Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Conditions On Baldy

Burtw, when you are ready to consider a knee replacement (eg. when the cortisone shots finally lose their magic powers) ask your doctor about a Uni-compartmental (aka: partial) knee replacement vs. a Total Knee Replacement. For individuals with knees that are degenerated only over one condyle, this may be a good alternative if you're seeking a super speedy recovery. (return to normal daily living in 3-6 weeks, back to sports 6-10 weeks). If you need a Total Knee Replacement, those aren't so bad either.. Recovery time isn't that long and if you're active/flexible prior to surgery, chances are you'll stay that way after surgery. Some bad asses get both knees done at the same time... and they do just fine. More and more active folks are seeking knee replacements younger because their arthritis pain is hindering their quality of life.. and with advancements in surgery, prosthetic materials last longer (approx 20 years).

Some food for thought: MRI of 74 y.o. active vs. 74 y.o. sedentary. http://www.everymantri.com/everyman_tria...-triathlon.html

Thanks HT, that's very helpful. I am trying to collect all the info I can so when I do finally talk to the surgeon I don't just have to rely on his word for what's best. I value the experience of people on this board who have had knees replaced and continue to hike.

When I had my hip done I consulted 2 surgeons outside of Kaiser to get their advice before sitting down with the K. surgeon who would do the job. One of them was pushing micro-incisions which sounded great until the other, who wasn't going to do the job anyway, pointed out the disadvantages of micro surgery for hip replacement.

6 months after I had the hip replacement done (over 10 years ago now) I sent the surgeon who did it a Mt. Whitney postcard and wrote that I had just been up there. I think he was happier about it than I was. (Maybe not.)

Ridgeline, there is no way off Baldy that isn't hell on the hips and knees. I think the Ski Hut is easier than the Backbone but lots of people disagree with me. Maybe that's because I hike the road instead of taking the lift down from the Notch. And the Bear Flats trail is a killer in both directions. (Let's not even talk about the North Backbone.)

I do find that it's a little easier on the infrastructure if I go down leading with the sides of my feet instead of pointing them straight forward. I don't know if that works for other people, though.

What I did before I had my hip replacement was stick to trails that weren't as hard on the joints as Baldy but were still interesting. The Islip Saddle, Crystal Lake, Windy Gap, Baden-Powell area is interesting, challenging but way easier on the joints.

Ridgeline, I always descend Baldy on the Backbone trail, except when there's snow, and I find it much easier on the knees and feet. I usually take the ski lift down from there, so I'm not sure what it's like hiking the extra mileage by taking the road. The Backbone trail is also much more scenic.

Joyce

That's what I thought. I have to do that next time.

The highlight of the day was meeting Cindy Abbott, Mt. Everest climber and Iditarod racer, and Larry Abbott on the trail today. Both of them have some medical issues but they are training for their next adventure. They were looking good.

From the summit of Mt. Baldy, I was able to see two mountain fires, one in Mt. San Jacinto and other one in town of Wrightwood. The fire in Wrightwood is just north of Mt. Baldy but the air quality of Mt. Baldy area was excellent because there was very cool wind was blowing from the west. Hope, everyone is safe.

Pictures are in WPSMB Album link.

I have a question for the Baldy vampire hikers. I plan on doing a night hike next week, sleeping on top. What temps have you been experiencing overnight on the summit?

Brent N

It's getting cold up there at night. Did a sunset hike last Saturday, 100-degrees down in the valleys, but a very welcome and chilly 50-degrees on the summit at sundown.

16 million people, and we were the only two to think of cooling off up there?



More shots here:
Baldy Night Hike 9/7/2013

Nice pics. Looking forward to this "cooler-weather" hike next Wednesday morning to celbrate my 50th. May have to touch West Baldy and Mt Harwood peaks as well (depending how good I feel).

Mcpherson, thanks for the info. Love the picture. Great composition.

The answer to my question of what the weather might be like--freaking cold. Temps up top went down to 38.6, and winds were probably 35 mph. I had no bivy and the wind sucked all heat out of my bag. However, the sunrise was one of the prettiest and most welcome sights I have ever seen.

Succeeded in my B-day hike last Wednesday morning. 7:10 start from the trailhead, County road crews were chip-sealing Mt. Baldy Road from the Village to the ski parking lot past Manker Flats. That made parking a challenge, since you couldn't park on either side of the shoulder. Ended up on the south side of the Falls Road stub, just across from thre porta-potty. Had the mountain all to myself on the way up, except for one local runner and his 2 dogs who stared ahead of me, did a loop to the Ski Hut and saw them coming down.

