Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Success, not so much and lessons from Mt Whitney

I just got back from Whitney and want to especially thank Bulldog and "Tucker". Yes, I said hello to "Tucker' when I left the weigh station. There were 5 in my party, my wife Karyn, my step son Kaleb (19) (Karyn and Kaleb had overnighted at Outpost Camp), my buddy DJ and his son Eric (17). We were all first timers. We planned on leaving the Portal at 3:30 A.M. I could not sleep the night before and finally got up at 1:00 A.M and started getting my pack ready. Along the way, a bear walked right past me and I didn't notice until another hiker asked me if I had seen the bear right next to me. It was the second bear encounter I had on my trip. We left at 3:35. I felt good and had been in the Sierra's for a few days before to acclimate. The pace was pretty good, but I was nervous I would overdo it early, so I made myself slow down. I need to emphasize that in the moonlight, everything was incredibly beautiful and I turned my headlamp off in the meadow around Lone Pine Lake. Walking in the moonlight with towering trees, reflections of granite and a distant waterfall really makes you feel close to a creator, God in my beliefs. I will remember those things forever. We arrived at Outpost at 5:40. We all left from there.
The trail was spectacular, but I could do without some of those "steps". Those are the largest steps I have ever seen and are even worse on the way down! My buddies were much more energetic than my wife and I. Kaleb, DJ and Eric were prancing around like rabbits from rock to rock, taking photos of the slow folks, Karyn and I. I really enjoyed hiking with Karyn and called her my "pace car". She is a field biologist and won't walk to fast. She takes it step by step enjoying the flora, and telling me the scientific name of each plant and flower, which I promptly forget. One concern is her fear of heights. I was extremely proud of her as she handled all of the trail so well and never showed any fear in her voice, though her eyes showed a bit more from time to time. Her son Kaleb was fantastic and always kept an eye on the trail, waiting at the end of narrow parts and dropoffs to make sure his mom would be okay. Along the way I found Trailside Meadow to be my favorite place.
We all made it to Trail Camp and found it much more beautiful than the descriptions I have read and heard about. Trail Camp is awesome with it's breathtaking views of Mt Whitney and the needles. Karyn decided that Trail Camp would be the end of the trail for her and took her camera out and hiked around the small lake there. She recorded nearly every plant and flower in the area.
I decided to go a farther, but I was a bit drained and even though I had acclimated, my lungs felt a light burn, as if I had been in L.A. on a smoggy day. I was also aware that my buddy DJ, a marathon runner, his 17 year old son Eric and 19 year old Kaleb were still much more energetic than me. I would have to make decisions soon. I started up the switchbacks first, trying to keep a pretty good pace. I was probably going a bit too fast (for me) than I should have because I was catching up with people who had passed us earlier on the trail. At switchback 33, I made my decision to stop. DJ, Eric and Kaleb would go on. My decision didn't come from exhaustion, but came from knowing the others were stronger and if I did continue, I know they would have stayed with me and not made the summit. I was happy that I felt good, did not have a headache or feel anything other than the light burn in my lungs. This one is a bit hard to admit, but AFTER DJ, Kaleb and Eric left, I cried. I went down to Karyn and waited for a call on the radio from Kaleb. A few moments later, he called to inform us that they had made it to Trail Crest" and were going to continue. I was very proud of Kaleb, the kid who just 2 weeks earlier didn't want to continue any further with me when were were at 10,200 feet on Mt San Jacinto. Karyn and I headed down the mountain. We lost radio contact, but around Outpost Camp, we got the call that they had all made it to the summit and were heading down the switchbacks.
Later DJ told me he actually wanted to quit shortly after Trail Crest, but the enthusiasm of the young boys made him push on. They made it back to the Portal at 5:30. Kaleb ended up with 7 blisters and Eric got sick on the mountain. But as they came back through the weigh station I bowed to them and told them I was proud of them all. You could really see not only how happy Kaleb was to be done, but how quietly proud he was of himself. I called him "the man" and told him were were going into Lone Pine to buy pizza, his favorite food.
I hope I haven't bored with all I wrote, but wanted to express the many attractions and levels of Mt Whitney. I did not summit, but the people I cared about did. I was able to spend "REALLY Quality" time with Karyn and enjoy the the incredible beauty of the Sierra's, closer than I ever have. The Mt Whitney you see from the 395 is not the Whitney you experience close up. My journey was a learning experience, one that I will treasure as much as the hikers that do summit, and a lesson that will become part of my soul over the next few months as I "dream" and plan what will be another attempt to summit. Yes, failure to summit can be good. It is the motivation that put me in the gym just 26 hours after I was hiking one of the most beautiful and alluring places I have ever witnessed, Mt Whitney.

