Mt. Whitney Hike

Septmeber 26-27, 2003

We arrive at Lone Pine on September 25 to pick up the permits; note where the "cloudy day" viewer is pointing	Jonathan Gair and Alejandro Jenkins - the optimist and the pessimist	Early morning on Friday, Sept. 26: Sung Byun and Thomas Schroder, who joined us from JPL	Sunrise in the shadow of Whitney	The first of many beautiful mountain lakes (Lone Pine lake - thanks to Lee Kenyon for the correction)
Around 7 AM; the ridge is basked in sunlight, but the gulch is still dark	Sung is happy at Outpost Camp (this is long before his shoe sole fell off...)	Mirror lake through the pines	Mirror Lake, about 8:30 AM	This is what things will look like once we pass the timber line
Trail Meadow	First glimpse of dirty snow (there was very little along the trail)	Solar-powered toilet at Trail Camp, 9 AM	Fortunately, this is not our route	Ice along the 99 switchbacks (I counted 96; Jon said there were 98)
This picture thought it would look better inverted	A very odd ice stalagmite	Water fills the calderas	11 AM: I made it to Trail Crest	So did Jon; the others are a bit behind
A spire near Trail Crest	Getting close...	Backpacks need a break, too	12:40 - the top is in sight! (and Jon the marathoner is already there)	I sign in at the register
Just in case you didn't believe me...	The inside of the hut at the top	According to the plaque, I am at 14,496 feet (4316 m)	The top itself is fairly flat	Sweaty clothes are drying in the sun
Foreign landscape - view from the top	Geo marker - at the special request of Shane Larson	Don't use Dr. Scholl's blister treatments before a hike - they make things worse	Jon was to regret carrying a hat and sunscreen to the top without putting them on...	People who didn't forget their cell phones boast from the top
Time to happily relax	The bird shares my view	Even Alejandro is happy	Alejandro at the marker	Ilya, Jon and Alejandro
I try to do a handstand so that my feet are above 14500; I fail, but Jon saves me from falling over	Reassuring note on the cabin door	On the way down - Alejandro trudges along	Just about the only things that grow at 12000 feet	We accidentally meet my freshman dorm neighbors from Stanford - Lawrence, Lee and Giathang
Moutain stream (start of Trail Meadow?)	Sunset in the shadow of Mt. Whitney	Nature's Impressionist painting	Sunstroke has removed the last vestiges of Jon's sanity	Alpine meadow - the last of Whitney
September 26 - we take the scenic route back, through Sequoia National Forest	Forest fires in Sequoia National Park; Whitney is in the background	Donal O'Connell and Ardis Eliasdottir are hiking up to the fire lookout at the top of Bald Mountain	On top of the fire lookout - sunburnt but happy	Disa, Donal and Jon - it's this dark so you can't see the ravages of sunburn
Group self-portait: reflection in Kern River	Giant sequoia	Walk of one hundred giants	Sunlight through the sequoias	Roots of a fallen giant