Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion One Day Hike - First-Timer Questions

This is my first Whitney trip (round trip in one day) and I have a reservation confirmed at the end of July (near the new moon). I plan to leave early, 2 to 3AM.

Questions:
Is there someone there in the middle of the night to check permits or do they check later on the trail? I would assume that 12AM would be the earliest allowable leave time for a specified day?

Is there usually enough places to park a car at the trailhead?

Are there any rattle snakes up at these elevations? If so, anyone had problems with rattlers during the night hike?

Is it better to camp inside or stay somewhere in Lone Pine?


Thanks.

Welcome aboard, Camminatore. The theme of this forum is "How not to die on Whitney". Doctors & Park Rangers will chime in with advice. The single most important indicator of success, assuming you are fit, is getting several days at at least 10,000' altitude before the big day. That might be difficult in your part of the country so plan on getting out here early & getting high.

Q1 answer: You bet they are out there. They know the human psyche. They have seen and heard it all. If you step foot on the trail at 12:00 a.m. it is okay...you are legal.

Q2 answer: Yes, but you may have to park down the road if there are no parking spots available at the TH. DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT park in the day use only area. I'd say you have a 60% chance of getting a spot near the TH. Don't drive around the are too much, there are campers "trying" to sleep.

Q3 answer: I have never seen a rattler up at the Portal. Guess they don' like altitude. I have seen rattlers at Lone Pine Campground. Now, bears, yes.

Q4 answer: It is a matter of personal preference. Since it is your first, I recommend staying at the Hostel. "Hike high, sleep low." Ask for a room away from the highway. However, if you plan on a 12:00 a.m. start, that means you have to leave at 11:15 p.m. When you see people coming out of the Pizza Factory having a grand old time and you are prepping to leave for the TH, you tell yourself, "Man, there is something really wrong here! I should be having a beer and a pizza doggone it!"

Hope this helps...

Permit check and leaving time...I've had my permit checked most of the trips up or down the MMWT. There is some ambiguity about about when you are able to start you day hike. Some here have been told by forest service personnel you can enter Whitney Zone at 12:01, while I have been told you have to leave the trailhead at 12:01.

Parking...It gets tight in Whitney Prime Time but we have always have found parking near the trailhead, usually in the overflow lot.

Rattlesnakes...In a dozen years of hiking I have seen more bears and bighorn Sheep than rattlers...the highest I've ever seen one is about 7,200'.

Camp Inside/Lone Pine...It depends on how you handle elevation. If you need to acclimatize it makes sense to spend a few days get used to it. At last check, that mean Whitney Portal or higher.

Camminatore, on the acclimation subject, let me throw in some advice from a fellow flatlander. AMS is one of the leading causes of failure to summit Whitney. I've been there, and it's no damn fun. Just go ahead and shoot me. You're making quite an effort to travel most of the way across the country to get your crack at this mountain, so you want to do everything possible to avoid AMS and give yourself the best chance to summit.

If at all possible, find a way to sleep reasonably high. The more time at elevation, the better your body acclimates to the reduced oxygen levels. Pre-hiking high is good (11,000 to 12,000 ft if possible), but if you're bringing camping gear make it a point to spend a couple of nights before your entry date at either the Portal campground (8300 ft) or, even better, nearby Horseshoe Meadow campground (10,000 ft).

If you don't have camping gear, your options are limited. You can, however, sleep in your vehicle at the Portal if push comes to shove.

The one and only time I've ever suffered AMS was on Whitney in 2009. It surprised me since I had hit summits of 13K' and 14K' several times prior with zero issues. Eventually I realized that it was likely due to the fact that all my successful higher summits had also been accompanied by sleeping in the 7K' to 8K' range beforehand. The '09 Whitney trip, where I suffered my one and only bout with AMS, I had hiked to around 12K' several days prior to Whitney, but I was sleeping in Lone Pine (3700 ft). I corrected that last year by sleeping at 8K' ft several nights before Whitney, and felt just fine on the summit.

Enjoy the experience - you'll have a blast!

The only way I've ever seen permit checks is when you meet a ranger on the trail. They don't even have to ask you. The permit is a brightly colored tag about 4" X 8" that has a wire twist you use use to put it in view on your pack. Day hikers get one color, backpackers get another color. That way the ranger can just look and based on what you're carrying judge what color the tag should be. If he doesn't see it he'll open a conversation with you.


The lot empties out quite a bit by the end of the day due to the day hikers leaving. Your best bet is to drive up to the TH, dump your pack ( make sure someone is there to watch it otherwise bears might drag it off ), and then park in the overflow parking. It's a short walk away.


I'd say camp at altitude. That could mean at the Portal, or Horseshoe Meadow, or else where depending on where you're coming from. You'll need all the time at altitude you can get. Maybe come a day or two early?

Welcome, Camminatore!

Regarding the midnight start: I have been told by National Forest staff that you can hike up to Lone Pine Lake without a permit. It is only beyond the lake, and the Wilderness boundary, that you must have a valid permit. So I suppose you could start at 11 p.m.

