I was fearful for conditions up high since I arrived at the trailhead on Friday 5/10 and it poured rain from 3p-10p. Saturday brought cool, crisp air to hike up and there was even a lingering snow shower near trail camp.
Saturday 5/11 brought remarkable blue sky and calm winds. I made steady progress up the chute, passing a few parties. I didn't use (or have) crampons but was in heavy duty mountaineering boots and had an ice axe and adjustable ski pole. I arrived at Trail Crest with one other climber who was waiting for a group. The wind had picked up so I started hiking again. There was a broken trail until the Muir Trail branches off then it was all mine to break/enjoy:)
This section until just short of the summit was some of the toughest conditions I've experienced. Thick, breakable crust, deep wind drifts, hidden holes between boulders...I almost turned around multiple times and taken the easy trail the next day. Instead, I pushed on and on and was able to get to the summit as a party of 4 was leaving on the Mountaineer Route. According to the summit register, I was the first person in 3 days to summit from the trail side. Having that summit to myself for awhile is something I'll never forget. I also met a nice couple from the UK who were hot on my heels and made it car to summit to car that day. Nice work!
I'll have some more photos from around the Lone Pine and Eastern Sierras up on my blog on my next post.
