Our group of 8 did an overnight trip over Saturday(18), Sunday(19), Monday(20), with a summit on Monday. We drove from Southern Utah (all packed into a little minivan) through Death Valley (not recommended in previously mentioned minivan: too many winding roads) and camped at the portal on Saturday night. We started around 7 on Sunday morning and hiked to Trail Camp. The trail is fairly clear of snow up until the switchbacks above Mirror Lake. We had to climb some slopes just above Lone Pine Lake, but it was pretty easy to get up and over and back onto the trail. We made a couple of quick traverses and got water just below Trailside meadow. The meadow is still under snow, so we strapped on crampons and took the snowfield around the meadow, up next to Consultation Lake, which is still frozen solid. It was a bit of a push to get to trail camp through the slushy snow, but the crampons helped a lot. Trail camp was virtually empty, and there were plenty of spots that are clear of snow. We saw three or four other parties, but no one was even close to us. There is a lot of open, running water available at trail camp as well. The sun sets over camp around 6:00, but stayed light till after 8:00. We got an alpine start waking up around 3:00. We planned to hit the chute at 4:00, but were delayed, as one couple in our party was suffering from AMS. We all pitched in to get them packed up and on their way back down the mountain. We got to the snow around 4:45. We were able to make it up to the base of the chute without crampons. The crusty snow made walking easier, and some kind soul(s) had cut some really nice steps in the slush the day before. We had an easy time. We geared up at the base of the chute and set off. It took us about 3 hours total from trail camp to trail crest. I wore snow pants over my nylon trail pants, and halfway up wished I hadn't. It is warm enough that if you do get a wet, the sun and exertion will dry you off pretty quick. We are all pretty average, inexperienced hikers and all but one of our party that reached trail crest have summitted before (from 1-4 times) and none had trained very heavily. The back side of the ridge is quite clear. There were one or two spots that are still blocked by snow, but can be quite easily (and carefully traversed). They are not very technically difficult, but the cost for a mistake is high. Travel carefully. There is a large snowfield just before the summit, but we made it up without crampons (though I wouldn't recommend you do it, we regretted not putting them on once we got on the slope). While on the summit and the back trail we met a lot of awesome Pacific Crest Trail hikers, who were hiking the summit that day (check their blogs out at
www.postholer.com). Also, as we were sitting down to some lunch, two climber came up over the East face, out of nowhere. We had just been telling the PCT hikers how incredible they were, but I think they were outdone by the climbers. It was pretty cool to see. One of the highlights of the trip was the glissade down the chute. It was the perfect consistency around 1:30 when we made it back. We took it slow and had plenty of control. The brave ones in our group rocketed down the slope. Ice axes were a must, both for the climb, and to perform proper self arrest while glissading and in case of a slip. We were able to slide almost all the way back to trail camp, though sometimes we had to use our axes as makeshift "paddles" to push us through some of the flatter sections. It gave our legs a rest, and was quite entertaining. We were able to take some shortcuts after trail camp through the snow fields. It was a little more work, but shortened the trail quite a bit. Post-holing is a problem, so avoid rocks. There is quite a lot of water running under the snow, and postholing into a running stream could be disastrous, depending on your equipment and preparation. Wool socks are highly recommended for when you get water in your waterproof boots. I had gaiters on over my snowpants and waterproof shoes and still managed to get water in them. I was glad I had my Smartwool socks. I managed to lose my wallet on one of our shortcuts somewhere between Trail camp and the portal. It was in my back pocket, secured with only velcro. I told myself while packing at Trail camp to put it in a secure zippered pocket in my pack, but like an idiot didn't listen. Some kind-hearted soul found it the next day and turned it in to the Portal Store. Thank you whoever you are. I hope you took some of the cash out as a finders fee. The store was great about mailing it back to me. Those guys are awesome. We were all pretty bummed that we were 45 minutes too late to grab a burger at the store. That was one of my favorite memories from my last summit. All in all we had a great trip. The mountains are beautiful and summiting is worth all the effort and pain. My first summit was a day-hike and the round-trip from portal to portal took us just under 13 hours. We more than doubled that time on this trip. It just depends on what you want to get out of your trip. I brought my wife this time who just gave birth to our second son 4 months ago. She had been pregnant for 12 of the 14 months prior to his birth and on quasi-bedrest for most of the pregnancy. She had trained for and ran a 10k the week before we left. She was a trooper on the mountain and made it all the way. We had a great time. If you would like to see some of the pictures of our trip and assess conditions from the photos you can view them here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/adammerlinlarsen/MtWhitneyJune19202011?feat=directlink Also some videos of glissading down the chute if you want to check them out.
