[pct-l] Re: Mt Whitney Questions

[mardav at charter.net (Marion Davison)]

I have slept on the summit of Mt. Whitney twice.  There are some rock shelters and
sheltered spots just down from the summit with a packed dirt floor and rock walls
for wind shelter.  Nevertheless the wind blew hard all night and it was very cold.
But the sunset and sunrise made it all worthwhile.  Also the climbers who made it
up to the summit at dusk(climbing the east face), packed up their gear and headed
back down to Iceberg lake by headlamp.  And the climbers who spent the night
clipped into the face, summited at dawn and headed right back down to Iceberg Lake
in the morning.  We thoroughly enjoyed spending something like 16 hours on the
summit, watching others come and go.  On our third attempt at an overnight a big
snowstorm blew in in midafternoon (late July) so we quickly bailed to Crabtree.
We have summited four times, never from the portal,  always with groups of 6 to 12
people.  Only once did anyone in our group have altitude sickness.  She was a 16
year old girl with asthma, and she had trouble with all our steep climbs.  It has
never bothered us, but I won't say it couldn't.  Much of the backcountry illness I
have seen was linked to either asthma or dehydration.
Marion Davison