Mt Whitney, Ca.

14ers in California and Washington state or any other peak in the USA
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bking14ers
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Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by bking14ers »

What is the class rating of Mt. Whitney in Ca? If I remember correctly, California ranks peaks differently than Colorado does. What is Mt.Whitney in Colorado ranking? How is it to climb?
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MountainHiker
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by MountainHiker »

There’s a lot of info out there. I did a “Colorado hiker’s perspective” trip report earlier this year.

http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/triprepor ... m=tripuser
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halfdomer
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by halfdomer »

It looks like you can pretty much make it as technical as you want it:

http://www.summitpost.org/mount-whitney/150227" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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JDip
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by JDip »

My understanding is that CA 14ers are more difficult than in CO by the ranking system. For example class 3 in CA is seemingly more difficult than a class 3 route in CO. Not much more though. I'm out here in S. CA right now myself, and am itching to get to the top of MT. Whitney.

If your gonna be in the area this summer, perhaps we can meet up and climb it. I'm gonna try to pull two permits for 2013. One for a class 1 standard hike, and another for a much more technical climb.

On a side note... I've been dabbling in the wilderness of CA, and man o man these hills are so trashed it's disgusting. [-( :cry:
Pizza boxes, empty beer cans, condoms, just plain rubbish. Really upsetting to see all the trash that's just piling up out there. And the sad part is, you pick up one piece, and then there's a whole s*** pile more laying ahead! WTF?!

In all the days I've spent on the road, I've heard from numerous people how clean Denver is. That's nice to hear when your miles from home!

Cheers
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Billy the Kid
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by Billy the Kid »

We hiked Whitney a few years ago. On the standard route, it really is mostly Class 1 (2 at the most). Just very long...22 miles. We were only able to get a single-day permit, so we had to hike it all in one day. It was a great time though...enjoy!!
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JDip
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by JDip »

Billy the Kid wrote: We were only able to get a single-day permit, so we had to hike it all in one day. It was a great time though...enjoy!!

I was wondering that myself... do you know what it takes to get a multiday permit? Is it first come first serve, including the overnight permits?

Thanks
I want to know the thoughts of God. All the rest are details. -Albert Einstein

It's not the height of the mountain that makes it great, it is the mountain itself. -J.D.
steelfrog
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by steelfrog »

It's a lottery system; get it in I THINK by February sometime.

Now, IMO a BETTER way to do it if you have a few days is go up Taboose Pass or some other way North of Whitney and come out Whitney Portal; Hike a portion of the John Muir Trail; you can get your Whitney Zone permit, for several days, through Inyo National Forest ranger stations. You can even get them day of usually.
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Billy the Kid
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by Billy the Kid »

I was wondering that myself... do you know what it takes to get a multiday permit? Is it first come first serve, including the overnight permits?

Thanks

When I did it (about 4 years ago), it was done with a lottery system. You were able to chose the days you wanted (as many as you wanted) and then they would do a drawing to see who got what. I literally selected about 50 different 2-day periods and was still only able to get a 1-day pass! There was another approach, coming from Sequoia National Park (I believe) where permits were NOT needed. We met some people on our hike who had come from that approach...

This link has the info: http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOC ... 342664.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Palmyra J
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by Palmyra J »

For information concerning all things Whitney, check the Whitney Portal thru SummitPost. Its like our forum, and most of your questions can be answered there.

http://www.summitpost.org/forum/whtiney ... 57846.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you have the time and experience, I highly recommend the East Mountaineer's Route. Stunningly beautiful, but not for solo and you'll need gear ('tis the season to shop!!) as it's a two day minimum (it took me three). There are past topic boards on this subject here in "Other 14'ers outside CO".

Good luck!

Post script...the rating system is the same as in CO to my knowledge. The 'Standard Route' is a cl I hike, just nice and long with that huge vertical gain in elevation. Weather changes in the Sierra are much more rapid and unpredictable than the Rockies.
Last edited by Palmyra J on Tue Dec 11, 2012 7:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
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apasquel
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by apasquel »

If you are comfortable with class 3...do the Mountaineer's route (MR). Here's why?
1) no lottery permit...just purchase your permit online.
2) it's only 12 miles round trip
3) a whole lot less crowded

I think Colorado class three is harder than MR. There's no doubt that Crestone Needle, Crestone peak, Snowmass Mountain are tougher scrambles...at least way more sustained class three. If you go in dry conditions, the loose scree up the gully is the only burden..

this is my report form this past September:

http://seekingtheburningbush.blogspot.c ... -trip.html

http://seekingtheburningbush.blogspot.c ... rt-ii.html
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kimo
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by kimo »

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jsdratm
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Re: Mt Whitney, Ca.

Post by jsdratm »

I did the REI multi-day trek and had a lot of fun going from Horseshoe Meadows to the summit via John Muir Trail (and back). It was class I except for the easy summit rocks. You have steep dropoffs along the trail for most of the route, especially when going up the switchbacks and going along the ridge, but the trail is excellent. If you can handle Mt. Evans or La Plata then you should be able to do Whitney.
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