Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board new trailhead structure design

Thanks Studentbuilder,My wife, Daughter and I enjoyed the new structure at the trailhead. It was a surprise at first but after some thought we decided it was an attractive and suitable structure for the Trailhead. Considering that The Mt.Whitney Trail is arguably the most traveled trail in the country it is appropriate to have a structure of this kind to mark the departure and return of Mt. Whitney Hikers. To many this hike is their "Everest".I got good vibes from it.I don't want to see commercial developement in this area but a little artistic expression doesn't hurt.It's a great place to post trail information and the scale was useful. Loved the old Trailhead too. You can't please everyone all the time, just some of the people some of the time. I say thumbs up. WS

I think it sucks.I think you are an idiot for building it, we plan to dispose of it first oppurtunity we get (this winter). I think you should go F yourself.
E.L.F

Sorry, but I hate this structure. When I first saw it I thought it was not finished.Then I thought maybe they changed their minds and they were tearing it down.

The Inyo County Park Service got all up in arms when I offered to re-paint the tiny little mileage signs on the Whitney Trail rocks, then they put up something just so not imaginative, which does not fit into the forest surroundings and just sticks there like a sore thumb. The only neat thing about it is the scale. Maybe one of those big landslides will fall down on it.

elf, if I give you the gasoline and matches, will you use them?

(Just kidding about the last thing!)

When I first saw it I asked myself" What the hell is it?"

It looks unfinished to me. The only thing I like about it is the scale, that's very practical. But the structure is plain ugly.

I appreciate the effort, don't take me wrong, but this is Sierras, not an architectural exhibit. Sorry.

I have to say that our group liked the trailhead signs - esp. the scale -(settled the arguement of who has the heaviest load . You could tell forethought had gone into the design and I would imagine the information posted would be helpful to many of those who travel to the trailhead (we saw quite a few "tourists" who were starting up the trail with no packs/water for pictures). I'm surprised at the number of negative responses considering many trailheads have some sort of signs and postings. In fact, I think the design is significantly better than many of the kiosks at other trailheads, where they seem very cheap and much more so out of place. As for not wilderness enough, you are still at the parking lot - next to ALOT of vehicles and pavement. Way to go Design/Build team!

Melissa

I must admit my disappointment at reading all of the negative responses about the new trailhead. I climbed the mountain in June while the students were working away on the structure and had the opportunity to speak with a number of them. Aside from being really excited to be working in such a spectacular environment, they mentioned a number of things that I thought showed how in touch they actually were with the area. Apparently all of the wood that was used came from trees that had fallen in the city of Oakland and had been milled by the East Bay Conservation Corps. The wood is the same species, but none of it had to be harvested from the Sierras, in fact no wood was harvested at all. They also mentioned that they designed the structure to be easily assembled at the site with most of the work being done off site ahead of time. This means that they did not have to be as invasive at the site as most new buildings seem to be. Most importantly, none of the students struck me as particularly egotistical or interested in making a statement - they just seemed like people who really appreciated the mountain and wanted to contribute to it - and without being compensated (something I imagine many of us have never done for the mountain).

When I revisited this fall to see how the trailhead had finished up, I was pleasantly surprised at what they had pulled off. I am no architect, but what they did does not strike me as a waste of money. It did strike me as something that fit in much better than all of those new pit-toilets and the majority of things the Forest Service has done at their other sites. The size of the wood pieces and the stone walls are much more in keeping with the grandeur of the trees in the portal and the large granite outcroppings. It was nice to have a place to sit (on the stone wall) and reflect on the mountain and the beauty of the area - something that was hard to do with the last solution the Forest Service came up with. I like the fact that the thing seems kind of incomplete - the last thing I would like to see here is a typical building. This way there are places for their signs and scale, but you can still see through it to the trees and mountains beyond. I have to congratulate the Forest Service on opting to improve the trailhead in a manner that provides important information, actually marks the start of the trail and is a departure from their traditional approach. But most importantly, I want to thank the students for their hard work and hope they continue to be as sensitive in their future work as they were here.

How can you say it was not a waste of money if you DO NOT KNOW how much this cost?
Your info on the wood coming from Oakland (for politically correct purposes) & who knows what else was done or specified for the same, leads me to believe this budget was huge!

So how much DID it cost, lucas? That argument spins both directions.

And above what amount would you say would be a waste of money?

You're right, I don't know the exact cost, but my guess would be that if the wood came from fallen city trees (free) and was milled by the East Bay Conservation Corps (non profit organization) then it was probably pretty cheap. Throw in volunteer labor and I am wondering how anyone could consider this a waste of money...? Face it, they did a great job and none of us should be complaining about having a new trailhead that is actually unique, provides useful information and is in harmony with the portal.