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14 day rule
#3154 03/22/10 02:26 PM
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OK, Steve C. explained this to me last Oct. at the memorial hike cookout, but I've forgotten the details. Is it true that if you have a one night permit for the MT you can actually stay out for 14 days/nights? ---- thanks John

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3155 03/22/10 05:41 PM
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Thanks for asking here, John.

Yes, that is the rule. Except for that Trail Crest exit permit, all permits and quotas are strictly for date of entry. With a single permit for entering on a specific date, you get to stay in the back country up to 14 days. So if you have an overnight reservation from the lottery for the MMWT (Main Mt Whitney Trail), you can come out the next day or after two weeks -- the permit people will not make an issue out of it. They ask when you are coming out, and where (approximately) you plan on camping for record-keeping purposes, and to get an idea where to look if you are reported missing.

And then there is also the issue of the PCT hikers. They get an even better deal. They get an almost free pass for their entire journey. They can leave the trail and re-enter, even days later, as long as they have that PCT pass. I believe the PCT association requires that if they are exiting the MMWT, they are required to pay the $15 Whitney Zone fee, and get a stamp on the permit. But then they could head out for a resupply, maybe even a layover, and then head up the Whitney trail without the reservation and permit from the IAVC in Lone Pine.

And now that I go searching, I can't find the specific place of the 14-day rule, but I am sure that it is in place. But it is there to prevent someone from going in and squatting all summer in a single camp and exiting just to resupply, returning and spending every night in the wilderness. I think there is a 14-day campground site rule, too. You can be sure they permit JMT/PCT hikers who enter at Whitney Portal, who may be spending more than 14 days on the trail. But those people are traveling, not squatting in a single place.

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3169 03/23/10 09:08 AM
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14 days would be allot of time to spend in the Whitney Zone for sure! just go up and camp on the peak for a 2 weeks, only going down to resupply your water grin

It would be nice if normal back country permits operated a bit more like the PCT ones, or at least give you more than 24 hours out of wilderness.

It's a bit comical when you go for more then 2 weeks because your camping locations will not fit on the paper beyond that so your permit is sort of like a blank check, it only says when you plan to exit and where.

Re: 14 day rule
Steve C #3204 03/24/10 04:54 PM
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Thanks Steve. I knew you would have the answers. For my first trip to Whitney I did the Horseshoe Meadow, New Army Pass, Soldier Lake, Miter Basin, Crabtree Pass, Discovery Pinnacle route. Then out the same way. Some say this is some of the best scenery in the Sierra. It sure rates high with me. All this done with just a wilderness permit. Last Oct. I set out on the MT one day after the Big Snow Dump. It was a snow slog/postholeing fest. Spent one night on the ledges above Trailside Meadow and one night at Trail Camp. Too much snow for just trekking poles and microspikes, so I bailed. As you see, two trips to Whitney, and still I have'nt had the pleasure of going up and down the switchbacks. This Sept. my plan is to head up through Miter Basin veer right above Sky Blue Lake, head up and over Arc Pass, camp at Consultation Lake then summit. One more night at Consultation Lake, then down the MT to Portal. So I guess I just need a wilderness permit with a Trail Crest exit date specified. Does this sound right? ---- Thanks John

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3207 03/24/10 05:30 PM
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Originally Posted By: catpappy
As you see, two trips to Whitney, and still I have'nt had the pleasure of going up and down the switchbacks.


Pappy, I don't think I've ever heard it described quite that way . . .

Dude, you're just a half-dozen miles away from me here in the ATL (I'm in NE Cobb). I'm wondering what type of training regimen you use to get your legs ready for the Sierra. In the six weeks before Whitney last year I put in about 250 miles on sections of the AT, BM and even Kennesaw Mountain, but it still took about three days after arriving in Lone Pine and warming up in the Cottonwood area for my legs to function semi-normally. Certainly some of that was the elevation and acclimatization, but I'm curious what you do since you face the same local training limitations I do.

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3213 03/24/10 06:13 PM
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Pappy, you're right, you need the Trail Crest exit permit.

They're like other wilderness permits at Inyo N.F: 60% (15) are reservable up to 6 months in advance, the other 10 (40%) are available on a walk-in basis. I think we are just past the 6-month window, so if you already know your exact dates, you should call right away and try to snag one of the reservable ones.

Re: 14 day rule
Bulldog34 #3244 03/25/10 04:59 PM
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Hi Bulldog. Yes, we are neighbors. I live off exit 277/hwy 92. Training for me consists of trail running on the trails along the Hooch behind Ray's on the River, cycling, and some strength training at the gym. I'll also load my pack up with about 40 lbs. of bird seed and do Kennesaw from time to time. I hit the big 50 last Sept., so recovery time is as important as workout time to me. I will never do back to back leg days for instance. My trips to the Sierra are usually in Sept., so I'll slowly get into training mode in March. I'm not fanatical about it. Just try to do what I can, when I can with a certain intensity, trying to peak 3 weeks before the trip. I cut back a little for 2 weeks, and then don't do anything 5 to 7 days before the trip. It works for me, I always start the hike feeling fresh. If you like, lets try and get together for some hiking/training. My regular hiking buddy just got married so he's on lockdown for about a year. Give me a call or email 404-641-2822 catpappyman@yahoo.com ----Thanks John

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3245 03/25/10 05:15 PM
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> My regular hiking buddy just got married so he's on lockdown for about a year.
    cry   grin   grin

Re: 14 day rule
catpappy #3246 03/25/10 07:18 PM
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Wow John, we really are neighbors! I'm off Hwy 5 (I-75 exit 267), and just a couple of miles from Hwy 92's run through Woodstock at Hwy 5. Small world - 125 members on this board and two that are a couple thousand miles away live just a few miles from each other. Damn right I'll take you up on some hiking! I'm 52, so we're awfully close in age as well.

My late-year hiking trips west are also usually in August or September, but the Sierra will be July this year since it'll be combined with a family vacation - with school starting the first couple of days of August this year (just insane) we kind of got boxed in to July, with or without a lottery permit. I also try to spend a week in Death Valley in February most years. This year I had planned to hike there with Rod and Joe (Quillansculpture), but that one blew up after a family death in January. We're about 15 weeks out from our Sierra trip, and I'm a bit behind in training. If the rain will ever let up, Kennesaw Mountain and Blood Mountain will be seeing a lot of me the next 3-plus months.

I'll give you a shout this weekend and we can see how our hiking time availability matches up. All my buddies would rather play golf than venture into the wilderness, so I've been hiking pretty much solo for years - at least when my wife and daughter can't accompany me. My contact info is gfh34@comcast.net, cell is 678-772-3962.

Gary


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