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The Longest Day of My Life
#6370 08/01/10 12:40 PM
Joined: Feb 2010
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Thursday, July 29, was the longest day of my life. I had been contemplating a "Whitney Double" for most of a year. After postponing my trip twice because of weather, I was finally ready to go.

I wanted to be at the Lone Pine Visitor Center for the 11:00 AM permit "Lottery" on Wednesday, so I left Reno on Tuesday night around 8:00. I drove to Conway Summit to sleep, got Breakfast in Bishop, and made it to the Visitor Center before 10:00. There were no permits available at 11:00, so I hung out at the local park and then ate at McDonalds. There were many no-show permits available at 2:00 PM, and I got the first one.

I drove to Whitney Portal and discovered that the only parking was in the overflow parking lot. The overflow lot would be fine for a normal climb, but I wanted to be right near the trailhead, store, water, and toilet for a double climb. I hung out in the day-use area like a vulture and waited for a space near the trailhead. I finally got one. I took a shower at the store, ate lots of spaghetti, and went to bed about 7:00.

I rested and dozed until almost 1:00 AM, but the Inyo Sheriff SAR, other climbers, and the anticipation of the double kept me from getting any meaningful sleep. I got dressed, grabbed my food and sunscreen from the nearby bear box, and started up the trail at 1:15 AM.

The trip up the Mountaineers, Route was uneventful, which is good. The moon played peek-a-boo with the trees and the clouds most of the way up, so I used my headlamp on and off until I was well into the couloir. My only stop on the way up was to get water just below Upper Boy Scout Lake. There was very little snow, but wet ground in the couloir suggested that it must have rained on Wednesday. I was glad I had waited until Thursday, but lots of clouds in every direction had me worried about completing a double.

I summitted at 6:11 AM, expecting to be alone. There must have been 20 other people there. I sent a SPOT message, signed the register, and headed back down the Mountaineers' Route.

I met a guide and his client starting up the couloir, and I met two guys heading for Keeler Needle. I was wearing trail runners, and I slipped several times on the way down. Otherwise, the trip down went smoothly. I was back at the car at 9:44 AM.

At the Portal, I headed for the toilet, proud that I hadn't had to stop to use my WAG bag. I drank some Recoverite, exchanged my trail runners for a pair of heavier but more secure hiking boots, swapped my almost empty food bag for a full one, and got more water. The batteries in my SPOT were dying, but the store didn't carry lithium batteries. I grabbed an emergency bivy and another layer in case the clouds made good on their threat to dump on me.

I headed back up the trail at 10:31 AM, worried about the weather, and wondering whether I had lost my mind. It was hot, and I felt that I was working harder and going much slower than I had on the first trip. By Lower Boy Scout Lake, I was feeling OK, and the altimeter indicated that I was gaining around 1,000 feet an hour. I stopped below Upper Boy Scout Lake again for water, leaving with three quarts. I met the guide and his client coming down, but I never saw the guys on Keeler Needle. I guess they didn't want to risk being there if a thunderstorm materialized.

There were still lots of clouds, but they weren't forming any obvious storm cells. I continued up, cautiously optimistic that I could get to the summit and back off of it without getting soaked or electrocuted. At 13,000 feet, I was still averaging around 1,000 feet an hour, but I was pretty trashed. I took a caffeine pill and pushed on. Sensing that the summit was within reach, I pushed even harder, reaching the summit at 4:20 PM. I expected to find hoards of stragglers from Trail Camp, but I had the summit to myself.

I think the Mountaineers' Route is the quicker way down, but I didn't want to risk a climbing or routefinding mistake when I was that tired. I sent another SPOT message, signed the register again, and headed down the trail, figuring that I could just cruise in zombie mode if I had to. I had the trail almost to myself all the way to Trail Crest.

