Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Will it be door number 1, door number 2 or.....

LOL! I read about your cow adventure....I could see how one's mind could play tricks on itself after a long hike. Every time I have come down the MMWT in the dark between LPL and the portal I have seen things in the shadows and heard things that were clearly nothing extraordinary at all.

Not a bad idea to do trail peak. I did Cottonwood Pass in september as a warmup for MW and it was very mellow. I guess Chicken Springs Lake is an option too.

this quote says it all:
In some ways, going to the mountains is incomprehensible to many people and inexplicable by those who go. The reasons are difficult to unearth and only with those who are similarly drawn is there no need to try to explain.
Joe Tasker, Savage Arena page 260

I just Googled "addiction", and guess what -

Ahhh, my literary hero Joe Tasker has more on that:

Now I had come to know that I would not stop climbing; this mountain scene was exhilarating rather than oppressive, full of endless opportunity. Sometimes I feel as if the mountains have become an addiction, the pleasure gone, the compulsion to partake remaining.
Joe Tasker, Everest the Cruel Way page 118

Harvey

They say that you can tell an addiction when you do it alone. And well, I do like to hike solo....so..maybe...

With apologies to George Thoroughgood...

I hike alone, yeah
With nobody else
I hike alone, yeah
With nobody else
You know when I hike alone
I prefer to be by myself

Every morning just before breakfast
I don't want no coffee or tea
Just me and good buddy Whitney
That's all I ever need
'Cause I hike alone, yeah
With nobody else
Yeah, you know when I hike alone
I prefer to be by myself

The other night I laid sleeping
And I woke from a terrible dream
So I caught up my pal Irvine
And his partner Mt Mallory
And we hiked alone, yeah
With nobody else
Yeah, you know when I hike alone
I prefer to be by myself

The other day I got invited to a party
But I stayed home instead
Just me and my pal Mt Russell
And his brothers Thor and McAdie
And we hiked alone, yeah
With nobody else
Yeah, you know when I hike alone
I prefer to be by myself

My whole family done give up on me
And it makes me feel oh so bad
The only one who will hang out with me
Is my dear Old Grand-Dad
And we hike alone, yeah
With nobody else
Yeah, you know when I hike alone
I prefer to be by myself

Well, I scored a new REI Flash 65 and an Exped Synmat UL 7 M inflatable sleeping pad yesterday and I want to try them out.

I called the permit office today...no joy on open permits for the MT (the website listed 6 available, but someone obviously got to them first).

If I'm able to offload the kid on some poor unsuspecting family member tomorrow, I am going to get up to the portal tomorrow by noon.

I'd like to check out the trail after last week's rainstorms, but I really am having a hankering for something different. Meysan Lake is definitely calling my name. I can't do much more than that. I won't have any time to acclimatize, so going for a summit just isn't an option for this trip.

The new pack and pad will reduce my pack weight by over three pounds. I'm also going to skip any hot food to cut down on the cooking gear. Thinking that peanut butter and jelly tortillas will get me by for this trip. Basically, planning on going as light as possible on this trip.

It sounds like water is a little scarce on the first 3 or 4 miles of the Meysan trail. Is this true? Should I plan on carrying 3 liters from the trailhead?

Have fun Tom. I've got a Flash 65, and it's an extremely light, reasonably comfortable pack capable of hauling a lotta gear. Once you get it loaded with weight, you'll probably have to monkey around with all the higher adjustment straps to be sure the pack is pulled as close to your back and shoulders as possible. With 35 pounds, even an inch can make a huge difference in how you feel with the weight.

The only drawback I've found with this pack is the ability to strip out the back support frame and turn it into a smaller, lighter summit sack. On REI's video it looks easy. It ain't. I've only done it twice, backpacking on Whitney both times, but trying to wrestle that stiff frame out of the zippered pouch (and then back in again) has been a major PITA. I actually bought a Flash 15 summit sack last month so I wouldn't have to ever do this again.

I haven't done Meysan yet, but have looked at it as a backup in the past if no Whitney permits were available. As I recall it's a little over 3000 feet of gain in less than 5 miles, but pretty much direct with few switchbacks - so fairly steep going. Meysan Creek will be to your left, but not very accessible. I think Grass Lake, just prior to reaching Meysan Lake, is your first easily-accessible water, so call it 5 uphill miles for your water needs. I'd take at least 4 liters of liquid, between water and -Ades.

Gonna try to tag Mallory or Irvine?

Watch out for the killer grouse that almost had Laura for dinner a couple of seasons back - it may still haunt that trail . . .

Hey Gary,
thanks for the pointers on the Flash 65. I'll have to play with it a bit tonight to make sure I am comfortable with it.

No plan to tag Mallory or Irvine. No time to acclimatize and I am susceptible to AMS, so I'll have to top out at Meysan Lake.

Plus....gotta be back on Sunday for Jackson's 12th bday party.

I read up on the killer grouse when I was searching for info for this trip....perhaps I should bring the camp stove afterall:D

door number two wins. Whit is full. Going meysan