The are many non-drought years when the snow level on the Whitney Portal road is quite low; other years when it is not. As an Inyo County road it can be quite a dent in the road department budget to keep a road open that is not in high demand.
As we must know, most of the hiker/climbers who want to climb Whitney in the Winter are relatively few, compared to the Summer season. So, Inyo County is weighing whether the time and expense should be expended for those few.
Even a so-called "hard closure" (whatever that might involve) can be avoided by people on foot. Yes, it would mean a much longer hike to the mountain, but Winter hikers are generally among a tougher crowd anyway; they should be able to handle it. As we know, a "soft closure" is often avoided by people who find it inconvenient to their plans and go ahead and ignore it.
The economic impact argument on the Lone Pine business community would be relatively small, considering the few people who actually want to climb Whitney in the Winter. Most people who travel North through Lone Pine in the Winter are heading to Mammoth Mountain to ski anyway and spend comparatively little time and money in Lone Pine.
I am reminded of the film "Jaws" when the local police chieft met with fierce opposition from the local business community when he wanted to close the beaches. As in the case of a Whitney Portal road closure, it is sad when relatively minor economic interests trump public safety.
Last edited by Bob West; 08/18/14 07:17 AM.
