my buddies and i just completed our first attempt at whitney and i'm proud to report we all made it. myself and one other buddy acclimated two days before by hiking the mono pass trail above rock creek. we hiked 4 miles to the pass and reached 12,000'.
was at the whitney trail head 4am friday morning. the trail times:
lone pine lake: 2.5 mi = 5:50 am
outpost = 6:25am
trailside meadows = 7:20am
trail camp = 8:20am
trail crest = 10:30 am ( no real snow problems)
summit = 12:30 pm
very cold and windy at the summit but what a view. the fire smoke had cleared and it was gorgeous. felt very fatigued but not nauseous. took 125 mg of diamox and tried a regimen of 2 aspirin every 4 hours the day before and 2 on the morning of the hike. no headaches, whereas before i experienced headaches at 10,000' on our training hikes. discovered the power of GOO!! also, ate lunch at trail camp and wished i hadn't eaten so much ( a full roast beef and cheese sandwich)
used water from the "safe" springs and so far no problems. water tasted great.
anyway, i want to take this time to thank this message board for ALL their advice and especially their encouragement. positive vibes are a must especially after trail crest, where i relied on a army friend i made, jeremy, to get through the rough mental patches. again, message board , our thanks.
also met doug, who's son of a close friend of his, i teach. thanks for the tour and the photos.
ok
