Hi Norcalhiker67 and anyone else with sound summiting advice,
After 1 derailed Whitney summit plan already, (due to snow) my new plan is very similar to yours. As of now, I'm planning to head out of Cottonwood Lakes on July 23 to summit Langley first. From what I'm reading above, I guess it's best to use New Army Pass. If you don't mind, I have a few questions for you:
1. How many days are you planning?
2. Are you exiting at Whitney Portal or back the way you came? I'm thinking WP and it looks like maybe 30ish-35 miles???? I need to work on the mapping.
I hear this is a beautiful way to summit Whitney but I am wondering what my options will be to get back to my car if I exit WP.... maybe a Bishop taxi service that welcomes dirty, smelly hikers???
I'm getting pretty impatient waiting for the snow to melt. I'm all good with the waterproof boots and trekking poles but I have no interest/experience with crampons or an ice axe... which is why I passed on my original and permitted Whitney dates in late June. I'm really... really hoping to make this work.
