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Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
#45827 04/19/16 01:05 PM
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Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?

What special acclimatization steps should be taken for that age?

Thanks for any insights.

Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Just Me #45829 04/19/16 04:42 PM
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Fortitudine vincimus...

Kids at any age can do remarkable things...

They should follow your "acclimatization" footsteps and make it fun.


Journey well...
Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Just Me #45832 04/19/16 05:14 PM
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People have taken 6-year-olds to Whitney!

Make SURE you spend some time at altitude before starting the hike. Mammoth is at 8k elevation, and is a good place to start. Horseshoe Meadows is at 10k, and is even better, so long as the kid doesn't get AMS there.

You should sleep at the 8k or 10k elevations at least two nights before hiking up the trail.

Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Steve C #45834 04/19/16 05:57 PM
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AMS = Acute Mountain Sickness. I've taken the Sierra Backwoods Medical Course and done a couple 14'ers (including Mt Elbert)...more familiar with edemas and not acronym land...but cie la vie...

Last edited by Just Me; 04/19/16 07:29 PM.
Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Steve C #45835 04/19/16 06:03 PM
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it has been said that young children do not know when to say they feel bad at altitude, or describe what they feel in terms that we can figure out what they are saying. Duh, same for adults.

Best way to prepare is to do some long trail and altitude exposure ( 2 topics) beforehand to see how he likes it.

Does he get the same pleasure of going up that you do? I have a friend whose 3 kids were on-the-go gymnasts with endless energy. Put them on a mountain trail, not even high altitude, and they could not push unwilling flesh up the hill for more than an hour. Key word here, liking it. You gotta like it. This comes before getting in shape, getting acclimatized, etc. Only way -go find out.

With my younger son at age 10, we attempted Whitney, and "failed." He had plenty of mountain enjoyment experience beforehand, but not above 10,000 ft. He had the enjoyment and willingness, but was not a fast acclimatizer. Only one way to find out. We did.

EDIT: Your question 'what is AMS?' indicates you have a lot of homework to do. Please study up. One place to start is the Feature topics "Orientation notes for Whitney first timers" on this website

Last edited by Harvey Lankford; 04/19/16 06:07 PM.
Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Just Me #45841 04/19/16 09:40 PM
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Originally Posted By: Just Me
AMS = Acute Mountain Sickness. I've taken the Sierra Backwoods Medical Course and done a couple 14'ers (including Mt Elbert)...more familiar with edemas and not acronym land...but cie la vie...

Sorry about tossing out the acronym. Be aware, people in Colorado get some instant acclimatization because Denver is at 5k elevation. So after a week there, climbing a fourteener is almost like climbing a 9k peak in Calif.

Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Just Me #45847 04/20/16 09:57 AM
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I have a friend whose daughter did Whitney at 6 and Shasta at 8. She was 10 or 11 when we took her up the SE buttress on Cathedral Peak.

Re: Is 11 old enough to try Whitney?
Steve C #45848 04/20/16 12:04 PM
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Steve is right about starting height and the altitude where you live in Colorado. My 4 year old daughter climbed Pikes Peak a month before turning 5. We had lived at 7,300' for a year and she had no problems with altitude or the distance climbed.

Self motivation is important and she always had no trouble getting fired up for any athletic event.

I should mention that we hiked up 6.5 miles and camped at the half way point but ascended and returned the entire distance the next day, 19.5 miles, so it was not a 1 day round trip.


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