Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Seniors Group Climb Proposal

Hi If I have it right the 23 is on Wed. mid week and we may still have some snow/ice conditions keeping the no-show numbers high. One option is wait until the permits are posted and people then can see what is open on the 23rd and call in and get a permit , the others can do the walk-in option the day before.Thanks Doug

Hi Scott,
I wish I could join with you this hike but I have a few reasons not to go. The biggest reason is the name "OPG" or "Senior...". I am 60 years old and TRY to feel like I am still 20 years old. Most of my hiking friends are much younger than I am and still I am able to hike together with them local mountains.
I can learn a lot from mature and experienced hikers out there and I respect them very much.
I still have a dream to hike MR route some day soon.
I will consider to change my hiking program after I reach my goal. Till then I refuse to admit I am old.
This is a bit personal feel.

I hate to get a "Senior coffee at McDonald's" without me asking.

Shin
P.S. Please send my regards to Flip.

The "O" in "OPG" means "Occasional", not "Old".

I'm not old, and neither is my grandson. My kids are getting old, though.

Wish I could go, but too early to commit with more family events this summer.

Dear Shin,

I have hiked with a lot of OD's (Old Dudes) and I can tell you with certainly that not one single Senior, Geezer, Grandpa, OF, Viejo, or Old Dude that I hang out with is anything but a youngster in disguise. ALL of them love to be around young people and they are a joy to bee around in return. NONE of them are ready to throw in the towel, and most of them have ME reaching for the towel long before they do, and their sense of humor is fully intact. I would go so far as to say that I have met may more whiney youngsters, than ODs, and quite frankly, I am spoiled rotten by the exceedingly good manners of the older folk, too.

I hope to meet you on the trail some day; I will be the one hanging out with all the "blondes".

B

This is my first post.
My good friend Scott, White Tundra, made me aware of this hike and I would love to be part of it.
It sounds as if it will be interesting and as if there will be a good group of "good" people.
I'll be keeping an eye on this topic.
Thanks, Flip

PS: & A BIG HELLO TO SHIN

I may go up the Mountaineers' Route or the East Face and meet everyone on the summit.

Sounds fun. I may not be OPG yet but I'd certainly like to make a mid-week climb. What better way to spend the middle of the week. Long days too. Hi Flip, glad you're aboard!

So who seems like they want to jump in on this June 23 "adventure?"

I'm not OPG yet but I'm planning on it. Not sure which route yet but as it has been stated the goal is to meet at the summit and perhaps more importantly, burgers at the store.

I can do that. I'm old enough,.... BTDT and would like to do it again...

b, you can't come. you don't look old enough...m

What? 29 is not old enough?

Well, I got my no quota space for dates requested "Dear John" letter from the United States Department of Agriculture today about my MT Whitney lottery letter.

Looks like the Senior Group Climb might be my only chance to get up the Mountain this year.

Everyone still planning on meeting up on June 22nd, and climbing up June 23rd?

It looked like there were SEVERAL people coming up from Orange County for this event. Maybe several of us can carpool up to the Hostel in Lone Pine.

I am looking forward to seeing you all up there !!

Thanks for planning this climb!!

Hi Bob,
I am hoping to try for a double as well. My permit date is July 2nd. Just not sure if I can get the training in. Have you finalized your plan?
Maureen

Maureen:

I didn't see your post until just now. Sorry.

I don't have a specific date in mind for the double. I'll get a mid-week walk-in permit on a day when the weather looks perfect. It'll be after my Williamson Tyndall trip, which will be shortly before Williamson closes on July 15. I want it to be late enough that I can do the Mountaineers' Route in trail runners.

My wife is getting a knee replaced, so I may not be able to make the senior climb. If I go, I'll do the MR (or possibly the east face) and meet everyone on the summit.

Bob

Regarding reservations for the Senior Hike on June 23- I was unable to obtain one in the Lottery so I waited until today and checked the availability for that date. The WPRO site showed 88 spots were available for a day hike on the Main Trail as of the last posting. I called in at 760 873 2483 and was able to obtain a reservation. There seems to be plenty of space available if any one still needs a reservation. I'm also reserved for "conditioner hike" on the Main Trail for May 27. Looking forward to meeting you all in June.
John S.

John -

88, huh? Now 87. Sounds like we shouldn't have too much trouble getting enough permits for the Geezer Brigade.

Kevin

What time should we meet at the ranger station on the 22nd for the senior climb on the 23rd? Are we looking at 10:00 when they hand out the walk-ins, or should we go solo and meet at the hostel later in the day?

As I recently indicated, there are plenty of reservations available if you call in now rather than wait for cancellations.
My original thought was to meet at the Portal Store in the afternoon of the 22nd and organize start times. However I'm going up for a conditioner on 5/26 and will discuss with Doug.
The Hostel may work out better.
John S.

I just reserved my permit for June 23. There are still 62 openings, but I wanted to make sure I had one.

A while back, BobR suggested that we agree on a target time to meet on the summit. That way, we can all choose our own start time and pace. I think noon is a good time to summit.