Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Mt. Langley via Old Army Pass Conditions

Can anybody give me current conditions on Old Army Pass, specifically can we leave the Ice Axes and Crampons at home?

Thanks, Erik

Taken yesterday

no crampons or ax needed.

Army Pass is in great shape, considering it hasn't been maintained. I was up there mid-month. There are no pucker moments in the pass.

Thanks! I appreciate it

Also up there aug 19. Great use trail. Just follow the trail around Lake #4. Can't miss it. Some snow in the pass, but none of it on the trail. Have fun.

I was there 8/29. For a trail that has been officially "abandoned" and does not appear on many maps it's in great shape. There is a small slide near the top that requires a little boulder hopping. However it can be a different animal before it thaws and there was an ice related fatality there last year.

It was interesting to note that the next pass to the north still had a substantial cornice.

Thank you for the update.

A few questions:
Is there a preferred route to take on the climb above the lake for first-timers? Perhaps up the shaded chute on the far right in the photo?

Is Old Army Pass pretty much Class 2 on the scree and Class 3 on the solid rocks above?

How would the rocks above the scree compare to the final chute just beyond the notch (quick left turn) on the MR?

Thank you.

There is a fairly decent trail right now - just follow it. It does not go up the chute to the right but cuts across from right to left (looking at photo) and then above the rocky outcrop in middle upper left. Pretty much class 1 the entire way at this time. I can't speak for it in other conditions because this was my first time up there...so if I could do it.....without a map & solo....

It could use a new summit register. The current ones are filled.

To answer your questions...

1. The route...it is a trail. It's not very hard to follow.

2. Class...it's Class 1 with the exception of a couple small areas near the top, which some might classify 2.

3. The Rock...I've never done the MR but it just a couple of boulder with established routes around them. Nothing very serious.

Army Pass is only hazardous when there is a lot of snow and ice around and you do not have winter gear or skills.

To expand on wbtravis' post -

The trail thru (Old) Army Pass and above it for about 1/2 mile is well-defined and in good shape. Above that ... it becomes a series of paths. I prefer a Class 1 route, which means staying to the far left on the last 1,500' of vertical or so, and doing the last 1/2 mile or so of the summit massif from the west.

If it's the route to the peak you are talking about...

It's really one trail until you reach about 12,300', according my altimeter, then it becomes 30 trails to the massif.

As Kevin said stay left. It is steeper but more direct. Once you reach the mountain look for a set cairns that involve a bit of easy climbing, this will cut about 20 minutes off your time to the summit, or head to the southwest side and walk up scree crawl.

Hiked up Old Army on Labor Day. No snow. At the top of the pass the trail forks left and right. I took the right path. When it seemed to run out, I followed a path of footprints leading up to the right hand just below the summit. I didn't originally plan on going that way, but it seemed better and shorter to me. It was 2nd class with a few 3rd class spots. A couple of people were coming down as I was going up. They said they spent 2 hours up there and couldn't find the way up. They said it was 4th class and that there was a 30 foot section they couldn't get up. I must have gone a completely different way because it couldn't have been more than 3rd class at best and took 15 minutes. Anyway, it was a great hike and I'm glad I found the way up.