A Mount Whitney Crocs Adventure!
Just five hours north of the LA Basin lies Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in California’s magnificent Sierra Nevada. Not only that, but at 14,497 feet it’s the tallest peak in the contiguous United States (aka “The Lower 48”). On July 13 my friends Janet, Lori, and I set out to reach that peak. Or, as they say in hiking vernacular, to “bag it.” Our goal was Whitney and back in one day. We knew it would be tough, but we knew it would be beautiful. A perfect combination!
The week before our trek we had been checking the Whitney website with anticipation. Other hikers had reported fast flowing stream crossings, large fields of snow, and icy, wet trails. We hoped that we wouldn’t encounter those difficult trail conditions on the day of our trek. The weather, however, was supposed to be perfect on July 13 – sunny, warm, and most importantly, no lightning or rain. We sure hoped that prediction would hold true.
Getting started
After spending the night in Lone Pine, a high desert town that’s the staging point for many Sierra adventurers, we reached the Mt. Whitney trailhead at 6:00am to begin our adventure. We were standing at 8,360 feet and already feeling the effects of the thin air. We had eleven steep miles and 6,132 feet of elevation gain in front of us. Yikes! It was going to be a long day… I silently wondered if my trusty Crocs were up to the challenge. In fact, we all wondered if WE were up to the challenge!!
Slowly but surely we made our way up the trail, stopping at strategic points along the way to rest, refuel, and take in the beauty surrounding us. After starting in wooded wilderness, we reached Lone Pine Lake (2.8 miles & 9,420 feet), then Trail Camp (6.3 miles and 12,039 feet). By now the landscape was barren, but what it lacked in trees it made up for in magnificent granite rock formations with small but colorful flowers breaking through. The majestic Whitney Crest loomed beyond.
We were getting closer! Ninety-nine switchbacks later we arrived at Trail Crest (8.5 miles and 13,777 feet). What a view! And only 2.5 miles to go! These last few miles were not so steep, but they were oh so high. And boulder-strewn. And snowy. But we trudged on, a bit more slowly but a bit more surely. We knew we could make it because the weather and the trail were kind to us this day. And before too long, we crested the trail and we were on the summit of Mt. Whitney! Are these the first ever Crocs at the top?
Have your Crocs taken you to new heights? Tell me about your favorite hiking trail or place for adventure. I want to know where my Crocs should take me next!
