I just turned 70, and I’m thinking about climbing all the California 14ers again. I figured I should start with Mt. Whitney and Mt. Muir. I made plans to climb the Mountaineers’ Route to Whitney, scurry down the trail to Muir, hike back up the trail, and then descend the Mountaineers’ Route. I’ve done Muir this way several times before, and it works better than you would think. All I needed was a few days with perfect weather after the road opens but before quota season starts. I settled for a compromise: absolutely perfect weather, but the road was only open partway.
I drove down from Reno and slept in my car just below the locked gate. It took about 40 minutes to hike to the trailhead Wednesday morning. Once I made a dicey step across the stream below Lower Boy Scout Lake, the hike went smoothly. There was plenty of snow, and it wasn’t too soft. I took my first sit-down break above Upper Boy Scout Lake, and never regained the speed I had down lower. Maybe old age, maybe the snow was getting softer, I don’t know. I did feel a little better above 13,000’, so it’s hard to blame the altitude.
When I got to the notch, I was way behind schedule and doubting that I would have the time and energy for Muir. The final 400 was mixed snow and rock that looked harder than the nice snowfield that I saw in Kurt’s photos. I wasn’t feeling super confident, so it took a while go get up it. I’ve always hated the “easy walk off,” and I didn’t feel like downclimbing the final 400. I decided to take the main trail. Maybe I would have the energy for Muir, and maybe I wouldn’t. But I figured I could safely stagger down the trail to my car, no matter how long it took.
I still wasn’t feeling too strong, but the weather was spectacular, and I just couldn’t resist Muir. I left everything except my ski poles and my Spot at the trail and headed up. The rock was warm and Muir was completely free of snow. It was fun, even if I was tired. I was the first one in 2019 to sign the register.
Back at the trail, I headed for Trail Crest and the car. I didn’t expect to make it before dark, but I wanted to get as far as possible while I still had daylight. I focused on keeping moving and avoiding unnecessary stops. I took a shortcut that wasn’t so short and rejoined everybody else’s tracks at the east end of Bighorn Park. I followed the tracks until I found the real trail around 9,300’. I made it to the portal before dark and followed the road to my car. About 15:25 car to car or 14:05, trailhead to trailhead. Definitely enough fun for one day! Glad to be home recovering.