"The real beauty is not what you see at the top, but what is all around you that you see while getting there..."

Glad to hear you spent some "quality time."

Next year, both of you will spend some "quality time" at the summit!

Have fun.

Great post; thank you for taking the time to share your story. I am always so pleased to hear of folks who are able to enjoy the mountain and the hike without being summit-obsessed. I have summitted, but I have also dayhiked Whitney many times with absolutely no intention whatsoever of summitting; hiking only as far as the day and my companions take me. Those are some of my best Whitney memories...

This was a great post. I love to read these posts. Thanks for sharing and sometimes it’s about the journey not the end. This way you will be coming back.

Awesome story! It sounds like you have the "Whitney Itch", it never goes away and feels great when you scratch it. Enjoy the mountain!

quillansculpture -

Damn and double-damn! I'm so sorry to hear that you didn't summit! I've been eagerly anticipating your Trip Report since yesterday morning. When I got up Tuesday morning - 6:00 EST, 3:00 Pacific - Tucker and I were with you the entire climb. I found myself thinking every couple of hours, "he's probably at Lone Pine Lake now", or "I bet he's at Trailside Meadow", or "He's gotta be cussing those switchbacks by this point!" That evening Tucker and I did a big "Go Quillansculpture!" cheer, which took some explaining to my wife and daughter. Hopefully you heard/felt the encouraging vibes from down in the ATL! This mountain makes you do funny things, huh?

While I was saddened to read your account of turning back on the switchbacks (deja vu, dude - I turned around on #75 or so), I was happy to hear that Kaleb and the rest made it. I was even happier to read your account of the joy of being on the mountain, which is really what it's all about - keeping it in perspective. No shame in not summiting, and I understand your emotions when making the decision to turn around. When I did my 180, the only thing that kept me from shedding tears were the AMS symptoms that had my full and undivided attention. It wasn't till I got back to the Portal that it really hit me that my dream of climbing Whitney was still unfulfilled. There may have been a tear or two on the drive back to Lone Pine. So much time, so much effort, so much pain and, most especially, so many dreams about that summit - it hurt not to see it, especially after 4 years of planning and a 5000 mile round-trip to attempt it.

The silver lining is that, at least for me, it's just an additional reason to come back and climb the mountain again (that, and having Doug's pancakes and burgers at the WPS)! I hope you feel the same way. Who knows? Maybe we'll both be on the mountain at the same time next year, and we can jointly congratulate Tucker on finally summiting! My wife and daughter plan to come with me on next year's trip - not to summit, but to go as far as maybe Trail Camp for a 1-2 nighter while I take another crack at the highest house in America.

(For those scratching their heads, Tucker is one of my daughter's stuffed pets - dubbed Tucker the Wonderpuppy - who rides my backpack when I head off for trails her 9 year-old legs can't handle yet. That way she can be hiking with me in spirit.)

Thanks for a GREAT trip report, and I'm really glad to hear you're planning to give 'er another go. Please keep me/us informed!

Beautiful report. Success is not measured in how high you go but what you get out of the experience. I know from what you wrote that your trip was very successful in many ways. Enjoy the experience since it will last forever.

quillansculpture -

what a nice post! thanks for sharing your experience. i think you guys really understood the core of what this trip is about. bonding with family, creating amazing self-confidence boosting experiences for your teens and forming lasting family memories; all the while enjoying each and every bit of beauty this trail has to offer. what an amazing journey.

the mountain will always be there in case you decide to return one day.

do i remember this correctly? did you post about hiking the marion mountain trail on san jacinto as a training hike? if so my hat's off to you, because that is one mean trail :-). so if you made it to the top you are clearly in shape.

