Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Have any of you spread this over 3 days?

One of the guys in my party wants us to consider spreading this climb over 3 days. Like we would be "rushing it" otherwise, he says. I think he's just not quite in shape yet and is trying to buy some comfort. I am not sure if an overnight permit is even good for 3 days. I would be more apt to attempt the summit on day one, return to Trail Camp and leave the mountain on day 2. But, what about a third day? Your thoughts? Thanks.

Your overnight permit is good for 14 days.

If your friend isn't in the best shape or is "trying to buy some comfort" then you should let him. Believe me.. pushing is going to make him miserable and more then likely ruin a summit chance for him and possibly the rest of your group.

If you hit Trail Camp, stay the night, summit, night at Trail camp again, and then out.. that works for most people. And it's sooo definately worth the nights at camp to just kick back and watch the stars swim by....

Just my two cents worth,
Chris

The 3-day routine is exactly what Nathan and I did back in 2001. Portal-Trail Camp day one, summit and back to TC, day two and out on day three. Worked fine for us and given the pattern of afternoon storms that blew up, just as well that we were planning on staying in Trail Camp the second night. It would have been a miserable hike out in the rain the second afternoon otherwise.

Besides, any excuse to spend another day up in the mountains is worth it in my book...

The times I enjoyed the climb the most was spread over 3 days. Each day is not much work and you have leisure time to do little side trips that you miss otherwise.

For example - hike up the creek above Trail Camp to the three lakes and get a completely different view of the Muir-to-Keeler ridge and the climb to Trail Camp - and see the incredibly odd sink hole that's up there.

Or take your time on day one and scramble up to the waterfall above Outpost camp to get some pretty cool sites.

Or wander the slabs over toward Consultation Lake. There's some weird Mtn. Man camp stuff over there. Listen for the footsteps.

Or climb Wontons Throne and Pinnacle Ridge for some different views.

The exit from Trail Camp only takes a couple to three hours. I found I was much more refreshed and feeling good about the trip than when I went the full 11 miles down in one day. Why rush to get out?

We enjoy a pace of 4 days. One night at Outpost Camp, one at Trail Camp, summit, one more at Trail Camp and then out. Outpost is good to take some time to look around, head to Mirror Lake and go up close to the walls around the camp. Head to Trail Camp and hit Wotans, Consultation Lake, the moraine or just read a good book and look at the hills. Talk with the natives also. Enjoy a summit day with no rush and a good dinner afterward. An easy late morning and a saunter down the hill to a cold beer and burger. Why rush the trip? Wag bags can last 4 days with a high protein diet.

Enjooyyyy.... They may close the trail...

My buddy and I hiked it in 3 days in June. For us it was perfect. We wanted to enjoy ourselves and our precious time spent away from our busy lives. It gave us a chance to take in everything and not be rushed. We were both in great shape and well prepared so it was a matter of choice for us. We got an early start on day 1, got to Trail Camp,set up camp, summit on day 2, and hike down on day 3. I suppose it's a personal preference. Could we have done it in a day? Sure, but we preferred 3. If your friend wants to do it in 3 then I think you should in order to better his chances and allow him to acclimate and enjoy the experience. There's no right or wrong way in my opinion, do what's best for your overall enjoyment of the experience.

As noted earlier, an overnight permit is good for up to 14 days, so you should not feel rushed to exit as long as family and friends know what you are doing. One thing to consider is that the trail is pretty rugged between Mirror Lake and Trail Camp, so staying at Trail Camp on the first night may be asking a lot(see barely made Trail Camp ). If the group can get up to Trail Camp on day 1, you have less work to do on day 2, but don't push yourselves more than you have to.

Jefe, one of the things I noted was that almost all the dayhikers we met were repeat-visitors who had backpacked Whitney before. If it's your/your group members' first time, I wholeheartedly recommend the 3-day trip. The hike (and the wildflowers) is so beautiful and enjoyable; doing it in one day the first time seems like you would miss so much about the trip that is wonderful. It's really just that brutal hike between Trail Camp and the summit that is so dry and moonscape-looking.

As you can guess, it's more about the journey than the destination for me. The beauty of the hike (and that view from Trail Crest) alone were worth ALL of it; summiting was just the cherry on top.

Safe journeys!

Hi, I just got back today from a 1 day attempt yesterday (8/10).

We ended up turning around at Trail Crest and it was a good decision to turn there (BTW - what a view from there!). Having tried a 1 day, my next time will probably be 3 days with a camp on the way up and the way down at Trail Camp/Consultation Lake.

It was more of a chore to go that far in one day than a fun trip. The area is really pretty even though tons of people go there. I'd rather take several days to enjoy the place and not have to try to push my body quite that hard. There were literally hundreds of things to stop and look at, take pictures of, etc.

We saw a bear 10 feet from where we parked the car, grouse on the climb up, and a pika on the climb down!