Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Mt. Whitney via MR, February 1-3

Thanks to Richard and Bob for the information about the route to Thor Peak. We were originally planning on Thor, but after seeing the favorable weather forecast, we headed for Whitney instead. Here’s a link to some photos from LBSL and UBSL:

http://pkuroda.smugmug.com/Landscapes/Mt-Whitney-Mountaineers-Route/27855830_8LgsqG#!i=2349967119&k=3tcr727

On the summit, we met Brian (Coast Guard) and two hikers from San Diego. My camera didn’t work above 12000 feet, probably due to the cold weather. So I’ve started shopping around for a camera that works in sub-zero temperatures. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Great pictures!
Camera didn't work later - probably very cold batteries... do a search on camera batteries and cold weather... or just keep a spare set where they get some body warmth until you need them... good luck!

Thanks for the reply. I have a friend who went to Denali last year, and her camera worked the whole time. So I’ve been getting some advice from her, about cameras and batteries.

On Saturday, after reaching “the Notch” at around 14000 feet, we decided to try the westward traverse, instead of the standard Class 3 chute. It worked out fine, but after reaching the summit plateau, it’s still a fairly long hike to the summit hut.

Dang. I think the traverse is scary. Congratulations on your winter MR. Sorry about the camera. Try a Sony DSL N-5.

Mescalito,

Where did you park? What are the road conditions?

Thanks for the info! Berne

The road was in pretty good shape up to the Meysan Lakes trailhead, where we parked. I have a 4WD Chevy Blazer, and could have driven higher up, but there were some other cars there, and it seemed like a good place to park. From there it was less than one mile to the trailhead. Road conditions could change soon, because there’s a chance of snow from Thursday to Saturday.

The route up to LBSL is much easier than it was in March 2012. We followed tracks that avoided some of the dense willow stands that caused problems last year.

You know that I would love the fact that you changed plans along the way.....

Congratulations.

Richard, thanks again for the information about Thor. As I was descending from UBSL to LBSL on Sunday, there was a good view of the “Secret Route” that you had mentioned. A few minutes later, I met a solo hiker who was headed to Thor, and I described the two main routes from LBSL. From the bottom of the drainage, it appeared that both routes were in pretty good shape.

The most difficult part of the ascent was the final 300 vertical feet up to the Notch. There wasn’t enough snow to cover the rocks, so it was a loose mixture of scree and snow.

The wind can rip thru there in excess of a hundred miles-per-hour... not much snow survives in that section if the wind blows before it consolidates... and then you get the weird grooves, even if it has.

Thx Mescalito for the info!!

Thanks a ton for the info, this is really the only condition report out there for the MR this year. Was there any consolidated snow in the chutes above the notch?

After reaching the Notch, we decided to traverse westward, instead of climbing the standard Class 3 chute. Another group was there at about the same time, and after climbing the standard chute, they described it as “sketchy”.

On the descent, both groups took the traverse, which was in pretty good condition. It can be dangerous at certain times of the year, when there’s hardpack snow and ice.

I have a Fuji Film XP150. It's nothing fancy but it is compact, it's water proof (down to 30'I think), freeze proof, it's marketed as an extreme sports camera. It takes good pictures/video and it's not terribly expensive so if I do break it I won't be horribly sad haha. They have a new XP170 out now, not sure what the differences are.

http://www.fujifilmusa.com/products/digital_cameras/xp/