Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Helmet for Mountaineer's Route?

Hi All,

I'm wondering if a helmet is prudent for the MR. Is there much natural rockfall? I am I likely to meet careless yahoos sending stikes down the bowling alley? I have but one head, and it's not the greatest, but I'd like to keep it.

-Greg

It's not a bad safety measure. There is occasional rockfall in the chute above Iceberg Lake both from climbers on the route above and from natural causes. If you don't use a helmet, get an early start so that you are ahead of other climbers and the ice hasn't started melting.

Maybe this is a dumb question, but here goes: Is a bicycle helmet okay as a substitute?

Depends on the bike helmet. If it has small air slots on top (think small enough that a good sized stone would not fit through), it should be fine. It would be somewhat dicey, but you could think about putting duct tape over the top holes. Some of the newer climbing helmets are exactly the same materials as a bike helmet, but with the air holes on the sides rather than on top.

I think you may be able to rent helemts in the Whitney area.

I was up in the MR yesterday. We did not wear helmits and tried not to climb in a straight line where rocks would likely come loose. A group above us in the staircase (above the notch) knocked a rock loose. I saw and heard it coming, but was still unable to completely get out of the way. It hit another rock, brock in two. The smaller of the two pieces (large grapefruit size) hit me in the arm as I raised it to protect my face and bounced off my leg, leaving a 2 inch bruise. If you can a helmit is a good idea. More importantly is to be careful and watch for rocks. Often they are unintentionally knocked loose by climbers/ hikers further up. Portions of the route are steep enough to let the rocks pick up a lot of momentium.

A climbing helmet is much less expensive than an insurance deductable. All of those millions of rocks in the chute above iceberg came down from above.

Let's see....
Climbing helmet: $70

Helicopter ride: $25,000
Trauma team activation: $5,000
Emergency Department Bill: $1200
Labs: $300
Head CT: $600
Neurosurgeon consult: $400
Craniotomy: $15,000
1 month hospital stay (including ICU) $1,200,000
4 month rehab stay $150,000
Loss of income due to being dumb as the rock that hit your head: $600,000

That helmet doesn't seem like such a bad investment now does it?

I was climbing yesterday halfway up the left chute between Iceberg and the notch when some rockfall came down from close to the summit. I don't know if it was dislodged by climbers on the East face or if it was natural or what, but it sure got my attention. The sound that rocks make hurtling through the air from nearly a thousand feet above is a sound I won't soon forget. It's kind of a whirring/chopping noise as they rip through the air. One of the larger rocks (about 8 inches or so) seemed as though it was heading straight for me. Fortunately it missed me by 30 feet or so. There were still more smaller rocks coming down so I jumped for cover to the extreme left of the chute. This was a little more excitement than I wanted and I was a bit paranoid the rest of the way up to the notch. There were two climbers above me who were also caught in this event. One was hit by one or two pebbles but only lightly bruised.

Once to the notch, I and some others decided to contour back around to the class 2 route since there was a fair number of climbers in the first chute above the notch. There was also some snow and ice from the thunderstorm the prior day which made things a bit slippery.

As for helmets, it's probably a good idea. I'm gonna order one this week. However had one of those larger rocks hit me in the head it wouldn't have mattered whether I had a helmet or not. It would have taken my head clean off.

I was rather happy that I had planned on descending the main trail. This incident probably won't prevent me from doing the MR in the future, but I sure won't spend anymore time getting up to the notch than I have to.

-Rick

OK another question in the same area. I don't have a bike but I have a horse. Would an equestrian helmet work? I could tie it on the back of my backpack until I need it. Otherwise, the thing is pretty hot and uncomfortable...but so is a concussion.

I have to agree with DH, duct tape can work wonders, but stopping a hurtling rock might be just a bit beyond what it was engineered for.

Are you likely to be hit by a rock on the MR? Probably not. Can it happen. Yes.

It's just a matter of chance. And having the right helmet could just make the difference.

Are you likely to be hit by a rock on the MR - almost certainly yes. The only question is how fast it will be going and whether it is just rolling/sliding down the chute or falling from the cliffs above. I've never been up the MR without having someone set a rock bounching down the chute at some point - and they can get going pretty fast.

Bike helmet construction is exactly the same as the newer climbing helmets (plastic shell over a foam core) - the only difference is where the vent holes are placed and their size. Bike helmets usually have large air vents on top which are large enough to let a small pebble falling at exactly the right angle hit your head.

As with everything in climbing, it's a matter of how much and which risks you want to take. A bike helmet would be better than no helmet, a bike helmet with duct tape or a thin plastic shell taped on top would be better than a bike helmet alone, a climbing helmet would be better than a bike helmet.

It would seem to me that wearing a helmet is a no brainer(pun intended). Unless you are going injun style.(loin cloth and moccassins)

This is addressed to those of you who have recently done the MR. What is the snow condition? In particular, what is the size of the snow field on the north side of the peak, west of the notch?
Did you cross the snow field or did you climb the bowl? Which way did you come return?

Thanks
Vance

Vance, I did the MR last Saturday (8/16). Never stepped in snow until past the notch. From the notch I and several others contoured around to the West and followed the cairns up to the main trail. There was light snow (perhaps a couple inches) West of the notch. This probably came from thunderstorms in the days prior. I wouldn't be surprised if it was all gone by this weekend however more thunderstorms could drop more. In places there were rocks covered with ice. Although not a major problem we did proceed somewhat slowly in placing our steps. We avoided going up the chutes at the top of the notch due to the ice and the fact that there were already a number of people up higher in the chute that could knock rocks down on us.

-Rick

Vance,

I dayhiked to the summit via the MR on Sunday. The amount of snow on the north side was negligible. A small patch of snow covered maybe fifty feet of the traverse to the west near the start and was avoidable. I felt the traverse could be done safely and did so on both ascent and descent, but with extreme caution. A young lady hiker followed soon after me. She also thought it was safe currently.

This time I avoided the chute to the left as the amount of water at the bottom made it appear like a small waterfall. I was wearing regular running shoes with minimal traction. Several other hikers ahead of me went up the chute. When I chatted with them at the summit they denied having problems because of the water.

I hope this helps answer you question.

Best wishes, Jim F

Rick and Kent:
Thank you - that is exactly the information I was asking for.

I'm not going up untill the 13th of September and between now and then, conditions can change drastically (time of the year...). I would appreciate trip reports from anyone who goes up the MR - thanks a million.

Vance

Greg, I agree with DESPERADO, with would add that you might want to go to a store that sells climbing helmets and try one on before deciding what to wear...
~Swifty

As you can imagine, rock is a constant danger up near Mt. Whitney, especially in the MR. Whenever I camp up there I hear rocks fall from time to time. Look around at the mountain and you will see cracks in the rocks and lots of boulders filling up the bottom of the chutes. All of those rocks came from above. I have personally worn my climbing helmit part of the time. Before I had a climbing helmit I wore a bike helmit. Other times I have climbed the MR without a helmit. I realize that a helmit is a good safety precaution. But I also know that a big rock can still kill you even if you have a helmit on. You need to also be aware of your surroundings and keep a careful eye to climbers up high. Rocks get knocked loose quite often, even without trying. Best to err on the watchfull side.