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Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Discussion of hiking in the Western part of the United States
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TrunksWD
Posts: 91
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 3:38 pm

Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by TrunksWD »

It looks like I might be going to California in June and I am tempted to hike Mount Whitney. Has anyone done this hike before? Any advice for anyone who has done it?

I've done some reading up on it and it is about 20 miles round trip from the easiest approach and you start at about 8,000 in elevation. The mountain is 14,500 feet. I've never done any mountains where you start feeling the lower O2 levels, so I'm curious how hard it makes the hiking?
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mike
Posts: 1442
Joined: Sun Aug 09, 2009 9:20 pm
Location: Ravena, NY

Re: Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by mike »

I have hiked around the bottom of the mountain. But, never to the top. You do need a permit, and I believe there is a waiting list. It is a peak in high demand.

Elevation will kill your hiking ability. I have climbed some of the 14'er peaks in Colorado. When I climbed the side of Mt Evans (no trail), I had to stop to get my breath every 25'. Some people are affected by elevation more then others. Make sure you drink lots of water. dehydration will drastically affect elevation sickness.

It really depends upon where you are going in California. Mt Whitney is easiest to drive to from LA. Not so easy from San Fransisco. You might consider Yosemite. The waterfalls will be running quite well in June. You can get to it from both LA and San Francisco. The passes over the Sierras are usually closed due to snow until July. When we drove from Reno south, we couldn't get to Yosemite thru any of the passes, and had to abandon it.
TrunksWD
Posts: 91
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 3:38 pm

Re: Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by TrunksWD »

I've checked and there aren't many permits. It is a lottery system, so I would have to get lucky.

Good to know how tough the lower O2 levels can make hiking. I guess doing it in 1 day is out of the question. I'll have to plan for 3 days of hiking if I am able to get a permit. I'll be in LA so getting there won't be a problem. If I don't get a permit I am sure it will be worth it to make the drive just to see the mountains and hopefully do an easy hike. The Adirondacks are the biggest mountains I've ever seen in person.
SNEAKers
Posts: 158
Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:30 pm

Re: Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by SNEAKers »

Trunks,

Not sure how much time you have or how far you're willing to drive...

If you want another higher elevation peak you can also check out Telescope Peak in Death Valley. Don't believe there is a need for a permit and the mountain is over 11,000 ft. Death Valley in June in the lower elevations wil be brutally hot, but the higher elevations should be bearable. If I remember correctly, you can drive to the trailhead, which is around 8000ft and hike the rest of the way up. That'll leave room for some good elevation gain pretty high up there! I wanted to climb this when I was there in December but there was lots of snow and I wanted to check out the low elevation stuff when it wasn't 120F.

The elevation change from Telescope Peak to Badwater Basin is the 11,XXXft of telescope plus another 282 ft (Badwater is below sea level), which is twice the drop of the Grand Canyon! The views must be spectacular from up there. I'm going to go back and do it someday!
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mike
Posts: 1442
Joined: Sun Aug 09, 2009 9:20 pm
Location: Ravena, NY

Re: Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by mike »

You can also try Sequoia National Park. They have the largest trees in the world. It is quite a sight.

http://www.visitsequoia.com/sequoia-national-park.aspx
http://www.nps.gov/seki/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequoia_National_Park
SNEAKers
Posts: 158
Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:30 pm

Re: Has anyone hiked Mount Whitney?

Unread post by SNEAKers »

Trunks,

Did you make it out to California? If so, did you hike Mt. Whitney?

-S
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