Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Wade Brunette

no sign of anybody in the summit hut at 3pm yesterday... at least the one door i noticed.

Did I miss this? Did Richard say where he spoke with the man? Time of day? Equipment?

I was looking at the real time weather station at Crabtree and Cottonwood lakes (the crabtree station is giving off false temperature readings) while Cottonwood is showing temperatures currently in the 30's (doesn't say anything about the wind chill factor).

If the gentleman did end up going down the backside and if he was unfamiliar with the terrain and didn't have a map, he would have difficulty knowing if and where the ranger station is located (5 miles).

I am sure we all wish we could be up there looking for him.

Paul

Has anyone heard anything?
The weather on the web cam isn't looking too good, hope they find him soon...

We first ran into Wade at Trailside Meadow at 8:30am and then again at around 2pm about 2/3rds up the switchbacks. He was using yaktraxs (or similar) and a ice-ax. He was wearing a backpack that was about 3000cu/in with no equipment on the outside.

Praying for all involved. Our team is watching and waiting for mutual aid call.

"He was wearing a backpack that was about 3000cu/in with no equipment on the outside."

Mike, do you remember what color the pack was, that might be helpful.

Two-thirds of the way up the switchbacks at 2 pm in winter conditions - not promising. If it took him 5.5 hours to cover the 3 miles from Trailside Meadow to that point on a dayhike, he couldn't have been in a good position by sundown.

GigaMike, did he seem to be familiar with the route? Any indication this was his first time on the mountain?

Update Search and Rescue and the Forest Service have people on the mountain , the storm system is moving out and is bringing the cold air mass, temp at the Portal now 30 degrees and that would be about the same higher up wind is light at the Portal and in the Valley so we maybe in between the systems now . No other word from the hikers coming down today, most likely event he took the trail down the west side and is still walking to get out, this happens often and the outcome is just a very tired hiker. The west side knows of the missing hiker and will respond . Thanks Doug

Thank you so much for the update Doug.

Here's what I saw on Sunday:

~8:00am on the way up to Trailside Meadow, I passed Wade, saying hello as I passed by.

~2:00pm on the way down the Switchbacks, I was stopped to put on my crampons about 1/3 of the way down. Mike was downhill of me and was talking to Wade. As he passed by me, I asked him if he was planning on climbing down the same day.

He was wearing micro-spikes which were good enough for the trail conditions. He was using an ice axe. His pack looked big enough to contain additional gear.

My concern was that he had only covered a couple of miles in nearly six hours. At the pace he was walking by me, I figured he would be at Trail Crest in 1 - 2 hours. There was no way he was going to make the summit by dark.

Again, the trail conditions (a mix of firm-packed snow and dry trail) were not that bad above Trail Camp, so a slip here would have required a major mistake to be made.

The trail from Trail Camp down to Mirror Lake was the most dangerous part of the trail. It took careful foot placement to avoid the hundreds of postholes that went all the way to the stream on the shortcut to Trailside Meadow. Below Trailside Meadow, there was a lot of ice down to Mirror Lake.

Below that, the trail was mostly dry, except for shadowed areas.

Doug SR. Thank you so much for the update. Damnit, I hate when things like this happen.

Wade will make it out. I don't know him, But, I know he'll make it out.

Perhaps he made the decision to head west like Doug said . Late in the day as it was . I hope so !
Prayers are always good .

Hoping for the "exit on the west side/tired hiker" idea.

Thank you for the update Doug.

Assuming Wade did head west from Trail Crest down the JMT, and that he had an area map and knew how to use it, where is the most likely place for him to "come out"? Looking at a map of the area (I've not been west of Trail Crest, so I'm clueless about the terrain), I don't see any good options that don't involve lots more miles than turning around and heading back up/down the MMWT would offer. Going south to Cottonwood and Horseshoe Meadows looks pretty daunting given winter conditions, as does going north through Mahogany Flat. Going due west looks a whole lot worse, especially with a presumed daypack. 3000 cubic inches doesn't hold a heckuva' lot when you consider these options with snow and ice all around. I'm also assuming the JMT/PCT is pretty sparsely populated right now, so on-trail assistance seems unlikely. That's primarily why I wondering if he was familiar with the area. Any thoughts from the pros on this board?

Considering the conditions and hoping for the best for him. This would be his third night out there with dropping temps. The good news is this storm didn't appear to be a big snow dump; mainly cold and windy. Just fielded a call from ISO as they are canvassing everyone who had permits for the W zone over the weekend. I was up there on the 24th and was in the north fork, so I had no contact with him. The only people I saw that day were two younger guys I passed above UBSL on the way up.

This is tough. Members of my team are up there, and likely members of Inyo SAR as well. I know this mountain, and would give almost anything to help in the search. But personal issues keep me home this time.

The comments many of you have made are thought-provoking. I could say that the SAR teams are aware of all the possibilities that have been mentioned, and are looking into each and every one of them--as well as many others. But we are not gods, and it is certainly possible that someone will think of something we haven't. So I don't want to discourage.

Wade is 73, as am I (for a few more weeks). I have confidence that if I were stranded up there--for whatever reason--I could survive for a long, long, time. Storms do not last forever. The sun comes out, eventually. I don't know if Wade is cut from the same cloth, but I wouldn't discount it.

Once again, it is demonstrated that we are family.

Wade WILL make it out.

Hi Bob, Is there a chance you could tell us how a search is planned, what the members of your party look for and how they approach this type of problem. I have to admit, that I work at home and watched updates all day. I couldn't help but think of his wife, other hikers on the mountain, the SAR's and Doug. From the small surroundings here, safely at my desk in So Cal, I can't help but get emotionally involved with this gentleman and his plight. I have not stopped thinking and praying for him since I first heard yesterday. If Wade has even a thread from the fabric God gave you, he will see everyone safely again.

im sad to say that I and my 2 friends were the last to have seen him on sunday.. we were coming down from the top and at 3: 45 we passed him just before reaching trail crest... having great difficulty and breathing heavily... i sent them a picture of Wade that I randomly took i doubt it will help much

It is so hard to follow this from our computers and the comfort of home or office. Most of us haved walked those same steps. We understand the fatigue and the heavy breath. We have felt the cold air.
We wait. We pray. We hope. We anguish. We reflect. We wait.
Godspeed to SAR and may Wade be in the Hand of God.