Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion 4th of July Weekend

Hi Everyone,

My Wife and Son have taken an emergency flight out of state so I am alone for the weekend and plan on making my way out to the lone pine / bishop area. I have been calling for a permit, and I hope to catch a cancelled reservation for an overnight pass on 02-03 July.

I work just north of Sacramento, so I plan on leaving work ASAP on Friday and driving straight there, maybe catching a camp site somewhere along the way for a few hours of sleep. This will put me in Lone Pine at or around 8am on Saturday.

If I am unable to reserve a pass during the weekend, is there a spot where I can be guaranteed somewhere to pitch a small tent in the wild and do a few days of hiking? I'm willing to go as far south as Tehachapi and as far north as Reno.

Also, if there are any groups going hiking / camping in the area - I would love to join. I'm 26, physically fit, and won't slow anyone down.

Thanks for your time.

Welcome Hawk23! Keep calling the permit office. You are likely to get a cancellation if you keep trying.

If that doesn't work, day hike permits for Saturday may still be available Saturday morning at the Visitor Center (1 mile S of Lone Pine, take the turn toward Death Valley). Overnight no-shows would come available at 11 a.m. at the same place.

If you're up for the long drive, you can head straight up to Horseshoe Meadows. Or if you head over the 50 and south on the 395, and need to stop, I have used various trailhead parking lots to throw down my sleeping bag on a Friday night. (You won't need a tent.) Just get up at dawn and start driving again.

It is likely you can find a spot at Horseshoe Meadows if you need to camp Saturday night. But you can probably get that overnight permit at 11 a.m. on Saturday for the Whitney trail.

Steve, I'm trying to make sure I understand what you're saying about the overnight no shows correctly. If he wants to try to get an overnight permit for Saturday night, they become available Saturday morning at 11am? Is that also the time for weekdays? I thought I read 10am at some point in time. Thanks for any further clarification!

Thanks for the tips!

I just confirmed 1100am. It's a 7 hour drive for me, but I'm going to go for it. There is a possibility of a storm moving through this weekend, so maybe that gives me a better chance.

My friend and I are going weekend of 4th, too! We are hoping to get one unreserved Whitney permit (via MR trail) Saturday morning at 8am, too. I'll fight you for it............... hehe - if you want to join our group please feel free to. Let me know PM me. Good luck, hope you get your permit.

No, 11 a.m. is the magical moment. Walk-in permits for all other trails in Inyo become available at that time, too (but for starting the hike the NEXT day.)

Read Box 6 of the Wilderness Permit Options (link is above on the left) Here's a direct link: Box 6

Ahhhh. Someone cancelled this morning, and I was an hour late in making the call. What a bummer!

Call every hour or less!

Thank you for that, Steve, that's the exact kind of official style info that I needed to share with my group.

I am! The one thing I am having difficulty finding out is this: Where is the best place to park? In Lone Pine / Hike to Whitney portal, In Lone Pine / Call Mount Whitney Shuttle / Parking available at Mount Whitney Portal

Thank you for your time.

I got a day pass for Sunday! Just a back-up in case, but I feel good about the trip now!

Park at the Portal. It is a long walk(13 miles) from Lone Pine with thousands of feet elevation change. Plus the Trail head is at the Portal. If it is really crowded at the Portal you can park on the road and walk up a ways.

Thanks again for all of the information. I will update during / after my trip!