Mt Whitney Zone Forums Thread Like Summary - White Mountain

Thought this information might be useful to folks here, since White is often a shakedown, training, or acclimatization hike for Whitney:

The 2020 open gate day originally scheduled for Sunday, July 26, has been cancelled due to the pandemic.
Not a surprise, but thought folks might like to know.

Lewis

There's a paved road all the way up to Schulman Grove. From then on, it's:
Mile 0 - Schulman Grove, paved road ends here
Mile 11 - turn-off to Patriarch Grove
Mile 15 - Locked gate
Mile 17 - Barcroft station
Mile 22 - White Mountain Peak summit

fit2climb, just so you know, the road is all sand & gravel, and it is all above 10k elevation. Biking it will put you to the test.

If the gate is open, you should drive as far as possible -- maybe reaching the gate before the Barcroft lab. I have ridden and pushed my mountain bike to the summit twice (20 years ago & without suspension!). The 14-mile round trip was pretty grueling!

I tried calling some Inyo County roads numbers, and a person I spoke to said he believes the gate is unlocked, but with a sign about proceeding at your own risk.

Edit: Got a call back from Inyo N.F. Public Info person (Deb 760-920-2347). She says you should be able to get to the Patriarch Grove access. After that, there may be snow drifts still -- there were a week ago. She also asked: If anyone goes and can report back, they would sure appreciate your sharing the info.

You don't need 4WD on that road, just drive slowly. Lots of regular sedans do it. The danger is running over a sharp rock (they aren't large), that might cut your sidewall. But most people and cars make it in and out just fine. Make sure you have a working spare tire.

The hike up and back or the ride up and back is not a walk in the park, since you start at 12k and go up to 14k. You should get as close as you can before starting the ride/hike -- at least this first time!