fedak wrote:Ever had to bail out to a trailhead other than the one you started?
Very nice to have some cash, ID, and a credit card, and a cell phone at that point.

Never went out a different trailhead unless it was planned, but I have taken cash and a credit card on longer or one-way trips before. But never ID, I still don't see how that would come in handy when you have cash and credit.

Just to be clear- I am not suggesting anyone climb Whitney without a permit. I am saying for Mount Russell they are completely unnecessary.

> But never ID, I still don't see how that would come in handy when you have cash and credit.

Try getting on a plane w/ cash and credit.

Only had to do that once- when I had to abort a JMT trip when hurricane Rita snuck up from the gulf and dumped a foot of snow on us.
Ended up hitching a ride to Ontario and then hopping a plane back home from there. Car was up in Yosemite.

So the wallet goes in the pack- or at least my ID, credit card, and cash.

Also helps to have your insurance card in the unfortunate case you need it. Had that happen once too

Yea better to be safe then sorry with the wallet topic.
Wow now I have a whole bunch of places I want to go to, damn California being on the other side of the continent! So from the sounds of it I would need the same permit to get on Russell as I do for Whitney? Man, this whole permit lottery is killing me! I mean maybe I'll get one, maybe not but those maybes are the worst. I hate waiting for paperwork. Last year I got my papers back approved to get one of those Nexus cards the last day possible to not have to cancel a trip to Katahdin I had reserved, so maybe 2 summers in a row things can work out. That's not to much to hope for is it? Either way we'll obviously be able to climb something awesome. I've heard of Shasta before, never had looked into it though, thanks for the suggestion.

I actually almost prefer the look of Russell, exposure is always a draw for me and I find it hard to resist a knifeedge.

It's not a knife-edge, but Middle Pal is one of the best Class 3 scrambles around. Yet another option.

How about the Mountaineer's Route ? It is an interesting ascent & descent. It should not be hard to find someone to partner with in July or to hire a guide. The approach has a great view of the East Face and the camping is usually uncrowded and mellow .Have a great climb !

NW wrote: I've heard of Shasta before, never had looked into it though, thanks for the suggestion.

Shasta's a very different mountain than Whitney (it's a Cascade volcano, with several thousand feet of snow climbing) but is worth a trip by itself some time. You could combine it with a visit to the Trinity Alps, which are beautiful and rugged, and also very different from the Sierra (not surprising, given they are as close to Whitney as Chicago is to Huntsville AL).

Palisades79 wrote:How about the Mountaineer's Route ? It is an interesting ascent & descent. It should not be hard to find someone to partner with in July or to hire a guide. The approach has a great view of the East Face and the camping is usually uncrowded and mellow .Have a great climb !

It is a good route. It doesn't solve the permit problem, though. You will need the same permit, and the same quota applies. It's 100 for any dayhike in the Whitney Zone.

Or you're talking overnight? Not necessary for the MR, but an option for those who want to take more than a day. For overnight MR, there is a separate quota, and it's 10, versus 60 overnight on the trail.

I have no idea why this URL is so fucking long, by the way:
http://www.fs.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsinternet/!ut/p/c5/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3gDfxMDT8MwRydLA1cj72BTJw8jAwgAykeaxcN4jhYG_h4eYX5hPgYwefy6w0H24dcPNgEHcDTQ9_PIz03VL8iNMMgycVQEAHcGOlk!/dl3/d3/L2dJQSEvUUt3QS9ZQnZ3LzZfME80MEkxVkFCOTBFMktTNVVJNDAwMDAwMDA!/?navtype=BROWSEBYSUBJECT&cid=stelprdb5150055&navid=110000000000000&pnavid=null&ss=110504&position=Not%20Yet%20Determined.Html&ttype=detailfull&pname=Inyo%20National%20Forest%20-%20Mt.%20Whitney%20Trail