On top around 9:45 with blustery winds and a bit cool, so with only a tank-top and t-shirt on, I only enjoyed the alone-time for 15-20 minutes. Saw 3 groups on the way down, only one north of the ski hut. Went off-trail before then to inspect the 1950s military plane wreck, and rather than climb back up to the trail (the smarter way), ended up traversing the hill way past the knoll to get back to the ski hut. So, I got to make my way back half-way down the hill while watching out for snakes, etc. Funny, I hit someone else's tracks in the process so I am not alone in making the less-smart choice! Made it back to the trailhead around 12:15, just as the chip seal truck was coming down from the ski parking lot so I was able to pull out and head down canyon right in front of him (saved an hour+ in drying time if I hadn't gotten outta there!). Still had pilot car escort for the next mile or two.

All in all a beautiful day on the mountain. Wish I could do that every week day!

Vandalism & Safety:
There used to be several trail signs on Ski hut trail of Mt. Baldy trails. But all of them have sawed off or kicked down gradually and all of them are gone two weeks ago. Edith and Martin spent many hours to rebuilt the rock windbreaker several times last season at the summit. They spent hour to block off the side trail where you have to use your hands to climb up the rock by many tree brunches three weeks ago but following week the blockade was completely removed and the trail was cut. This section of trail is ruined. CatB witnessed a guy try to kick down the rock windbreaker located at north side of the summit two weeks ago. I looked around the area but the vandal was gone. There were several sections of trail were rebuilt by someone or organization lately and they look very nice. We have to protect last and only sigh on Devils backbone trail near the summit. Someone destroy our mountain and someone protect our mountain. Let's everyone becomes the neighborhood watcher to save our mountain which we enjoy from vandals.

We have met two young hikers got lost and heading up the main bowl just 200 feet beyond the Ski hut. They couldn't tell the trail from non trail. We sent them on the right trail but they are totally not prepared well at all. No knowledge or preparation.
Early part of this year, many hikers got call from a hiker who needed a help to help out his/her lost friends on Bear canyon trail at night. They wanted to go down Ski hut trail but they went down the Bear canyon trail. They were found OK very late at night. They started hiking very late afternoon and they didn't know the trail. They had no light, no map, no knowledge of the area. Later they demanded the authority to have signs on the trail so hikers won't get lost. I think that before we demand for 100% foolproof signs for everyone, let's prepare well before our hike. A good preparation will make our hiking more enjoyable.

Hi Shin,
This is a never-ending battle. We have to fight for the mountain but we will never fully win.

A lot of people on Baldy have no sense of a wilderness ethic. The problem is that Baldy is too close to a population base of 10 million people, getting to the summit is hard enough to make it a worthwhile challenge, but still easy enough for any young stud in good condition to make it. Once on top they feel they own the mountain rather than being a caretaker of it.

I have some understanding of this. The first time I summited, in the late 1980s, I felt that I had done something really special so I was disappointed when I came over the last rise and saw dozens of people sitting around having a good time. I really didn't like the windbreaks. I thought the summit should be a "natural" area and they were out of place. I never did anything to destroy them and over time I came to appreciate them. But I do understand the motivation of someone who wants to tear them down.

I don't understand people who steal or destroy trail signs and put other people in danger. I would suggest hanging them (the people, not the signs) but there are no trees high enough at the summit.

So I agree with you, all of us who love the mountains need to see it as our neighborhood and ourselves as neighborhood watch members.

I agree Burt;

I saw a couple rangers on the trail a few weeks ago and asked them about the signs. They said signs were sanctioned and sadly only lasted a few weeks, as Shin mentioned previously.

Why people decide they need to self regulate the wilderness is beyond me. Destroying ducks, signs, windbreaks and registers takes away from those hoping to enjoy the trails, whether they are use trails or maintained trails.

My hope is to give more to the wilderness than I take away.
cat holes excluded...

Bring me up to speed, here, on this sign topic. Are the signs being removed out of pure vandalism/malice, or is there a controversy with the locals?

I ask this because I have lived in a few coastal towns where the locals hated the "valley people" (their words not mine)so much, that they would routinely remove the turn-off sign designating the town(s) (mostly a bedroom community that seemed to not rely on tourons for $$$$)

The destruction of the windblocks/ducks/etc. has been a point of contention in every hiking community that I have encountered. It has continued to surprise me that the windblocks up on Dana have prevailed (perhaps I better knock on nearby wood, such as my hard head)

I think it's pure vandalism and/or that people want a sign as a souvenir to show that they "conquered" Mt. Baldy. There's not really an insider-outsider issue here.

I saw a couple sign posts last Wednesday but no signs. Wondered what they were for. Only readable sign was the "Manker Flats" directional sign up on the ski hut trail, north of the knoll above the ski hut. That's too bad, because there are a couple places where a sign might assist.

That sign is particularly critical because there is a use trail that goes down to the plane wreck right there. It is very easy to go off the main trail at that point and if a person doesn't recover and get back up to the trail pretty soon they can find themselves in serious trouble. (I did that my first time up but I was lucky, I saw a group on the main trail above me and scrambled up to them.) But as Shin pointed out, it's also easy to make a mistake from the summit and start down the Bear Flats trail instead of Manker Flats. Every sign that has been on that trail is necessary and the people who take them are idiots, malicious, or both.