Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board MR Conditions March 2010

Conditions on the North Fork and the Mountaineer's Route are changing almost daily. Here are conditions as of March 21:

The Whitney Portal Road
An avalanche came down over the road in an area where it historically have been prone to it. This avalanche blocks the road about .2 miles beyond the Bogart switchback in the road. The last time this happened a few years back the road was not passable until late April.


The North Fork below Lower Boyscout Lake
This section is melting fast. Those of us who know where the summer trail goes should be diligent to try to kick in the route where the summer trail goes.

This is a photo taken looking down canyon from above the Ebersbacher Ledges. The patches of the summer trail are visible between the snow.

Also starting to be exposed are trail restoration markers. These are areas of rehabilitation. When you see these try to be sure the route is kicked in to avoid them so others will follow.

Those rehabilitation markers look like this close up:


Above Lower Boyscout Lake
Snow coverage is good above Lower Boyscout Lake


The hill below Iceberg Lake is always one that scares me for avalanche danger. An avalanche buried two guys a few years back and they were fortunate to be able to dig themselves out. This hill also features a nice terrain trap at the bottom. It is consolidating quickly but evidence of some of its weakness can be seen. Sun balls are evident.

There were cracks in the snow on Saturday March 20.


The Mountaineer's Chute


Above The Notch


The rest of the photos I took from the trip are here.

Kurt thanks for the detailed report on the conditions. BTW, nice pics..

Awesome pics Kurt. What type of weather temps did you have from the Portal up through to the summit? I'll be flying to LA to solo climb the MR this weekend. After seeing your pics I can't wait.

Temperatures were warm enough for shorts and a t-shirt during the daytime down low. Higher up we needed multiple layers to stay warm. The night time temperatures were hovering around 15 - 20 degrees at Upper Boyscout Lake.

Funny that you should mention this... I was telling Mike on Sunday afternoon that I would be returning to the NF to put in tracks on the summer trail if this weekend's plans fall thru.




Look at Mike's photo albums and you'll see some boneheads walking in the bottom of the gully. He told me a group was camped down there again.


I also heard you scolded Mike for starting down the Final 400' facing out instead of in. I had mentioned to the gang on Baldy that if they want to free-solo the MR, they had better learn that technique.

Kurt, it was good to see you again on Saturday. I haven't been to the Sierras very often during the last couple of years, but I'll check out your website and sign up for some more training courses sometime. It's an easy 4-hour drive from Las Vegas to Lone Pine.

Paul Kuroda

Hey Kurt ,

thanks for posting these photos . All good news except for the extra walk into the Portal , but then again we are kind of spoiled when we can drive up there .
People need to be very careful descending from the summit plateau to the notch .
It is important to be able to match your fitness and strength with your level of experience .

thanks again ,

Simon

Wow, amazing spring like conditions up high with some definite signs of instability in the snowpack. I'm thinking about returning there over Easter.

What do you think will happen to the area with the forecasted storms they're talking about for next week?

Not trying to stray off topic too far, but anyone catch the conditions of the East Ridge while in the area recently?

It's difficult to say what will happen. It'll depend on several factors such as the temperature before, during, and after the storm and how much accumulation we get. It's also still too early to tell what will happen with the storms too. Stay tuned...

East ridge of Russell? The small part we did from S couloir right was fun and mixed. I didn't feel like protection was necessary, but my partner did, so it's hard to say what you will think. I think if you are comfortable running around in crampons on rock, it will feel like class 3. If not, it will occasionally feel like low class 5 that needs protection (I think it's definitely not as scary currently as it is right after it gets new snow. I tried it in late Nov 08 and turned around because I didn't have a partner--the powder-covered slabs scared me off).

Kurt/Mike,

What time of day does the Mountaineers Chute typically start to soften/corn up? Planning on skiing it in a few weeks. Also on the section above the notch it looks like there are quite a few terrain features (horns...etc) that can be used as natrual PRO. What size stoppers do you guys typically carry? How hard is the snow if using pickets...

Thanks,

Andrew

Yes of Russell. I am comfortable on class 3-5, mixed snow, rock etc. I don't plan to place pro on the ridge or rope up, just wondering how much snow is on the route, how deep it currently is, and if the current conditions force you off the normal route. I am planning to do Casaval Ridge on Shasta next weekend, but the weather might be pretty rough and I am looking for a back-up plan and thought this would be a good option. Thanks for the info.

It's mostly unconsolidated, not too deep but not a dusting, and you can't use the normal route the whole way.

I'm not Kurt or Mike, but I can answer this one, if you don't mind. The Mountaineers Chute has not yet undergone any sort of melt-freeze daily metamorphism. It's still "wintry" snow. So, there's no daily cycle of softening. Won't be until late April. And then, the time for softening varies considerably with sun, wind, clouds and overall progress of melt-freeze metamorphosis in snowpack.

Everyone does the final 400 differently: I carry a #1 camalot and a .5 camalot. Turns out there are multiple places where one can get these two pieces, plus a killer stance, to serve as a belay. No snow pro, just ice axe. 30m of rope. Like I said, lots of options though...

Thanks jedsmmg,

I am heading up Whitney primarily as ski objective. I have been curious about when the couloir becomes sun effected...sound like after I am planning on skiing it. Thanks for the info on the active protection....

Andrew

Hey Andrew... sorry I didn't respond to your question sooner. I just got down from the MR where I had been since Thursday.

Keep in mind the MR is east facing and has high walls on both sides. It doesn't receive a lot of sun. The snow rarely sets up into the nice spring conditions the Sierra is famous for. I skied it once in late April and it was nothing to write home about. I'd prefer hitting it early season when there's lots of new snow and temperatures have remained cold enough to keep the snowpack from changing. The snow would be more powder during this time. To answer your question though it'll soften up more in the afternoon. Currently as of March 27 the route is a mixture of wind packed snow with breakable crust. It is also tracked out quite a bit. Here's a photo:


The bottom part of the MR chute on March 27. Notice how tracked up it is.

People do many things on the section above the notch. It is three pitches using a 50 meter rope. Some bring rock pro, others bring pickets, and still others use natural protection. I mainly use slings on horns I know are solid. Whatever you use just make certain to test it carefully first.

Here are a couple pictures from March 27:

The bottom third of the route above the notch on March 27


The upper third of the route above the notch on March 27

Thanks for the information Kurt. I looks like I'll be bring the Volkl Sanouk for that snow. I checked out your company and it looks like you are doing some really fun trips. It was great seeing the photos of Cotopaxi and Chimborazo. I have been wanting to get back to S. America for the last year and have been dreaming of climbing Artensonraju in the Cordillera Blanca. It is beyond my skills but that is what dreams are for...

See you in the Mountains,

Kurt, those are great shots. Thanks for posting. Will be up there Saturday. Looks like snow on the 400 is holding up good.

How long from car to trail head??


Berne Mettenleiter

Thanks Berne... the rest of the pics I took from the trip are here.

The top part of the route above the notch is a mixture of hard slabs and sugary loose faceted snow. It is getting more afternoon sun now though so it'll probably continue to change.

The walk along the road is about 3 1/2 miles from the avalanche debris. It takes about 1/2 to 1 hour depending on how fast you hike and how much weight is on your back.