Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Knee injury says we have to wait til next year

Some where a few weeks back my wife noticed a bit of pain in her knee. It has gotten progressively worse. Last weekend, coming down from Half Dome (awesome hike), she was in real extreme pain. She doesn't want to get to 14,000 and be a liability to the group we're hiking with. So, we will give it a try next year.

Thanks to all who took time to answer a lot of rookie questions. This board was a great help.

Don't make a summit Priority #1...

Get out there and enjoy...

Make it a vacation...

There is more to do out there than just hike 22 miles:
Take a walk around Lone Pine Lake.
Take a walk down the Whitney Portal National Recreation Trail from the Portal store down to the campsites and back up again.
Take a drink from the spring before Outpost Camp. No filter needed!
Check out the campsites and select which one you may want to stay at next time (if available).
Indulge in Mt. Pancake for breakfast, or Mt. Burger and Mt. Portal Fries for lunch or dinner!
Chat with the Portal Crew if they aren't too busy (they're never too busy to chat!)

Other points of interest:
Museum of Lone Pine Film History
Horseshoe Meadows (take a lunch)
Bristlecone Pine Forest outside of Big Pine.
Alabama Hills

Dining in Lone Pine...
Alabama Hills Cafe (breakfast)
Seasons (dinner)

Disclaimer: These are things that my wife and I would do. Your horizons will vary.

You paid for your permits, right? Now, get out there and get your money's worth!

Have fun...

What he said. If you're already permitted, go up and enjoy. Make it to Outpost and stay the night. Lounge in Trailside Meadow. Way too much beauty and solitude up there to make the peak your only goal.

I'm fine with just sitting at the Portal, watching the chipmunks, squirrels and Blue Jays. Put a pancake or Burger in front of me and I'm starting to have a conversation with God.

I was lucky enough to be at the Portal when the Badwater was going on. Wow!!! It was so much fun to see these runners going 40 to 70 hours. They were quite an inspiration before my hike. The Portal is always a vacation.

Gary, you forgot to suggest taking the tram to the summit and having a nice hot cup of java at the Starbucks up there . . .

Seriously though, the Portal area is a worthwhile vacation in itself - Whitney or no. While I was up on the mountain last month, my wife was in heaven hanging at the Portal, eating the food, talking to the folks, sitting by the waterfall, and wandering the nearby trails to stretch her legs.

I agree and we have been doing that all summer. We'd come up for the day (we live close) and just walk around. Did the Lone Pine lake section. A great hike. It was inspiring. Portal, done that, too. Watching Doug bring in the groceries and such. Mosquito Flats and others.

Our journey wasn't just to summit. It was the long and rewarding preparation as well. We have seen so many new things and met wonderful people on each trail. And, we have found one more thing we enjoy doing together.

So, we are focused on fixing the knee and getting back out there. The extra permits will be used by a few friends that didn't get theirs but trained with us in case someone dropped out.

Here we are on top of Half Dome

THAT is your real payoff!

Well, with that being said and shown...

IMHO, if you can hike to the top of Half Dome, you can make it to the summit of Mecca West.

BTW: If you are ever in the YNP area again, shoot me a PM. We live in Coarsegold aka Fuggowhee (near Oakhurst)!

Here is to a speedy recovery and more fun adventures together (especially on the summit of Mt. Whitney next year!)