Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board HELP-about to attempt whitney this weekend

My buddy and I are heading in on a 4 day permit on Thursday morning. We have gathered a bit of info from a few sources.
Anyboday have any immediate knowlege of the weather conditions or any other tips? We are going to try to make trail camp the first day. Summit and back the second day.
Hike out on the 3rd day. 1 extra day just in case....
I read that the cables have been taken down. Is this a problem?
We are bringing hiking poles. Anything else we should know?
Thanks in advance.

I hate to have to tell you, that with this most recent storm Whitney is now closed for the season.

Why did YOU have to respond. I've only been on this board for 2 days and can tell that you're the **** with no life here.
PLEASE somebody else give me some REAL info!

It's that time of the year when you need to know how to use crampons and an ice ax to climb safely. I would strongly recommend against using these for your first time to climb Whitney. If you have the right gear for climbing in winter conditions and know how to use it safely, the mountain is climbable. If not, suggest that you consider taking a guide to show you how.

I agree, crampons and ice axe are gonna be good to have. We are going up the weekend after you (10/29) for two days and are bring'n that stuff,, along with a mighty warm sleeping bag and proper clothes (no cotton, lots of layers, ...).. Good luck,, pls let me know how your trek goes. Like I said, we'll be going up the next weekend so it would be good to hear from ya..

Adios..

Based on the most recent report from Carpathia and the storm forecast, you had better count on at least 1-2 feet of snow, if not more.

This means lots of determination and slow going. Bring warm winter clothing and gear. Ken is probably correct about the crampons and ice axe, although there can be ice under the snow. If the snow is deep you will be wading through it.

There would be places, like just above trail crest that you would need to be very careful, so as to not fall off the trail. I wonder if you could even follow the 97 switchbacks with that much snow?

What an adventure it will be, all of the upper mountain covered with new snow. If you can stay warm and dry it could be a great experience. Best wishes and be careful and wise in your decisions.

My take is a little different. I doubt that crampons and ice axes will be of any value, as all the snow will be unconsolidated. And I'd expect 4 or more feet above Trail Camp. This will be the type of snow that snowshoes will not help with, much. You are just going to be postholing a bunch.

After some warmer weather, the snow will consolidate, and there will be a crust that will make crampons useful, and an axe essential.

Some first-hand info would be very helpful.

We were up there this weekend. Saturday, the weather was pretty good until we got to Trail Camp. Wind was blowing with gust between 30-50?, I’m guessing. And cold, probably in the mid 30’s at sunset. The wind didn’t let up all night. The snow started about 2:30am, the temps had to dip into the teens. The summit, for us, was now out of the question. In the morning, by the time we packed up and headed back down, there was a good 3-6 inches of snow on the ground. The pond was frozen, it was ice free when we got there. My water in the tube for my platypus froze during the time it took to pack up. The trail was covered in snow/ice back down to Lone Pine Lake. Some icy spots on the trail, but mostly hikeable with trekking poles.
From what I heard the cables came down on Friday. Never got up that far to see if that was true. If you needed them, you probably shouldn't be up there now.
Conditions change every day, but I wouldn’t travel above Trail Camp now unless I had expert winter mountaineering experience.
Even though we didn’t make the summit, it was still an exciting adventure. Enjoy.

Spent the weekend getting snowed on in the North Fork. Basically, above 12000' it's really snowy. Below 12000', depends on the aspect of the slope and/or if it's shaded.

Talked to a few folks who tried to summit via MR on Sunday, but all of them turned around because of a lack of visability above the notch.

It snowed 5 inches Sunday, (a lot of which melted on Monday, which was sunny and warm). It snowed 5 inches Tuesday morning, and they are expecting another 1-2 feet tonight and tomorrow.

If there's some more warm and sunny weather, I would expect that areas with southern exposure might melt out quite a bit. But the northern (or otherwise shaded areas) will probably hold quite a bit of snow. So unless you are equipped for quite the winter expedition, climbing the mountain isn't going to be practical by any route.

I prefer ski/trekking poles unless I'm roped up or on glaciers and steep terrain where self-arresting is key. Crampons for me were a necessity.