Today, Tom and I finished our drive to Lone Pine, California and completed our final preparation for tomorrow’s accent of Mount Whitney. Along the way, we had incredible views of the dry east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
It was a bit smokey down here but not too bad and the views of the endless string of 10,000′ plus peaks was breathtaking!
As we got closer to Lone Pine, we kept searching and guessing which peak might be Whitney.
The truth is, Whitney is tucked way back in and only visible from the Lone Pine area and the approach road to the portal. (Center image)
We needed to kill a little time so we drove up the portal road and checked out the trailhead. That is Whitney tucked back in the slot……. So, why Whitney? Well, at 14,505′ it is the highest peak in the continental United States. Tom has applied for a permit for the past couple of years and drew on for Friday July 29th. We have a one day permit so we need to climb in and out in one day.
This is the actual portal to the access trail. Since we will start our climb in the dark, this will likely be the only image I will get of the start.
We headed back into Lone Pine for the evening and I snap this image looking North up the Owens River Vally from where we came down from Idaho.
Finally, at the base of Mount Whitey and next to Lone Pine, the Alabama Hills which is a location used for hundreds of Hollywood films and TV shows, think western gun fights, etc.
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