This was my first ascent of Mt. Whitney. I've climbed Shasta, bagged lots of 10,000+ Class 1 peaks and backpacked all over the Sierras. I'm in my early-mid-low 40s and I work out moderately. This trip was a surprise with just 2 days notice (thanks to a post on this board) so I had no recent training hikes under my belt.
We spent Friday night at Horseshoe Meadows to acclimate. I always feel much better after a night above 10,000, but I still get headaches and take aspirin and ginkgo. During the 2 days prior, I drank enough water to drown a dolphin.
6/14 My partner and I left the Portal at 8:30 am and arrived at Trail Camp around 1:30 after a relaxing lunch at Outpost. I was surprised at how scenic the trail was. Waterfalls and granite walls somewhat like Yosemite Valley. Snowmelt flowed down the trail, flowers were blooming, bees were buzzing and creeks were overtopping their banks. It was a beautiful day.
The solar toilets were operational at both camps, but only one of the two sides were open at each. We had lots of laughs about discharging only solid human waste. Yeah right. Guys, bring a rubber band if you plan to follow that crazy rule. It is very difficult to find a suitable place more than 100 ft from open water. Which rule are you going to break? I spoke with the Ranger about this later and he suggested that you pee on a rock and let it evaporate. That's a new one to me.
There was quite a parade of happy hikers going up and coming down from the summit all afternoon and into evening. The full moon probably increased the number of night climbers.
A young couple camped very near us after we went to bed and did the wild thing at 3 am. I read on this board that people are starting to take Viagra for AMS prevention. This might be a side effect. Might have to try that with my wife next time (not that I need it).
6/15 At 4am a solo hiker got us going, per agreement the day before. The 3 of us hit the trail at 4:40 am and caught a nice sunrise looking down at Trail Camp from the switchbacks. There was a thin weak layer of ice on parts of the trail, which barely froze overnight. The early start made things more slippery, but I still recommend it. Most of the lower switchbacks were wet with snowmelt and a little slippery in places. Crampons would have been a waste of time and energy.
The snow patches on the switchbacks were easily negotiated with hiking poles, but a couple spots had some pucker factor, mostly due to early morning frozen snow and unavoidable exposure.
As we looked west from Trail Crest the view opened up for miles with the last remnants of a full moon hanging over the western ridge line. The peaks were glowing with a Fathers Day sunrise and the valleys below reflected a bluish dawn from the frozen lakes. We stood in awe and commented on how spiritual it felt. Martin called it, "Gods Granite Cathedral." With that inspiration on constant display, we proceeded along the backside trail, descending briefly and climbing steadily through occasional snow fields. Hiking poles were a welcome safety companion through several areas.
A few granola bars and chocolate goo kept the blood sugar sustained for the final push to the summit at 7:35. There were just a handful of early birds, mostly PCT thru-hikers doing a slight detour. One guy was on track to do both the PCT and AT in 2003. He was criss-crossing East to West and North to South filling in pieces of the puzzle like Chinese checkers. Apparently he will be only the 4th person to complete both trails in one year. Good luck.
The summit view was clear for miles with the sun low in the sky and not a cloud in sight. I took my usual set of 360-deg panoramas, which I have since converted into a QuickTime Virtual Reality for posterity.
The non PCT hikers all whiped out cell phones to touch base with the mortals below. The hut was interesting and the register was full of dead pens. One pen survived the cold so I signed in, adding a request for a beer vending machine in the suggestion column. Being a civil engineer, I tried to get a close-up shot of a survey monument, there are several up there, but I couldn't find one with the elevation still visible. Luckily the Portal store sells a variety of replicas. Nice present for the kids.
I chose to glissade from Trail Crest starting at 10am. Its steep, but the snow was just soft enough to where one could stay in control by digging in your heels and dragging a collapsed hiking pole. It was ackward compared to an ice ax, but it worked. Later I realized that one of my hiking poles locked up on me and was no longer adjustable. I was postholing at the bottom, which can blow out a bad knee, so I boulder-hopped down from there back to Trail Camp by 11:20. We broke camp and hit the trail at 12 noon. Got back to the Portal at 3:30 to a hot shower, cold beer and the best burger you could hope for.
