Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Lone Pine Lake short hike with child

Hi,

I'm planning to take a few days off during the week of nov18 to nov21 to do some exploring with my 3yr old daughter and my 4months pregnant wife.

We will mainly visit the death valley, but I wanted to include a visit to whitney portal and a short hike to Lone Pine Lake in my short vacation. I was reading the orientation notes, which is very complete, but it seems more oriented towards experienced hikers and climbers planning to go to the top of mt whitney.

So I ask for your help on some questions:

1) How likely it is that the road leading to the portal will be opened (I have a mazda cx-7, no AWD) mid-november?
2) I saw that both the portal and LPL are below 10K ft. Do you know if there is any problem related to that altitude and pregnancy?
3) Is the hike to the lake easy enough to be done with a 3yr old child?


Any other recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

unless things change drastically in the next 3 weeks - road and trail conditions will not be an issue - but 5 miles(rt)- seems like alot for a 3 year old - be prepared to carry your child part way. as for your pregnant wife - ask her - it's 2.5 miles each way of steady/light incline

This past summer my wife and I took our 2.5 year old along for a short walk to sentinel dome. I think it was 2 miles round trip. I ended up carrying him 1.5 out of the 2 miles, not because he couldn't walk that far, but because he just wanted to play with every stick and rock he came across. It wasn't to bad because it was so short, and fairly flat. Based on that experience, I think Lone Pine Lake is a bit extreme for a 3 or even 4 year old to walk.

Thanks for the replies...

Are there other shorter trails around the portal? I'm trying to decide if I should eliminate mt. whitney from my to do list or there's still something to do up there given my conditions.

Cheers

In August 1966 my wife and I took our two boys on a hike to Lone Pine Lake and back. The older one was 4 years 3 months and the younger was 2 years 11 months. We went with another couple, and their two somewhat-older kids. Took along sandwich fixings, a couple bottles of wine, fruit juices, etc. And a tablecloth, napkins, and pillows. After lunch and playing around and in the lake, the kids were ready for a nice little nap, and the adults joined them.

My older son walked the whole way, of course. We expected the younger one would have to be carried to a large extent, but he surprised us all. He walked all but about two hundred feet of the entire trail, in fine style. Didn’t even hold the rest of us up much.

Everyone had a great time. I don't recall if anyone had to be carried on the descent.

The pictures are here. Sorry that the colors have deteriorated in the intervening 40 years.

My biggest concern with your plan--assuming that a storm doesn't squelch the whole thing--is that the temperatures are apt to be a little chilly, and that would remove a lot of the enjoyment.

Yeah Bob R kids are born with Mt Whitney in their veins and genes.I am surprized that you all didn't summit that day ...lol Bob R kids grew up in the mountains I am sure.
I don't know many 4 year old kids accustomed to an outdoor hike let alone going 5 miles RT elevation gain of approx 1700 feet up to 10,000 ft.If the kid and wife are used to hiking then that is a different story.

I did a "quick trip" with my 2 boys earlier in the year,they were 6 and 9 years old. Here is the Trip Report from then to give you an idea of how it went.




Ok folks we're back..told you it was a "quick trip"

We arrived at Whitney portals at 1:00 p.m. yesterday after a quick lunch in Lone Pine. Yes, the kids chose McDonalds. We topped off the camelbaks and the kids Jansport hydration packs and hit the...bathroom of course! Then, at about 1:20 p.m. we hit the trail. It was a beautiful day with a little breeze, after about 1/4 mile they both said, "can we go back and leave our packs at the car"? I then reminded them that they wanted to carry there packs and it was to late.

The 1st stream crossing arrived...after all the great impute and photos from the message board I thought no problem.. I was wrong, the six year old thought it would be easier to step on the rock that had the 1/64" of water on it rather than the dry rock sticking up 3 inches. Yes he slipped, then slipped again, then stepped into the 6" of water which of course got his boots and socks wet. Then while regaining his footing he slipped all the way to his bottom so now his shorts are wet. So much for the weeks of preparation and talking about taking your time and selecting your steps carefully.

So one creek done ?? to go, things were starting out just fine!

We did run into several hikers and the boys did remember to step aside and let them pass. They were amazed at how nice everyone was and how they offered encouragement to them or told them how well they were doing.

SO they next mile went off without much drama, the nine year old settled into a nice pace for everyone and the 6 year old plugged along with not much of a whimper.

After a couple of stops in the shaded areas we made it to the log crossing. Having survived all the crossings after the 1st spill things were looking up. But, I thought for sure the logs would be intimidating to them but no... it was "ah cool, logs, do we get to walk on them"? Nuff said, another crossing without a hitch.

Lone Pine lake turn off came up and we took the trail down to the lake. What a beautiful little spot. The boys dropped their packs and took off to see the fish. They found one, it was dead.

