Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Footware for Late May trip

Hi everyone this forum has been great and I've been gathering a lot of good information.

I saw that there is currently a lot of snow with more coming.

What kind of footwear would you suggest for a late May trip? Are you using winter hiking boots needed for warmth? or are normal gortex hiking boots with thick socks good enough?

In addition to the boots and crampons would you suggest microspikes?

For late May I'd probably wear boots, any decent boots, nothing too crazy though. I would take Microspikes if I was going up the main trail and a trail is broken in. I'd leave it at home for the North Fork and just use crampons if needed. The Microspikes are very good for flat and low angled slopes, not so much for steep terrain.

I would want a good pair of gaiters to go with the boots and crampons. If you have crampons, there is no point in carrying microspikes. I'd carry extra socks, too because they might get wet.

Sorry I didn't specify that I was doing the main Mount Whitney trail.

I currently use these for hiking http://www.backpacker.com/gear/footwear/hiking-boots/gear-guide-2012-lowa-khumbu-ii-gtx-boot/ and was worried that all the current snow would be too much and cold.

Sounds like I'm ok just using these.