbed: Muir Trail through to Whitney Portal Date Climbed: Augsut 2001Hiked Mt Whitney, starting at Horseshoe Meadow, via Cottonwood Pass, Soldier Lakes, Crabtree Meadow, et al, and out at Whitney Portal. The weather was quite unstable throughout, and we got chased off the mountain by thunder/lightning/hail... very exciting! An incredible trip!
blmcclain - Sep 21, 2004 1:45 pm
Route Climbed: Mountaineer's Route Date Climbed: Sept. 19th, 2004Headed up the NFLP on Saturday hoping to get Whitney/Muir on Sunday. Saturday night came crashing in with an early Sierra storm. Camped at Upper Boyscout without much wind shelter. Struggled through the early morning snow and departed for the couloir about 6:30. The hike up to Iceberg gave little warmth. Entered the chute a little before 8 am. The wind and the 15 deg temps made life tough going up the chute. Made the summit by 10:45 after taking the Class 3/4 gulley just past the top of the chute. Great climb, would be much more fun if it was warmer!
Diggler - Sep 16, 2004 9:35 pm Date Climbed: Oct 8, 2000
Route Climbed: trail, E Face Date Climbed: 28 August, 2004Mt. Whitney was my first SIerra summit (well, after Pothole Dome). Even by the tourist route, I was impressed by the sheer verticality of the cliffs, the huge foxtail pines, & sparkling white granite that seemed to glow in the dark under a full (or close to) moon.
1st time: w/ my buddy Zathan from college (who was stationed in SD at the time). We left our camp (slightly below the standard one at the lake) @ 11.10 (8 October, 2000), summiting Muir ca. 13.45, & Whitney @ 15.03. We left the summit at 15.43, & arrived back in camp @ 17.54. Beer & burgers were enjoyed upon our return!
2nd trip: w/ homeboy Gordon. Only roping up for 3 pitches, we were slowed by excessive route description review, but things went at a good pace aside from that. Leaving Iceberg Lake @ 7.00, I started up the first pitch from the 1st Tower notch @ 8.40. Tower traverse was the psychological crux of the climb- easy, but well-protected (by 2 pins & somebody's unrecoverable Alien!) & exposed!! Roped up again for the Fresh Air Traverse, which I dreaded leading due to its infamous reputation. Luckily, I cruised right through it with no problems- over-rated (Tower Traverse was more stimulating!), but still fun! Roped up for the strenuous off-width- by far the crux of the route, with the most interesting climbing. Dicked around with some fairly easy 5th above that, before weaving our way to the summit. Summited @ 14.58, & chilled for quite awhile. Started descent @ 16.24. After almost getting killed by rockfall in the Garbage Chute- I mean, Mountaineer's Route, made it back to tent @ 18.30. Great route, great company, great day!!
3x
Did the E Buttress with my man Eric. Deciding to camp at Upper Boyscout meant the approach was longer, but it still went smoothly (great place to bivy, btw). I wonder if the squirrel who raided our food bag survived his trip??? >:) Although we belayed every pitch, we made decent time. Started the route at ~9.10, summited at ~18.15. Great day, spectacular location, & a fun climb! Climbing a great route with a good friend is what it's all about. The Moose Burger (& beer, of course) upon our return was off the hook!
4x 6.12.'12
Another climb of the Sunshine Peewee route, with Faith (who'd never been up Fisherman's before & was stoked to do it). Was again reminded of what a great route it is! Coincidentally ran into Mike D's friend Sailor on the route with his girlfriend, whom we'd happened to meet ~a week prior. Small world! Beautiful, cloudless sky, & a great climb (& summit) with a wonderful partner!
stoneman5 - Sep 13, 2004 7:25 pm
Route Climbed: East Face Date Climbed: July, 1997Big day car to car. five hours on the route. Descended the trail, not recommended. Descend the Mtn'eers route instead.
orandall - Sep 11, 2004 5:26 pm
Route Climbed: trail Date Climbed: Sep 10 2004left portal at 2:45 AM, didn't see anyone until trail camp - a nice hike under the stars. trail crest 7:00 AM Muir Summit 8:30 (really poor routefinding) Whitney Summit 9:50, back at car 14:30. 14er #3 for me after Russell then Muir. Will do MR next year - just wanted to guarantee the summit this time.
woodstrider - Sep 8, 2004 5:20 pm
Date Climbed: August 26, 1997What a beautiful day for my Birthday hike! Got sung to by a motley and throughly nice bunch of guys. Took highest altitude piss ever likely to. Mount Whitney has the crapper with the best views!
mt_daydream - Sep 7, 2004 4:06 am
Route Climbed: Mountaineer's route Date Climbed: September 1, 2002First 14-er for me. Learnt some lessons the hard way. Two novices going straight at Whitney mountaineer's route coming from sea-level. Got sick due to altitude, still pushed to the summit, and had to return by the main trail. If you're an experienced hiker/backpacker thinking of making that next step, better save some time (two nights at high altitude) for acclimatization, even if you're super-fit. Climb was enjoyable still (till the altitude hit me at 13,500 ft:)
Completebum - Sep 6, 2004 3:01 pm
Route Climbed: Trail Date Climbed: September 5, 2004Wasn't planning on bagging Whitney after Muir but decided I'd rather decend the Mountaineers route than have to deal with any nagging rangers.
pennibocker - Sep 2, 2004 2:29 pm
Route Climbed: Whitney Trail Date Climbed: July 22, 2003Our party of 6 summitted about 10:00AM. Real cool thing was the high altitude helicopter rescue to retrieve a climber that darkness trapped on the summit. Helicopter takeoff from the summit was something to watch.
atc - Aug 31, 2004 4:04 am
Route Climbed: Whitney Trail (mule route) Date Climbed: Septermber 4, 20012-day trip to Mt. Whitney after winning the "Mt. Whitney permit lottery".