Calendar

Past Activity

Mt. Whitney

  • Start date: 08/08/1998

  • Start time: 12:00 AM

  • End date: 08/09/1998

  • End time: 11:59 PM

  • Event Leader: Blumm Buzz

  • Assistant Leader:

  • Event category: Climbs

  • Area Type:

  • Departure Location: See Trip Description

  • Rating:

  • Roundtrip total drive miles:

  • Season: 1998

  • Permits Required:

  • Event Status: Passed

  • Supplies and Equipment Required:

  • participant prerequisites:

  • Conditions:

  • Total Distance:

  • Member Fees: —

  • Elevation Gain:

  • Non-Member Fees: —

  • Committee: Climbs

  • Junior member fees: —

Trip Report

We convened for dinner at the Mt. Whitney Restaurant at Lone Pine Friday evening, then slept at the trailhead that night to acclimatize to the 8,200-ft. elevation. Saturday morning, 12 of us hit the trail to the highest peak in the contiguous 48 States at 14,496 ft. Saturday, we hiked with full packs starting at the trailhead at 8,200 ft. Our hike that day covered 6.6 miles and 4,000 ft. elevation gain to our camp at 12,200 ft. - a beautiful spot called "Trail Camp", surrounded by lakes and 14,000-ft. peaks. It was almost a full moon, and the peaks were well illuminated that night. We were also treated to a meteor shower.

Sunday, we hit the trail again at 6:30, hiking another four miles with 2,400 ft. elevation gain to the summit. Most of us arrived there under cloudless skies and windless conditions at 11:00 and spent the next hour basking in the sun, eating lunch and taking photos. We then walked back to our camp, picked up our gear and hiked out, arriving back at the trailhead around 6:00 pm. Total hike was 21.2 miles, with an 8,300-ft. elevation gain - in my opinion, one of the most spectacular places in America. Tune in again next year!

Participants were Eliza Blumm, Mark Deffenbaugh, Carl Oslund, Kelly Hale, Bob Shaw, Ben Macauley and Obsidians Ed Lovegren, Gerry Roe, Melody & Jim Clarkson, Dave Becker and Buzz Blumm (leader).

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