Mt Whitney Zone Forums Trip Reports MMWT July 13th 2012

The least interesting trip report was for Meysan Lake....I'm thinking that I may have to go back to that trail.

Way too much drama on the MMWT....LOL

tdtz, always enjoy your TR that go along with your SPOT tracks.
Glad to hear everyone made it out safely and are ok. Maybe not the adventure you had planned but a very memorable experience.

I found this column posted today in the OC Register discussing mountain lion sightings in the loacal mountains and in California. From the column, here's a list of what to-do and not-to-do if you encounter a mountian lion:

THINGS TO AVOID
From CougarInfo.Org, here's what you shouldn't do:
• Hike, bike, or jog alone.
• Plan outdoor activities between dusk and dawn.
• Walk near dense growth, rock outcroppings, or under ledges.
• Bend over, crouch, or kneel.
• Turn your back or run.
THING TO DO
From CougarInfo.Org, here's what to do:
• Keep children and pets in sight.
• Be vigilant, looking around, up and behind.
• Wear a helmet, hood, or hat; paint eyes on the back.
• Be sure the lion has a way out
• Look the lion in the eyes.
• Make loud, firm noises.
• Make yourself look big by raising your arms and clothing; stand up straight, swell your chest.
• Back away slowly.
• Use anything available as a weapon if the lion displays aggression including mace, pepper, fists, sticks, rocks, tools, pocket knife, bicycle

Wonder how many people will start painting eyes on the back of their packs?

Tom, I read and re-read your story three times to make sure I didn't miss anything.

First: Thank you for being one of those people that can actually be relied upon in case of emergency. You did a great job of putting yourself out there to assist others in need, and are to be commended for doing so.

Now, I must vent.

How, in gawd's name, do you not notice your child is starting to show signs of AMS/dehydration/acute illness ?!?!?!?!?!?!?

In my line of work, it's my job to pick up on the minutae. I know I do that with my climbing/hiking/skiing/whatever partners as well. A lot of times it might be overkill, but those that come out with me also know that if there isn't a giant smile across my face, something must be wrong. This is a CHILD we're talking about here. YOUR child. The life you are charged to protect.

Some might say that they have seen rapid onset of violent symptoms. I say bullshit. Signs appear gradually, even nonverbals. It's the accumulation of the small signals that lead to the tipping point, and, say, the kid is vomiting every five minutes. And he had been like that for 12 hours????

There is no excuse for ignorance: too much information is available, in too many places. I'm REALLY glad you guys didn't let him sleep longer.

In brief: Tom, you are a hero in the truest sense. This father should be beaten soundly about the head and shoulders with a nailed 2x4.

...

The other possible victim in this is the lion. I hope it moves on quickly and quietly, because I could see it ending badly if it lurks in such close contact to so many people.

Seriously Laura, tell us how you really feel :-)
Enjoyed as always.
And yes, that Mountain Lion better get as far away from there as possible, or it may not end well. At least if it killed a deer, we're all much safer now.

Hi Laura,
First things first, I reject the hero title. I was definitely a good samaritan, but I don't like diluting the meaning of such an important word as "hero". I did the right thing, that's all.

I avoided putting my opinion about the things that transpired out there. I figured that the description would speak for itself. I had a long talk with Ranger Michael about the situation. He ran into Maxwell and Corey somewhere around LPL where Maxwell first got sick and he gave his opinion.

Apparently there was another Father/son pair that they were hiking with...at least in the beginning. And from what I gather, the other father was very macho and was pushing his son pretty hard too. Corey had mentioned that he thought the vomiting was caused pushing too hard physically. In the beginning, I doubt that he was vomiting with the same frequency as when I met them. I have a little bit of a theory that there was a competitive element that caused them to try to push through the pain.

None of that really matters though. I'm a Dad and I know that every word you said is true. At the first sign of something being wrong, i would have turned around and got my boy off the mountain. Even if it isn't AMS, let's just say that it is a stomach flu, this kid's level of dehydration was pretty serious. He looked to be about 90lbs and they put 5 liters of fluids in him. That's a pretty significant percentage of his body weight.