Linda and I talked to some folks who were there and waiting for some friends to join them. They were heading up to Outpost camp and planning to run for the summit on Thursday. One of them was kind enough to take a family picture of us with the lake in the back ground.

After an hour or so of exploring and a quick snack we headed down. The creek crossings were a breeze, now they were old pros. They enjoyed the trip down, stopping to look at lizards and spiders. But the mosquitos were eating us every time we stopped so we kept going.

We go to the portal at almost 6:00 p.m. and walked through the portal store and the boys got to see the bear canisters that had been put to good use. They thought that was pretty cool.

We left the portal and had dinner at The Pizza Factory. All and all we were very proud of them. They both did real well and didn't complain....much. I know it wasn't far but for them it was quite the adventure and as far as I could tell they had no issues with the altitude.

The next morning we got up and hit the Alabama hills, we got the picture of them with the painted face rock and let them climb around for a few hours. We did find about 8 arches and were lucky enough to find the Lathe, and Mobius arch. Both framed Mount Whitney very nicely. Amazingly they look alot bigger in the photos.

We left for home about 1:00 p.m. and were home unpacking by 3:00. The boys were in bed asleep by 8 p.m.

Another great adventure had by all!! Next time maybe a little higher up the mountain....

Thanks for all the info and help from the board!!

Ron

On one of my trips up the Mountaineers Route my brother Richard brought along his pregnant wife ( expecting about 3-4 months). I still kid Austin he was carried to Mt. Whitney and next time he needs to do it on his own. He got a free ride but the view was a little dark.

In general, you would need to count on about 2 hours to hike up to Lone Pine lake. We have hiked to many lakes around the west with small children, but we try to keep it a little shorter (like an hour or so). They do better if the hiking is not so long.

My concern would be the cool temperatures. You could go slow and take a long time...stopping at every river and picking up sticks. Your three year old might surprise you. But it is certainly not as nice if it is cold. That might take some of the fun out of it.

And then there is the wife...hard to know if she would be up to hiking 4 hours or so.

Thanks for the pictures! They are definitely an incentive!

Cheers

A little off the topic, but here is a picture I took this July of Lone Pine Lake.


and Bob's from 40 years ago






Gary

Wonderful pictures Bob, thanks for sharing!

Bob’s pictures definitely recorded an idyllic family outing possible.

I keep wondering if my Daughter (3 in December) would be able to make it up and back... She's walked a few paths and trails and is a ball of energy, running and running just for fun.

Having crossed paths with many with kids on trails I find the more successful parents with the most beautiful patience and attitude. As far as weather is concerned I’ve hiked or snowshoed miles and seen kids of many ages on skies, snoeshoes and being packed. Again, the experience all depends upon the parents and planning.

Joe

I would definitely plan something else for your young family. I didn't take my son up to Lone Pine Lake until he was a very hardy six-year-old, and wouldn't dream of asking my pregnant wife to exert herself at that altitude without a very serious reason for doing so. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but there are no hikes in the Whitney region suitable for you guys. This is a very difficult and extreme environment. Please take care of yourself and your loved ones. You have some other beautiful mountains — the most beautiful of all — to climb right now! Best wishes!

Sorry but I find this rather rediculous. I am not sure about the young child walking all the way up there. So hey, maybe you have to throw him on your shoulders intermitantly up the trail. And a pregnant woman not going to that altitude? I would not take her there if she is not normally fit enough or if she does not feel up to it but I would bet your ass that there are pregnant women out there in better shape than most of the people on this board. There ARE other trails, there is the national recreation trail that goes from lone pine campground to the portal... This is an enjoyable walk if done in either direction. Also - is this young child hell bent on making it to his objective or would he be open to turning around if he should begin to tire? I mean that is what I do. Go for a walk. Check out the area. You wont see Mt. Whitney from anywhere on the trail there anyway if I am not mistaken. Check out the lake and waterfalls around the portal store. Take a look at some of those cool old cabins up by Meysan Lake trailhead... that is a nice walk and all paved! How is that for a wild wilderness? Bring food, I like to give my kids a disposable camera to occupy them (plus you get to keep the memories), dress warm (in layers), bring water, binoculars, maybe a bird i.d. book for the kid and viola! A beautiful day enjoying the area. When they take a nap run up and check out the lake if you still want.

I would not drive through Lone Pine without visiting the Alabama Hills. Access is easy and the intensity level is what you make it. You will not experience a woodland setting, but exploring the "arches" can be a lot of fun. Your child won't appreciate the movie history behind the area, but who doesn't like to crawl around on big rocks? Plus the view of Mt. Whitney is pretty nice.

Padu,
Also be aware that mid day temps at the Portal can vary from the 30s to 50s this time of year so be prepared with warm clothes.

I also agree with Andrew - head on up and see how well your wife and daughter do and you can always explore around the Portal - that would be plenty to entertain a 3-year old.

Go for it - take the wife and daughter and have a blast.
Adam