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| Hiking | 18.30 Miles |
6,868 AEG |
| | Hiking | 18.30 Miles | 12 Hrs 40 Mns | | 1.44 mph |
| 6,868 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | | What do you talk about a on four hour drive to the Grand Canyon in March? Hey if I get permits you wanna hike Mt Whitney? Well the permit lottery passed me by but I grabbed 4 leftover permits for June. I knew we may not be able to summit because of snow but I also thought the low snow levels this year may give us a chance. Sure enough about one week ago hikers started using the switchbacks and we were good to go. There were 2 spots that were tricky but that was it. We started up just after 5am with no need for headlamps. Bob ran free while Denny, Preston and I took a steady pace up the trail. There is a lot to see along the way and short stops for photos or just catch your breath were frequent. We lost the trail for a short time hiking through the snow but were soon back on trail. About half way up we passed the two guys camped near us who started at 4am. Once on the switchbacks there was a bottleneck near a tricky spot but after that we passed several hikers and picked up a lone hiker from LA who hiked up and back down with us. The trail behind the ridgeline was about 2 miles long but seemed to take forever as it's at 14,000 feet. After Denny poked me with his hiking pole a few times I realized I was going too slow and told Preston and he to go on up and I would follow. We met Bob who was waiting... at the summit and took a few photos before starting back down. We saw most of the hikers we passed on the switchbacks still going up as we were breathing easy heading down he trail. Bob & Preston stopped to try Mount Muir while Denny, LA and I pressed on. The hike down was uneventful. There was some confusion near Mirror Lake as I was lost in plain sight but that gave Preston & Bob a chance to catch up. Preston, Denny and I stopped by Lone Pine Lake for a look and then all of us cruised down the trail to the portal. The weather was perfect for this hike but sunscreen is recommended because you are in the sun most of the day. Thanks Bob, Denny & Preston for an excellent adventure. |
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