One thing that I was very happy to hear about was that the other people saw that the mountain lion had a fresh kill. It wasn't really stalking humans as it seemed that night.

A friend of mine called me today and said "now I understand why you like to hike alone.....it's because of the hot cougars waiting for you up there, isn't it?"

Reject it all you want. You put yourself in harm's way, in fact you became injured yourself, in the effort to assist someone else in a dangerous situation. For that, I applaud you.

Look at it this way: would you, would ANY of us, carry 5 liters of fluid up this mountain?

I've seen a lot of stupid, but this one really, REALLY takes the cake for me.

I gotta stop reading this Medicine for Mountaineering book.

Bottom line: Tom, you are welcome in my camp, anytime.

I concur with Laura. I guess that dad thought that all vomiting stops (just like bleeding, one way or the other)

Once we were running down from Mammoth Crest to Lake George because of lightning. A dad was carrying a baby on his back up to where we had fled. He ignored our pleas. People do the dumbest things.

• Walk near dense growth, rock outcroppings, or under ledges.
• Bend over, crouch, or kneel.

Enjoyed reading that article. Then I thought, you know....what if you go off to find a private place in dense growth or in the rocks to use a wag bag. You'll be in exactly the wrong position too!!!

I would hope that any mountain lion would have the decency to wait until one is finished with private business.

WOW! I'm offline for the day, and come into this story late. Way to go, Tom! You ARE a Good Samaritan!

So glad you made contact with Inyo Sheriff. Anyone with that serious AMS needs to get out of there as quickly as possible. A few hours in a tent could end badly.

Regarding the dad not recognizing AMS (or overexertion... whatever): In reality, very few hikers actually do any (or enough) reading to understand the possibilities of AMS and the need to get outta there at the first signs. ...In fact, I believe some of the most experienced here participated in a similar hike a few years back, where the AMS victim was not evacuated for several nights. Experience teaches us well. But we were all novices at one point.

I am sure glad, on both these occasions, that the victim survived and recovered. In Tom's case, the kid was lucky Tom came along and helped them get out in time. The outcome could have been far worse had he not.

For tdtz:


(P.S. Tom, I sure like the Spotwalla map.)

Hey Steve,
you'll notice that there is a place in bighorn park where there are three dots on the same spot. That's the Rockwell Spring...it really is good water.

My first time up the MMWT I got AMS on the 97 switchbacks. I knew about AMS and I took diamox. But I definitely didn't spend any meaningful time at altitude before the hike. I honestly didn't think that I would get AMS. Figured the diamox would take care of everything. I suppose I was lucky that my symptoms hit so quickly and so hard that there was no choice but to descend to an elevation where I felt better.

Hopefully the anecdotes here will help others take it more seriously. And as suggested already, I think they do.

Just read this and am so glad everyone is ok.
Great job tdtz!

Here's a link to a follow up on the mountain lion in the local OC wilderness area. The mountain lion was captured, is being evaluated and will be relocated.

tdtz,
actually, a mountain lion is the least of my concerns while using a wag bag (or similar situation when in an area that doesn't require wag bags). I had a friend that was bitten by a brown recluse on the right cheek while crouching during a "private moment". It's been many years, and she still can't laugh about it.

Heading up again today. If I can get an overnight permit, I will spend the night at LPL. Plan is to try out a brand new fly fishing rod and reel. I've never fly fished before, so I want to try it out before my trip in August. I may continue up to trail camp tomorrow....dunno, we'll see.

If I can't get an overnight permit I'll just do a dayhike to LPL and get some fishing in.

Got a permit....i was the 16th out of 16 in the 11am lottery. That means that close to 25 people got walk in permits today.

Perhaps this suggests another place to paint eyes to protect yourself from cougars.

Dale B. Dalrymple

The SPOT check in tonight at 6:07pm has tdtz in the middle of Lone Pine Lake :D

Sounds fishy to me. Or maybe you fell for it hook line & sinker.

And look where Spot No 7 has him