"Walking in the moonlight with towering trees, reflections of granite and a distant waterfall really makes you feel close to a creator, God in my beliefs. I will remember those things forever."

Amen, Brother! You should have been a poet. All the more reason to try again next year!

I wasn't sure what response I would receive on what I wrote, and felt encouraged to see how many of the hikers who attempt Mt Whitney see what I saw on just my first adventure on the mountain. Of course, I still believe the goal is to summit and to view the entire United States from the highest point in the land, to know you made it, to know you are one of the few. But along the way, as every hiker on this site knows, there are the people who have more courage than they know. I want to thank the people who wrote to encourage, but now I would like to thank the people who I witnessed on Mt Whitney, the people I will remember personally, the absolutely devoted individuals who didn't know what they were getting into, and still trudged on.
The first would be the young man with the goatee who walked slowly and carefully in front of his father, a man in his 50's. They were one of the only people I passed on the trail, as most passed me. I felt close to them from the first and admired the attention and love the son gave to his father along the way. The father had to rest several times and I could see that he was very apprehensive of this hike, but was going to be together with his son on this journey, no matter. On my way down, the father encouraged me. Kaleb told me later that he saw them slowly walking towards the summit after Trail Crest. I want to thank the two woman in their late 40's, early 50's who walked into Trail Camp as I was leaving. The first woman looked pretty good. The second woman stumbled on a rock and I asked her if she was okay. She said yes, and told me that she had already given up several times, but that her feet kept drawing her in the direction up the mountain. She said she thought she would feel like this a few more times, and "hoped" she would be able to continue. I want to thank the two pretty girls who walked in front of me on the switchbacks. I was amused when every time I nearly caught up them them, they would quicken their pace, or quit their break. I told Kaleb, DJ and Eric that those two young girls just wouldn't let a chubby 50 year old pass them. I especially want to thank the man in his late 20's, early 30's who did not look at all like he belonged on the mountain. He was out of shape, with a chubby face, pasty white and sunburned badly under the large splotches of sunscreen. He moved very slow up the switchbacks. He looked very much out of place hiking up the mountain. The first thing he said to me was a question, "I have to be near the end of these don't I?" I told him, no, but also told him he was doing "Great". I did inform him that he was only about a quarter of the way up the switchbacks. He didn't look discouraged and gave me kind of a half of a smile. Without saying anything more, he kept a slow pace up the switchbacks. Kaleb told me later that he did reach Trail crest. I was amazed and hoped he would be okay.
Those are just a few of the people I met on the mountain. I want to tell you that I was pleased to see that the hikers I witnessed at the Portal and on the trail cared very deeply for their mountain. I saw absolutely no trash around the Portal and only saw one small top of a GU package from the Portal to the switchbacks, both ways. Everyone I met at the Portal was encouraging and friendly, even the young "Gung Ho" hikers who I felt a bit intimidated about at first,......and the strangest thing of all was when I met Doug Sr. I introduced myself and told him I had written on the site a few days earlier. Doug remembered what I wrote and acted like he had known me forever, treating me and my buddy like old friends.
Thanks again to everyone who wrote and yes I will be on a trail next week. I have been at the gym every day since Whitney. You guys (and girls) blow me away and what you wrote brought me to tears (again!) I know you treat everyone like this and I appreciate. Hike safely.

quillandsculpture,
Great postings.
Although most of us don't think much beyond the macho, physical motivations and results of our climbing - somewhere in all of us are the emotional and spiritual underpinnings that you so eloquently surface.
Oh that more of us would have not so much success!

Hi ClimbSTRONG.........Thanks. I see you are one of the clan who did "Chemo". Me too. Great Stuff (just kidding.) My drug of choice was Carboplatin. Congrats on being a survivor.