Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion HST vs. Onion Valley vs. Horseshoe Meadows to WP

63Chevy:
Q1: I would do all 3! I've done 2, and hope to try some variation of "C" this year. Life is long, take your time, do them all.

B and C are shorter trips than the HST, if that makes any difference. I would take the HST later in summer on a wet year, due to the need to ford the Kern River Big Arroyo Creek without a bridge.

I did the Onion Valley trip in 4 days hiking, third night on the summit of Whitney. AMS was a factor the first two nights. My HST trip took 5 nights/6 days. An extra day would be nicer.

Permits: HST only requires a permit from Seki to start.
B and C require both a start and Trail Crest exit from Inyo. None in the lottery, they are available 6 months in advance, and a few are held back available to walk-in requests.

Q8: no parking permits required.