Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Mountaineer's Route Conditions

Wrong topic, this is the MR

We are headed up the Mountaineer's Route next Monday-Tuesday, camping at Boy Scout Lake. Has anyone looked at the weather for seven days out?

You can see it here at weather.gov

I just got back from a trip up the Mountaineer's Route July 9-10. Here's an update:


Creek crossings: Creeks are the fullest I can ever remember seeing. Rocks are covered that we normally use at creek crossings. The first creek crossing is also made more difficult because all the big branches we used to hold on to have been cut. The second one (just below the E Ledges) is so full you’re guaranteed to get wet from the waterfall. All the logs are wet and slick. There’s a tree that fell in between the two sections of the section of the creek. As you enter the second section of the creek all the rocks are submerged. There are some branches you can use to sneak across on. The 3rd crossing at LBSL is full but you can get across the log on the lower side.

E-Ledges: They’re all good. The only thing that’s changed is a tree fell into one of the slots of rock we normally walk through. It requires a big step up or mantle move.

Snow: There’s a couple patches just above UBSL but they won’t pose any problem even if it’s firm and hard in the middle of the night. We put on crampons at the hill just below Iceberg Lake. It’s just over ¾ full of snow. It’ll then be bare for a short section but we left the spikes on. There’s snow up to about ¾ of the way up the Mountaineer’s Chute. It’s firm and is starting to form sun cups. There isn’t a great kicked in trail although there are some tracks that were useful. Where the snow stops you could leave crampons and ice axes there if you wanted to. Above the notch there are a couple patches of snow but they can be avoided. There’s ice forming from melt freeze cycles but it shouldn’t pose a problem. You’ll be able to avoid it or step through it. There’s a snow patch at the base of the notch that’ll help you step into the route. We used the summer route on rock.

Here’s a link to the pictures I took. There are photos of the creek crossings and conditions of various parts of the route: Mt. Whitney Mountaineer's Route July 9-10, 2011.

Here are a few selected photos:


The first half of the 2nd creek crossing just below the Ebersbacher Ledges.


Waterfall on the 2nd half of the 2nd creek crossing.


The slope just below Iceberg Lake.


High in the Mountaineer's Chute.


The final 400+ feet of the Mountaineer's Route.

Great pics. I loved the naked summit salute. Hilarious!

thnx for the pictures Kurt.

Have you done the mountaineering route before? were you wearing crampons during your snow track?

Kurt,

How many lbs was your pack when you did the MR? did you leave the tent, and SB back at camp?

what did you carry with you when you climb the MR?

Thanks

this is so funny its got to b a joke

Hiiro24 must be a troll, like FlorenceB. Some people have nothing better to do.

The MR is melting fast, sun cups like giant egg cartons in the lower chute over the weekend. Rocky patches throughout. You can avoid the snow by taking the boulders. Like Kurt said, lots of runoff. The waterfall shortcut below Iceberg Lake is v. icy and slippery.

Anyone been up there is the past few days..? Wondering if Iceberg Lake is still frozen over or if it could be relied upon as a source of water?

Heading up MR next week and would prefer to camp at Iceberg Lake.

C'mon Tracie...

Hiiro24 is obviously new to the board...give the guy a break.

We were all newbies once.

I am headed up the MR in August with a buddy. We had to stop at Iceberg last year due to altitude sickness. Planning on taking a bit longer to acclimate this year. I noticed some people had ropes and harnesses with them last year. Is is possible to get up the chute w/o ropes? Any recommendations? Thanks

Jwhale:

You don't need ropes/gear for the MR. The people you saw with ropes and technical gear were likely heading up to climb the East Buttress, East Face, Fish Hook Arete on Russell, or maybe a new adventure.

With that said, you do have to be comfortable scrambling on 3rd class terrain. As with most 3rd class routes there are places on the MR where a slip/fall would lead to serious consequences. Nothing is hard, you just have to feel at ease on this type of terrain.

Hope this helps.

Kent

We will be climbing via the Mountaineer's Route on August 9-10. I understand that there has been a lot of snow melt in recent weeks. Can we leave the crampons and ice axe behind or should we plan on bringing them? Members of our party will be flying to Vegas from the Midwest and Atlanta. It would be nice to leave gear home if it is not needed.

Any beta on recent MR conditions would be appreciated.

I am fairly certain your team can leave all sharp, pointy things at home. Hopefully others will jump in if there are recent changes that you need to be aware of. Trekking poles would likely be helpful for both the stream crossings and working your way up the scree gully.

Have a good trip,

Kent

Looking forward to your Trip Report! We will be on the MR Aug 18th onward.

Up there yesterday, no crampons or ice axe needed. Bring good boots and have a good time.

Saw four guys who did the creek crossings. My friend and I opted for the Elephant's Ear. I didn't like the prospects of getting wet in the morning.

out of curiosity, what boots were you wearing?

I went up the North Fork on Friday, and was able to keep feet dry at all the stream crossings. I just wore Salomon XA Pro 3D trail running shoes.

We're heading up on Tuesday to do the East Buttress and Fishhook Arete. How's the 3rd class descent down the back of Whitney? Is it icy? Should we bring micro-spikes?

And I know this is a little off-topic but has anyone been up/down Russell? What are the conditions?

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/asolo-t...~asolo%20tps%2F

Not the best, but good boots for about $110 with the coupon code.