Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Rookie Questions

A friend said that hiking is pre-dawn is problematic beacause of the possibility of:
1. running into bears on the trail
2. and that many injuries occur during this time.

This person also suggested to start the hike around 5 AM.
All this info is exactly the opposite from what I've been reading on this board.

Are the bears at Whitney smarter than your average bear?
And our group is planning on hiking way before 5 AM. We don't want to return in the dark and miss the Portal Store closing time, before scarfing down a burger and beer.

-TIA

Having just done the hike, I would recommend that you set your start time based on;

1. When you want to return to the Portal.

2. Time that you expect to take for the hike. Return time can be conservatively estimate to be 3/4 to 2/3 of your summit time. We needed 8 hours up for 3 over 50 fifty hikers, 25 minutes at the top and 6 hours down.

The afternoon before your day hike you can walk a good section of the trail without a permit, 2.8 miles up to Lone Pine Lake junction, in the daylight so that when you hike it with lights that it is not such an unknown.

We all felt that we would not want to hike down with lights since you will be tired and moving at a faster pace. It will be much easier then to have an accident.

We did not have any bear problems, at the campground, portal or on the trail.

TIA- I have hiked whitney many times and always done them pre dawn. If you are doing a day hike most people leave before dawn 3 to 4 a.m. The sun can get very hot early on the trail and you want to make sure you can get a good start. More injuries may occor in the dark, the first 3 miles of the trail relativly smooth and with a head lamp you should have no problem, just watch where your going. As for the bears i have yet to encounter a bear on the trail itself, im sure many people have and yes they are much more acustom to people than your average bear they will still stay out of your way. So yes i would say leave pre-dawn and dont worry about the bears. hope you have a great hike.

I make an annual trek up the mountain, and we always start around 3:30. I've never seen any bears, and it's an easy trail with a decent headlamp. If you get lucky enough to have a full moon, and no clouds, you won't even need the headlamp much of the time.

We like to start early because it gives us enough time to make the summit, and get off of the ridge before afternoon thunder storms are likely to come through. (I know that storms can come early. If that happens, we'll head down as quickly as we can.) From past experience, 3:30 seems to be a popular time. We cah always see a line of headlamps ahead of us, and more behind.

Basically, figure out where you want to be, and when, and calculate backwards from there: summit by 11:00, get down before the cafe stops taking orders, get an early start home, ...
Of course, that assumes that you know how long the hike will take you.

I'll be at the trail head at 3:30AM on Monday.

Ralph

Thanks for the replies. Everything this person has said is completely wrong based on everything I've read. So much for friendly advice.
I will be at the Portal 29th and our hike is on the 30th. We started out with 9 people and have dwindle down to 6, due to injuries and one flake out.

The Whitney Trail is a great place to hike at night. Of course, you need to have a good headlamp and several back up batteries. This is especially true if there is a bright moon. It is cooler and there is an special beauty at night that you miss during the day.

There was a bear on the summit July 17,2009. It was riding in my daughters pack for 5 days, then it jumped into her pocket for the summit pictures.

I think your greatest real danger is sunburn not bears.

If your are doing a one day start early. The trail is easy and its better to be walking in the dark when you are fresh.

Have fun

1. You are far more likely to get eaten by a bear on the way to the trailhead than while on the trail. Besides that, bears prefer backpackers to day hikers.

Just back from a Mt Whitney summit attempt - to Trail Crest only(altitude sickness and a decision to not attempt past the Trail Crest due to the winds).

However, one of the (unexpected) high points of the trip was walking in the dark. It was a night or so past full moon, and although I prob could have gone by moonlight I did use a light - like you, i was a little concerned about tripping up, and figured the light would help avoid a bear bumping into me.:) The trail is one of the best maintained I have ever hiked, and yes, like (MikeT?) said, it's a good idea to walk up to Lone Pine lake the day before to orientate, esp on creek crossings. And it is BEAUTIFUL hiking there in the dark ... + the sunrise.

I started at 2.30am, got to Crest by 12midday - slowed right down towards the end due to the altitude. But the start time was perfect. BTW came across a lot of hikers leaving Trail Camp shortly after daybreak who had decided not to summit due to the winds, which were ferocious (although the weather otherwise was gorgeous).

An apropos... thanks to the message board for generous info on preparation and sharing of trips.

Geri

In a baker's dozen years of hiking I've run into bears twice in the wilderness. I do not believe I am atypical. So, don't worry about running into bears on the trail.

Injuries can occur at night but this can be minimized by going out at night a few times before you head to Mt. Whitney. This way to get to see what it like out on the trail when the sun is taking a nap but most importantly you will find out whether or not you headlight is any good. Utilize a trail you are very familiar with.

What has been you normal hiking speed? Figure it will be slower, especially at the higher elevations along the MMWT. Just start plugging in all the numbers...your speed, the 22-miles, time for breaks, time on the peak and time you want finish. This will give you your start time.