On a long day like this, I believe in pacing myself and only stopping when I need something out of my pack. Some people advise sitting down for a 10-minute break every hour, but that would have added nearly four hours to my day. I sat down for my first break of the day at Trail Crest and changed my sox. I headed down the 97 boring, almost level, switchbacks, passing stragglers as I went. I was certainly tired, but I was making decent time, and I never deteriorated into zombie mode. The thunderstorms I had feared all day didn't materialize.

About an hour from the Portal, I ran out of water in my CamelBak. I still had a quart bottle left, but I wanted to make it without stopping to get out my headlamp. I had already stopped to pee seven times, so I figured I wasn't dehydrated, and pushed on. I had to pull out the headlamp to cross the North Fork stream anyway. I was back at the car at 9:05 PM, 19 hours and 50 minutes after I started.

I got more Recoverite, staggered around, and heated some spaghetti. I made sure that everything that would interest bears was in the bear box, and not in my car. I was in bed by 10:00 PM.

I woke up around 6:30 Friday morning. I had planned a shower and breakfast at the store before driving home, but they opened late, didn't have a cook on duty yet, and didn't have the key to the shower. I ended up skipping the shower and getting breakfast in Bishop. When I got to Mammoth, I was still so tired, I had to take an hour nap before driving the rest of the way home.

At 61, it takes longer to recover than it used to. It's now Sunday afternoon, and the soreness is diminishing. I may even head up nearby Mt. Rose in a day or two, but I won't be repeating the longest day of my life anytime soon.

Last edited by bobpickering; 08/01/10 12:50 PM.
Re: The Longest Day of My Life
bobpickering #6372 08/01/10 02:15 PM
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Bob, that is one epic day - twice up the MR! I've spoken at length with Jack Northam about his MT doubles, but I'm not sure if I've heard of many other MR doubles. Congratulations, man!

Doubles of any kind on that mountain absolutely amaze me. The conditioning it has to take to do two roundtrip summits in succession, let alone at the pace necessary to keep them within a 24 hour period, just leaves me shaking my head. B-E-A-S-T!

Sorry you didn't get your Portal breakfast, but I really enjoyed the TR. I only hope you had another bet going with your Ga Tech buddy on this, and that he had to pay up once again. That would make my grin about your exceptional day just a bit broader . . .

Congrats again on a truly big-time achievement!

Re: The Longest Day of My Life
Bulldog34 #6373 08/01/10 03:07 PM
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Gary:

I tried to get my buddy from Georgia Tech to race me on the second lap, but he wouldn't touch that bet. I'll get him the next time he plays the Bulldogs.

Bob

Re: The Longest Day of My Life
bobpickering #6379 08/01/10 06:57 PM
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Rod Offline
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Sensational accomplishment. My hat is off to you Bob.Incredible endurance for anyone but at 61 it is almost legendary. Great job and thanks for pioneering stuff like that so us young guys have something to aim at.I'm a teenager at 57.

Re: The Longest Day of My Life
bobpickering #6384 08/01/10 07:44 PM
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CaT Offline
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Phenomenal, Bob!
Way to go!

CaT


If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them more than the miracle of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it.
- Lyndon Johnson, on signing the Wilderness Act into law (1964)
Re: The Longest Day of My Life
bobpickering #6396 08/01/10 11:31 PM
Joined: Sep 2009
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S
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S
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Sounds like an ultramarathon, Bob! Congratulations on getting it done!

I have seen from all your reports that you have been hiking quite a bit this summer.  Were you building up for this, or is that your normal summer activity schedule?

...I am amazed.

Re: The Longest Day of My Life
Steve C #6426 08/03/10 09:07 AM
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Thanks for the kind words.

Steve:

I've been doing a few really long days every year since I started climbing. The first few years, most of the brutally long days weren't planned to be that long. After 20+ years, most of my climbs take about as long as I think they will.

It just looks like I'm doing more this year because I've done more climbs than ever on Whitney, and I reported them. There were several years when I ran a lot and didn't climb much. I can't run any more, so I climb, go cycling, and ride my horse. I didn't do any special training for the double, but I put a lot of effort into the "execution" of the trip.

Bob


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