Mount Whitney Summit Hike Via Mount Whitney Trail

On June 28-30, 2013, my friends and I hiked to the summit of Mount Whitney via its most popular route, the Mount Whitney Trail. The total distance was 21.4 miles with an elevation gain of 6,145 ft (1,873 m). We started the hike at the Whitney Portal at an elevation of 8,360 ft (2,548 m), camped overnight at Trail Camp at 12,000 ft (3,658 m), reached the summit the next day at 14,505 ft (4,421 m), then hiked all the way back to Whitney Portal.

Paul, Vi, Mike and me at Mount Whitney summit, June 2013

Roman at Mount Whitney summit, June 2013 (Photo by Roman Racela)

Roman, our leader, was awarded a permit that he reserved online at www.recreation.gov with a June 29 entry date. Each of us paid $15 for the permit. Paul reserved our campsites at the Whitney Portal Campground (Mt. Whitney Family Campground) through the same website. The campground fee was $28 per night. Before the trip, we as a group did a few hikes in various local trails, and camped overnight at the White Mountains in Bishop, CA a weekend before the trip. You may click here to read how I trained for this summit hike.

Paul and I drove on Thursday night, while the rest of our friends Roman, Vi, and Mike drove on Friday. We took US-395 north to Lone Pine, CA and arrived at the Whitney Portal Campground, elevation 8,360 ft (2,548 m), at 11 p.m. The reserved campsites were labeled so we did not have a hard time finding ours. That night, the temperature felt like it was in the mid-70s. Aside from the sound of the nearby creek, the campground was quiet.

Training for Mount Whitney Summit Hike

It was April 1^st, exactly three months before the date we hiked to Mount Whitney summit via Mount Whitney Trail, that I got invited to join the hike. There were five of us in the group: Roman, Paul, Mike, Vi and me. Roman, our leader, was awarded a permit with a June 29 entry date. He sent us a list of trails that we were to hike either individually or as a group. Due to differences in schedules and locations, our attendance as a group was perfect on only two occasions: the first day hike, and the last acclimatization hiking and camping trip. The list below shows the hiking and camping trips that I was able to join. Aside from these hikes, I did weight training and cardio exercises. I also made sure to test gear that I planned to take to Mount Whitney. You may click here to read about our Mount Whitney summit hike.