Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Outpost camp or Trail camp?

Some of us who will be doing Whitney for the first time would like your advise on staying at Outpost camp vs Trail camp. Our plan was to arrive day 1 and stay at Portal night 1. Backpack up to Trail camp and stay there day 2 & night 2. Summit & return to camp day 3. Spend night 3 at Trail camp and backpack out day 4. Recent advice to "hike high, sleep low" would suggest that we sleep lower than Trail camp ... perhaps Outpost camp instead. But as this makes the summit trip longer, I was wondering what your thoughts were for the best shot at the summit.

As usual, "it depends..."

If you can spend a night or two at some reasonable intermediate altitude (8,000 - 10,000') and spend a day hiking up higher, I'd opt for Trail Camp. Shorter summit day but more of a hike with full packs.

We spent 2 nights at Mammoth Lakes (8,000') with a dayhike up Glass Mountain (11,000') in between before driving down to Whitney Portal and backpacking up to Trail Camp. See my 2001 report under the "highpointing" pulldown on my WWW site for more details.

I vote for outpost. While it does make for a longer summit day, I don’t like hauling a full pack to trail camp. Outpost is prettier, more protected, less crowded and has a better water supply. The only downside is there are people hiking through the at all hours.

I preferred the rugged beauty of Trail Camp and sunrise was spectacular. Others find it rather desolate. It is definitely less protected from wind.

I'm not sure the elevation would make much difference in sleep patterns but it might.

But as suggested, hiking some other higher elevations locations prior to the trip would definitely be beneficial.

Good luck.

Why not?

Day 1 Hike to and camp at Outpost
Day 2 Hike to and camp at Trail Camp
Day 3 Trail Camp to Summit and hike back to portal

See the thread Outpost vs TC Overnight for more information on the subject.

It all comes down to a matter of personal preference. If you day hike from Outpost, you do not have to lug all your gear over the rugged/rocky 2 miles from Mirror Lake to Trail Camp.

I definately like Outpost vs Trail Camp just because of the amount of energy it takes to schlep your pack up to 12,000 feet.Taking a daypack vs backpack makes it a no brainer IMO. Outpost is lower and makes it easier to sleep and eat.

Your input is much appreciated. I especially appreciated the links which led to previous discussions. I feel better now and it seems that either would be fine. I will need to see how everyone else I am hiking with is doing by the time we reach Outpost Camp. If all are doing great, it appears that the trek up to Trail Camp may be practical. Its hard to know how well everyone will acclimatize and sleep at TC altitude beforehand. How is the climb from Outpost to Trail Camp? Much different than the hike from the portal to Outpost? It seems that prudence would suggest that the decision to go on to TC or not should be made at OC and depend on how well everyone has done so far.

It's only 2.5 miles between OP and TC, but it's a HARD 2.5 miles! My impression is that the trail gets harder and steeper past Outpost. You're also going above treeline and it becomes rocker. In many places the trail can become hard to see because you're on bare granite slabs.

My choice would be extend the trip a day and stay at both camps. That way you have one more day to acclimate. I did that this summer and never even noticed the altitude.

You idea of going to OC and deciding from there based on how everyone is doing sounds like a good idea. You don't want to play around with how people respond to the altitude on Whitney.

Yes, there is a big difference after Mirror Lake. Please Note: The trek from Outpost Camp to Mirror Lake is a lot smaller than the trek from Mirror Lake to Trail Camp. It sounds like you are trying to split hairs with semantics.

I strongly concur with bj and DocRodney to use Outpost Camp as a base. Hauling the large pack with your camp gear and paraphernalia all the way up to Trail Camp isn't worth it IMO. Below treeline, with running stream and shelter from the wind, Outpost makes a great camp from which to embark on the summit trek. Best to start at or before 4:30 a.m. to try to avoid weather later on. It's preferable by a large measure to use a day pack with water, snacks and foul weather gear for the 7+ mile trip to the top and then return. If you can, take a couple of days with hikes up to Onion Valley and Horseshoe Meadows to help with the altitude. My group employed all these steps in a successful three day summit trip in July 2005. If "flatlanders" can do it, You can too. Good Luck
67Brickie

To my mind it depends on your conditioning and goals. I don't like either of the camps, both are backcountry slums.

If you are planning on getting to Trail Camp in two days, I'd stay at Lone Pine Lake the first night. I'd also stay there if I were coming over Trail Crest heading for Whitney Portal if I did not have the energy to go the last couple of miles.

I like the shorter day hike to the summit. My goal is usually to stand on the summit at dawn because I like to see the entire Sierra light off in alpenglow.

Therefore, go to the camping site that best suits you wants and needs.

I summited Whitney for the first time Monday, August 20, in a group of 5. Based on my own experience, I would strongly recommend that you hike to Trail Camp on Day 1, summit and return on Day 2, and out on Day 3.

I am 60 years old, and have been backpacking regularly since 1975. This was my first attempt at 6000 feet of elevation gain.
Our group was mixed: two women and three men. The youngest in the group was 46, and I topped the group at 60. None of us had attempted Whitney before--in fact, I'm the only backpacker in the group. The others are low elevation day hikers (though they are frequent and strong day hikers).

We discovered, to our amazement and great pleasure, that Whitney is not that difficult if you follow a few simple rules: first, we all took Diamox to fight symptoms of altitude sickness. Second, we drank LOTS of water. Third, we took our time. We did not set a timetable. Our attitude was: we'll get there when we get there. We walked at a very leisurely pace and took lots of breaks. It took 7 1/2 to get to Trail Camp, but we had plenty of energy left when we got there because of our frequent rest and snack stops. I have to say, following those steps made this one of my easier backpacks--I usually hike with guys who want to see how soon they can get to our destinations. I was amazed that the second day hike to the summit was actually easier than the hike to Trail Camp.
I would NOT, however, relish the idea of trying to do the round trip from Outpast Camp. Too many miles, too much "up".
Good luck.
Jabber95125--Jerry

Well, we all made it 9/2/07! No altitude sickness. For sure the hike from Outpost to Trail Camp was significant with a heavy pack but I'm glad we did it. That was the toughest section. Hiking to the summit from Trail Camp was enough for 1 day. If I had an extra day next time, I would probably consider a night at Outpost first since it is a sheltered and shady area and the leg to Trail Camp would then be an easier day.

Great! At least you were forewarned and knew what to expect between Mirror Lake and Trail Camp.

Good job. Like a lot of things in life there is no right or wrong just preferences.

At the risk of information overload, let me suggest another option: Since you have 4 days, maybe hike in from Cottonwood/Horseshoe and get to Gitar Lake by the third day. Dump your packs at Trail Crest, summit Whitney, and then down to WP on the 4th day.

I tend to agree with a previous poster's comments that neither Outpost or Trail Camp are great backpacking camps. Both are generally crowded, and hikers are constantly "playing through" on their way to the summit. Coming in from Horseshoe, it less crowded, its beautiful, and you can spend a number of days hiking at elevation. You will, however, have to cover more ground, and thus the overall physical condition of the group needs to be considered.

If you google Cottonwood lakes you will find plenty of trip reports.