My annual Mt. Whitney winter excursion was in the February this year. I went solo again since everyone was busy. Typical itinerary is drive from LA starting at 2:00 PM, arriving at trail head around 6:00 PM, hike to Lower Boy scouts lake (10,340 ft), few hours of rest, boil water and start hiking at 2:00 AM, top out around 10:00 AM, hike back and drive back to LA. Speed can vary greatly depending on snow conditions and my physical shape.
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| Whitney trail head |
Note that road to normal trail head is closed during the winter and you need to start from 6600 ft and hike additional 3.5 miles one way. If you are lucky lower gate maybe only soft closed (you can drive around a closure sign on your own risk), but the upper gate is always hard closed.
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| Cold bivy on the snow |
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| Frozen water |
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| Sunrise near Upper Boy scouts lake |
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| First glimpse of Whitney |
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| Sun |
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| Bird greeting hikers and looking for food |
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| Main chute |
This year was super low snow year with final 400 ft chute almost clear of snow.
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