Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Our Time at Whitney and with the Whitney extended Family

My brother, cousin and I had a two night permit at Whitney June 30th. With only my cousin being "in shape" and none of us hikers by any means, it was an adventure. My cousin, who I now consider equal, in part, to all of you, made it to the summit. He left us at Lone Pine lake at 5:30am and made it down over 17 hours later....battered and some what catatonic.....but survived. My brother and I, however, failed miserably. We made it no further than Lone Pine Lake, and that took longer than I care to admit to get there. We never have packed/hiked before. I'll just refer to one of my favorite lines; "Man gots to know his limitations". I may post our chronicles of our failed attempt at some point, but I just wanted to thank ALL (especially Steve C) on this site, at the portal and in general, everyone in the Lone Pine area. You ALL are very special people who take care of everyone who attempts this wonderful place.....even the fool hardy like my brother and I. I have lots of pictures, but there basically pictures that everyone has seen before.....the majestic beauty of MT Whitney. I will however, try to add a picture of a somewhat rare sighting we had. While escorting my cousin down to the lower (overflow) parking lot around 7:45pm, a mamma Black Bear and her cub crossed our path about 50 yards from us.....she stopped and gave us a stare, and a little concern for a brief moment. Again thanks, you all are special people, and truly Super men and women in my eyes.
Will, Rob and cousin Charlie

Hi Lilschnetz, first of all every step you took was one step futher then you'd ever been... if Lone Pine Lake was the summit of this trip for you.. then it was a successful trip. You learned lessons, pushed whatever limitations it was that you and your brother had, knew when to call "uncle", and survived to tell the tale. THAT, my friend, constitutes a successful trip.

As for the pictures... we've all seen Mt. Whitney, but through our own eyes. When we share the "same old pictures" we're sharing what we've seen... and you never know if that might be a new perspective from what someone else has seen... so share away!!!

Congrats on Lone Pine Lake... congrats on stepping out and trying something new... and remember, the mountain will still be there when you're ready to give it another try!

~SoCalGirl...

I'll echo the congratulations; you made it part of the way, and the mountain is very, very likely to be around next summer, so you can take another shot at it then.

A question about ascent to the summit, though: was it via the chute, or switchbacks? My date w/ the main trail (I hope) is next week, and I'm eager to see a report of someone who's gone up the switchbacks the whole way, without the need for crampons / ice ax.

I did the hike to LPL a couple of days before you. I had planned to go to trail camp, but through my own little misadventure, decided that LPL was my final destination for the trip.

I think that it is important that we get the broad range of reports because a broad range of skill and physical levels are represented here. Newbies to hiking will probably like hearing yours and my stories so they know what to expect for their particular level. While the more experienced will appreciate the guys who can make it up to the top and back in 30 mins or less.

If nobody else appreciates your story, you'll know that I do, since I stopped at the same place this year.

Congratulations for being on the mountain and for making the right decision when you did. The mountain, each portion of it, carries its own beauty and you stood in a wonderful place.

Brent

Ain't seen your pictures...every picture captures a moment in time...regardless of who took it, you were there at that moment...not too many people get that chance! Every picture tells its own story...

As wagga would put it: If there ain't no pictures, it didn't happen!

What you did took a lot more guts than you know.

Hope you had the lake all to yourselves...I like sitting there along the shore on one of the rocks...hearing wind through the trees...feeling the breeze brush my face...the stillness...the serenity...an occasional trout breaking the surface...ah, it wasn't a failure. You got your $15 worth.

Next year, apply military adage...The 7 P's...then go get some Whit!

Getting to the top is optional...getting down is mandatory. This is so true.

BTW, how were those fries?

Congrats on your ascent to LPL.

For me:

Main Trail
First time - LPL
Second time - Mirror Lake
Third time - Not far above Mirror Lake
Fourth time - About one mile from the summit
Fifth Time - Summit

Mountaineer's Route
First time - Upper Boy Scout Lake
Second time - Iceberg Lake
Third time - Lower Boy Scout Lake (long story)

Sometimes it comes in increments. It's different for everyone.

CaT