Mount Whitney - Inyo National Forest, California

Mount Whitney is the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States and the Sierra Nevada, with an elevation of 14,505 feet. The east slope is in the Inyo National Forest. The peak rises dramatically above the Owen's Valley sitting 10,778 feet above the town of Lone Pine.

The Mount Whitney Trail starts 13 miles west of the town of Lone Pine at 8,360 feet. The hike is 21 miles round trip and gains over 6,100 feet.

I arrived in Lone Pine on the 20th, and it was hot. Lone Pine is located in the high desert of the Owen's Valley. The average high temperature is 99 degrees in August, so I was looking forward to the much cooler temperatures in the mountains. The town rests in the rain shadow of the towering Sierra Nevada to the west so the sunrises are spectacular.

Day 1 - To Trail Camp

Trail Camp at 12,000 feet

Trail Camp at 12,000 feet

 

Day 2 - The summit

My phone alarm went off at 4:30am, and I wanted to keep sleeping, but then I looked out my tent and saw lights going up the 99 switchbacks like the stars in the Milky Way. I had been training for this trip since March, and I knew I had better get up. I dressed quickly, made a fast bowl of oatmeal with walnuts, left dirty dishes on a rock, and joined the stars at 5:15am.  Around 6:00am the sun rose over the Panamint Range in the east, and I'll never forget how the morning sun painted the sharp jagged granite a deep reddish-pink hue.

After months of researching the route up Mount Whitney, I found the most intimidating part called the 99 Switchbacks that begins right after Trail Camp at 12,000 feet. However, in reality I was very well acclimated and well rested after a night at Trail Camp, and I found the switchbacks long but relatively easy. Next was Trail Crest for 2 miles to the summit. Trail Crest provides spectacular scenery of Sequoia National Park and the many alpine lakes. At 9:30am I bagged the 14,505 foot mountain. It was an extraordinary view of the Sierra Nevada, the high desert of the Owen's Valley, and the town of Lone Pine 10,778 feet below.

The start of the 99 Switchbacks.

 

The 99 Switchbacks

The 99 Switchbacks.