But that would be foolish -- the sleep deprivation will catch up to you before you reach the summit. And the summit is only half way! Lots more people leave at 3 or 4 a.m. You won't be alone.

All the info about acclimatization is on the mark. Here are two recent discussions worth reading:

    Anyone know about a High altitue B&B or Campground?

    recomendations for an acclimatization route up the summit?
 

Not sure what you mean by "camp inside." You cannot camp anywhere on the Whitney trail if you have a day use permit, meaning you cannot camp at Lone Pine Lake or other areas that are technically before the Whitney Zone, but still off the main trail.

It is good to camp a few nights at altitude before going up to 14500 feet. Onion Valley is another nice option at just over 9000 feet (someone also mentioned Horseshoe Meadow). Some of the spots at Onion Valley are reservable on recreation.gov. The trailhead campground is lower (too bad),and have a lot of bears and noise, but still probably a better option than staying in Lone Pine, which is far lower elevation.

As posted, I was told just the opposite by the people within the same building when it comes to starting time. I have found it best to just get up and go if you can't sleep. 2 of our last 3 we were up at 12:30 and moving towards the summit at 1:30. I, like many, a couple of things working against me sleeping the night before a summit attempt...elevation and anxiety.

Those two time were from just under 12,000' but I have problems even at 8,000' from time to time. You couple that with the excitement, sleep is very difficult to come by. So, rather than toss n' turn, go! You can always catch 40 winks once the sun comes up...and we have.

Get plenty of sleep before you start up. If nerves or noise keep you from sleeping, just lie there and rest your body. There is absolutely no need to start at midnight or 2:00 AM. If you are that slow, you probably won't make the summit anyway. Get some rest and don't start up before 3:00 or 4:00.

I just want to scream when well-meaning people say, "climb high, sleep low" and then recommend sleeping in Lone Pine. You need to acclimatize. To do that, you need to hike AND sleep as high as your body will allow for as long as your schedule will allow. The best sleeping altitude is the highest altitude at which you don't get sick. I'm 31 and 0 on Whitney, and I always sleep at the portal (if the road is open).

Some people actually plan to do the hike at night. I've read several websites about just that. They try to time their permit for the full moon, and hike it starting at midnight with the expressed intention of being as high as they can be towards the summit by sunrise.

We're thinking about trying it in September, but since it will be planned, obviously we can revolve our sleeping habits for the week before the hike around it.

Ditto + @ti2d

#1 : From what I know (less than some, more than others) you can leave around 10:00 or so, planning on entering the Whitney Zone around 12:00. Take your time. Yes, permits "may" get checked.

#2 : Usually there is parking. I would try to get there in the morning the day before you hike and get a spot. Talk to the locals and other hikers and especially DOUG at the Portal Store.
**** IMPORTANT **** DO NOT LEAVE ANYTHING IN YOUR VEHICLE THAT LOOKS LIKE FOOD, WATER, ETC. NOT EVEN SUNSCREEN, BAGS OR CONTAINERS!!!! BEARS WILL FIND A WAY IN AND THEY WILL EAT ANYTHING.
I've seen lots of bears in the parking lot, camping areas, etc. They are not shy. They will find your food wherever it is. Per above: DO NOT Leave food in a campsite and do not leave your pack more than 5 feet away. I have had a bear come within 6 or so feet of me at 2:00 A.M. and not even know it until someone told me.

#3 : Rattlesnakes, NO. Bears, YES, Marmots, YES, Mice, YES. Be Very careful of the Grouse.....they will attack (just ask Laura :-0)

#4 : I prefer to camp at the Portal.

Most of all, take your time and enjoy the hike. It can be brutal, but it is certainly a great experience. And, bring your camera. Lots of luck.

#3A Pica. Yes!

While lot's of folks like the full moon, I like the new moon. I've done it both ways. I guess I like the stars more than I like the moon.

Coming up from Guitar Lake one year, I watch the moon set behind Mt. Hitchcock 7 times.

I used to prefer full moon dayhikes...not anymore...

The waning gibbous is my fave now. Rise later in the evening or early morning.

New moon...never done that...under the canopy of the Milky Way...gonna have to try it!

Who me!?

I tend to prefer areas that I've been before and am familiar with on the new moon. You're right, wbtravis, the stars are a better viewing experience than the moon on most nights.

>> #3A Pica. Yes!

> Who me!?

Hope you don't mind, Joel, I "borrowed" part of your pica picture.

I will say I was a little neverous...not quite to pucker, going from Lower Trail Crest to the summit the first new moon trip. That was trip #4 over this terrain but my partner had none of those feeling and it was his first time up to Whitney.

Two years ago, my usual partner in crime told me to lower my just re-batteried headlight down as we started towards the summit from Lower Trail Crest.

I still do both but my preference is for new moon hikes/backpacks.

I can never find the trail up the rocks right after Mirror Lake, lights or Moon. I got lucky one time as someone passed me like they knew where they were going.

The Pika is adorable! Gary and I saw one last year in our camp at Consultation Lake. He (the Pika, not Gary) was picking up little grasses and nearly ran between my legs as I was photographing him.