Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board snakes?

I hear lots of bear fears on this board, but havn't heard anything about snakes. Is the portal area and main trail home to our friend the rattler?

The books say that you won't find rattlesnakes above 7000 feet because the climate is just too cold. I've never seen any snakes of any type on the trail.

I agree, I have never seen rattlesnakes at the portal or above. I never even think about them. I am sure they are down in the Alabama hills, though, in the summer months.

The only wildlife I can remember seeing are the bears and marmots plus some birds.

No snakes at Whitney but we ran into three rattlesnakes in Little Yosemite Valley before heading up to Half Dome. 3! One BIG one who had just eaten a chipmunk right in the middle of the campgroud, a baby rattler crossing the trail and one swimming in the Merced River at the camp. All in one day. We zipped up tight that night for sure...

Snakes are very common hanging around the trails in Yosemite. I have seen them there also. But none up at the Portal...and higher....must be too cold. thank goodness

We HAVE seen rattlesnakes above 7000' (in Yosemite). We also ran across a gopher snake at nearly 9000' in the White-Inyo mountain range (just below the ancient bristlecone pine forest)...but never any snakes above Whitney Portal.

I've seen Great Basin rattlers and Gopher snakes at 7000 feet here in Arizona, but I'd imagine the extra 1000 feet plus the cooler climate due to being at the bottom of a sheltered East-facing canyon is enough to keep the slithery things away from the Portal. Definitely check your boots in the morning if you stay at Lone Pine campground, though!

We saw a king snake just below Timberline Lake last year in the fall. It had to have been over 11,000'. We were shocked to see it.