Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Portal Road Closure

Couldn't find the full story here, but at least its being debated beforehand this year:

Inyo Register blurb

I think their erecting the gate caused a significant stir, not only with the hiking community, but with the locals, too. I'm not sure where I saw it, but there was a picture of a group of concerned people meeting at the gate last spring.

Doug Sr from the Hostel and Whitney Portal Store posted last week asking for thoughts before a Board of Supervisors meeting on the subject. Here is his post.

I like this message posted in that thread:


The Inyo Register implies there will be a followup article. I hope there is.

The follow-up article was to be in Saturday's paper (8/16) but I have not been able to find it online.

I am not sure why this is such a surprise to everyone, or even up for dabate. It is not just plowing the road to keep it open, rather, there are boulders the size of VW bugs rolling off that hill during the closed period. All it is going to take is a bowling ball strike on a car or hiker, and at best there will be (another) million dollar lawsuit (everyone remember the guys in the summit hut circa 1990? that cost a pretty penny) At worst, there will be a fatality....and an even more expensive lawsuit.

I suppose that folks should start trying to drive on Tioga pass when it's closed, too?



"Why in the world doesn't the county realize the business the Mt Whitney attraction brings to the county? As long as the road is mostly dry, they should be maintaining and clearing debris from it during the winter, at least as high as the snow level."

See above -- the part about those pesky boulders in motion

"When they put the gate up last winter, there were a number of people who canceled their plans to come to Lone Pine and head up the road to hike in April and May. So Lone Pine businesses definitely lost some income."

See above -- the part where money goes when someone gets hurt...it is only a matter of time & $$$$$$$$$$$$$

The are many non-drought years when the snow level on the Whitney Portal road is quite low; other years when it is not. As an Inyo County road it can be quite a dent in the road department budget to keep a road open that is not in high demand.

As we must know, most of the hiker/climbers who want to climb Whitney in the Winter are relatively few, compared to the Summer season. So, Inyo County is weighing whether the time and expense should be expended for those few.

Even a so-called "hard closure" (whatever that might involve) can be avoided by people on foot. Yes, it would mean a much longer hike to the mountain, but Winter hikers are generally among a tougher crowd anyway; they should be able to handle it. As we know, a "soft closure" is often avoided by people who find it inconvenient to their plans and go ahead and ignore it.

The economic impact argument on the Lone Pine business community would be relatively small, considering the few people who actually want to climb Whitney in the Winter. Most people who travel North through Lone Pine in the Winter are heading to Mammoth Mountain to ski anyway and spend comparatively little time and money in Lone Pine.

I am reminded of the film "Jaws" when the local police chieft met with fierce opposition from the local business community when he wanted to close the beaches. As in the case of a Whitney Portal road closure, it is sad when relatively minor economic interests trump public safety.

Do I like the road being "hard" closed...no. Can I understand it...yes.

In a litigious society such as our, it being "soft" closed is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

As mentioned, the Smithsonian Hut pre Faraday Cage days provided an attorney with a pay day.

In the end, the economic effect of this is minimal. I do not see things changing unless there is a really squeaky wheel in Independence.

On a related note, the last time I visited, I remarked on how unlikely it seemed that the Whitney Portal Road and especially the Horseshoe Meadows Road were ever built at all. I mean, look at them! Miles of twisty pavement, laboriously carved and cut into steep mountainside rock, all so a few hikers can drive up and prance about in the woods. :-) They make that Alaskan "bridge to nowhere" look like a sound economic investment. I'm happy the roads are there, but if their construction was being debated in 2014, I suspect they would never get built.

The Main Mt Whitney Trail and the Smithsonian Hut would never be built today. Nor the WP store.

I am glad we have the facilities we do, and would like to see them maintained and made as useful as they can be.

The huge boulders come down once every few years, not all the time. I would sure support a "enter at your own risk" type of "soft" closure.

"Enter at your own risk" is synonymous with enter at OUR legal, financial et al risk. "Our" being the entity that will have to dole out the $$ when something does go wrong.

There is no such thing as a solid disclaimer, anymore, when it comes to public lands, roads, etc.

As far as the boulders go, I seem to notice them on the road every year when pictures are taken. Granted, they may not all be the size of a VW bug, however, it only takes a fraction of that weight to take someone out.

Just got back from a six day trip (Tyndall Creek area) and I can not stress enough, how many hikers asked if Mount Whitney was closed. I said, no, they didn't close the mountain, just the road. Hikers were scrambling to figure out what to do. A lack of information can really cause problems.

paul

> Hikers were scrambling to figure out what to do.

Wait! They were worried about closure in August?