Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Looking for a group to climb Whitney

I am looking for somebody to climb Mt Whitney with. It's something I've always wanted to do but don't want to do it alone (my friends don't understand why I love to hike). I know people might be hesitant to take on an unknown. Here's a little about me: I love to hike and do so frequently. I'm going on several backpacking trips this spring and have climbed several peaks as day trips: Cucamonga Peak, San Jacinto Peak, and most recently Alta Peak in Sequoia NP. I would never want to slow anybody down, so I'm prepared to train to be in my best shape. I live in northern Orange County. Anybody have room for me? Pretty please???

Caryn

You should proably include when you want to do it, and if you want to do it as a dayhike or an overnight, to name but only a couple of initial considerations.

CaT

My main concern would be what high altitude experence you have. This is a major stumbling block for some people. They go up the hill and have to be carried down. It kills some of them.

How often have you been above 10k?
What have you done above 10k?
What is the highest altitude you've been up to?
What acclimation are you planning for your trip?

eh, just do it
point the car toward Lone Pine, drive as high as you can, then start hiking

Caryn,

I have a group of 9 doing the John Muir Trail July 25 thru August 8th. We will end at Mt. Whitney. I am an ex-NOC, Yorba Linda to be exact. I now live in Boise ID. Shoot me an e-mail if you night be interested.

Paul

Thank you for your replies. To answer some questions:

Alta Peak and San Jacinto Peak are both above 10,000 feet. I've done Half Dome and will be doing it again in July. I don't have a time frame for doing Whitney and am flexible on that. I hope to do it in 3-4 days. I'd rather savor the experience than try to do it as a day hike. The altitude is the only thing that worries me, so I plan on hiking and camping in the local San Bernadino Mountains to help get acclimated. I would probably want to arrive a day early to help the acclimation process.

Half of Backpacking Mt. Whitney is having hiking experience. The peaks you mentioned are great preparation peaks. You work your way up to being ready to hike Mt. Whitney.

The 2nd half is the elevation thing.That can be a real challenge the first time you are above 12000 feet. Spend as much time as you can hiking above 10,000 feet before you go to Mt. Whitney. Even a few hikes within a month of Mt Whitney will really help.

Then spend 2 nights at the portal, followed by two nights on the trail. One night could be at Outpost camp and one night at Trail Camp. On the third hiking day, summit Mt. Whitney from trail camp. This will minimize the elevation problems.


The best time to join a group might be in the summer, when people fall out and can't come. During June, July and August many groups have an open slot. Now might not be the best time to run into an available slot, since no one knows if they even have a permit yet. If you didn't become part of a group, you could always try to pick up a no show permit. With all the people on the Mt. Whitney trail, you would never need to feel alone.

If you follow this plan, you should be fine and have little to worry about. Good luck.

People will be getting their permits in early April. So right now, no one knows when they are going either on day hikes or multi-day hikes. Once people get their permits in early April, you can find someone to hook up with using this very forum. You will be the only one in your new group of friends without a permit, but there are no-shows, and you will likely get a permit on the day before your hike. Good luck!!