Group Members: Sam Carpenter & Bob Sandberg.
Sam Carpenter and myself summated Mt. Whitney on Tuesday 9.26.06. Mt. Whitney is the highest mountain in the lower 48 states at 14,494 feet. It sits at the southern end of the Sierra range in sunny California. We took the standard route, which is basically just a hike up a very well trodden and well posted trail. Very doable in one day. It is 11 miles in with a 6130 foot rise. The trailhead is 13 miles west of the town Lone Pine, CA. and starts at 8365 feet. On big mountains, even ones as friendly as Whitney, one never knows what weather or altitude problems may occur so we got an early start. We left the TH at just before 2:00AM and summated at 9:30AM. The Sierra range is incredibly beautiful with towering granite monoliths everywhere gleaming in the light. The dominate tree is the majestic Foxtail Bristlecone Pine. The setting is out of the story books with lakes nestled deep within the canyon depths, towering well spaced trees and beautiful granite peaks. When the morning sun comes up on them the beauty and power is a real jaw dropper. Our day was blessed with mild temperatures and perfectly blue sunny skies and no wind. It did begin to cloud up with thunder bumpers in the afternoon, but we were well down the trail before any threat of lightning or rain was a problem for us. I recommend it to everyone.