Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Hiking to the Portal

How far up on WPR can you drive before starting the hike to the Portal? I heard there are two gates. First gate you hike 8 miles. The second gate you hike 4 miles. I also heard there is some ice between the first and second gate. We are hoping to hike tomorrow, Friday 2-12. Waiting to see what the weather does tonight. Any info would be great!

The first gate is at the base of the hill before the big switchback. Hiking from there is only 3.5 miles, which we've done once or twice. If it's clear enough to get to the second gate (careful of the ice and drifts past the hairpin), you'll only be about 1.6 from the Portal, but passing the first gate via auto puts you in "rulebreaker" domain, and the potential for a citation and the complete lack of any towing or rescue if something goes wrong.

Thanks for the info. We were planning on parking outside the first gate. Just needed to confirm the details.

Great day hiking to the Portal! Just curious about where the gate closure is for Horseshoe Meadow Road? And how far past the closure is the campgrounds?

Gate is locked all the way down at the start of the switchbacks (just past the ranch).

You can get around it on a motorcycle, or bicycle. A month, or so, I was able to ride all the way up to the Cottonwood Pass Trailhead (about 3-4" of snow on the road in places).

Also, the closed sign states No pedestrians (confused, other than you are exposed to rockfall...).