Hey everyone, what a crazy week I've had. On Tuesday June 19th, my brother and I made it successfully to the top of Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the lower United States at 14,505 ft. Our trip plan was executed to near perfection, and this trip turned into far more than I could have ever imagined was possible, and because of that, I'm providing a prelude to my upcoming trip report.
First off, Nemo Equipment in Dover, NH allowed us to test a Tenshi 2P Mountaineering tent for our adventure. This tent was awesome. It kept us warm and comfortable both nights above 10,000 feet, and even was comfortable for a quick rest at Trail Camp mid-day in the blaring sun. Perhaps my first full gear review will be on its way VERY shortly stay tuned for that. Nemo Equipment just rolled out a line of special edition sleeping bags too. Check out Nemo's website and Facebook Page. You can find pretty sweet equipment photos on their pages. I've already posted one of the tent at Trail Camp. Our Losi 2P tent that we own is still going strong too, and the rain fly for that tent is the one you see on their Facebook Page being used without the tent at the beach! There's nothing better than a company in your own backyard providing excellent products.
Secondly, we stayed in Lone Pine at a motel the day we summitted, and got some great and much needed rest. Stay tuned for the report to find out where. The next morning on our way back to Vegas, we were off on an all day tour of Death Valley visiting some its best spots. Each of these could be their own trip report, but after my Whitney report is posted, you will all be getting a Death Valley trip report too! One of the coolest things about seeing Death Valley was the fact the we drove over and around mountain ranges that are bigger than the White Mountain Presidentials in NH. We also hiked in 115 degree heat to a couple of the spots.
By now, I've gone through MOST of my photos and videos from the trip - there are over 1000 photos and a few dozen videos and I am dead in my tracks about how to share this adventure with you. Looking at some of these photos and videos (especially the ones taken with my GoPro), my jaw drops in awe when I see what we did...we really did this? I have no idea where to begin, but if you're just tuning in, check out my Mt. Whitney Page, where you can go back and see everything I did for this trip, including my Spot Tracking. I can't promise when this report will be posted yet, but you won't want to miss it, I promise.
I've posted one each of me and my brother's summit photos on my Facebook page, but here are a couple more random teasers in the mean time from the album that you may not see in the post. I know you are all anxious for the full album =).
Whitney Portal Road (remember the picture I borrowed in Chapter 3?)
The Nemo Tenshi 2P Mountaineering Tent at Horseshoe Meadow
Bill leads the way past the cables around 4am
You've got to be kidding me?!
Thanks again everyone for sharing in our excitement for this trip! I promise you are going to be blown away by this trip report! And...Stay tuned for more adventure this summer!
Anxiously awaiting all the details. Also curious about climate at top; was surprised to see heavy gloves in use but as they say the video doesn't tell the whole tale.
Hey Jim, I'm just as anxious as you to get this done for you all, I can't wait. We left at 3:30am from Trail Camp, it was chilly then, probably in the mid 40s, but above the cables, the wind picked up, and past Trail Crest, on the other side, it was much more steady, keeping it definitely in the 30s to low 40s. While others coming up behind us were dressed in a layer or two less than us, I think we wore more because our skin got zapped a lil' bit in Vegas, so we were getting the chills more easily, I think. At the summit, the thermometer in the register holder read 32 degrees, so we presumed a wind chill below freezing was present. A woman who reached the summit while we were there with a spandex type shirt and small vest was struggling to keep warm (shivering basically), and left immediately after we took her picture. I'm glad I didn't skimp on my summit pack in terms of layers and gloves. I actually carried two pairs of gloves in my summit pack; I started from TC with my light Manzella All-weather gloves, and then switched to my newer medium-warmth REI Spring glvoes towards Trail Crest as needed. Nothing worse than cold hands on any hike..
Thanks Don! Especially on my larger hikes like this, knowing before the hike that I will share the adventure with you all has made hiking much more exciting to me than just trying to get the peak or hiking for just personal reasons. I try to make every journey an epic one.
To All - the report is coming...before this weekend...work has been knocking me out every day, so by the time I get home and have dinner, I'm out like a light. Stay Tuned!
Nice video. Thanx for taking us on this adventure, looking forward to the full report.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I was able to check the SPOT track, so I knew you made the summit. Can't wait to hear the rest of the story.
ReplyDeleteWow! Amazing. I'm so excited on the follow up.
ReplyDeleteAnxiously awaiting all the details. Also curious about climate at top; was surprised to see heavy gloves in use but as they say the video doesn't tell the whole tale.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dan
JimP
Hey Jim, I'm just as anxious as you to get this done for you all, I can't wait. We left at 3:30am from Trail Camp, it was chilly then, probably in the mid 40s, but above the cables, the wind picked up, and past Trail Crest, on the other side, it was much more steady, keeping it definitely in the 30s to low 40s. While others coming up behind us were dressed in a layer or two less than us, I think we wore more because our skin got zapped a lil' bit in Vegas, so we were getting the chills more easily, I think. At the summit, the thermometer in the register holder read 32 degrees, so we presumed a wind chill below freezing was present. A woman who reached the summit while we were there with a spandex type shirt and small vest was struggling to keep warm (shivering basically), and left immediately after we took her picture. I'm glad I didn't skimp on my summit pack in terms of layers and gloves. I actually carried two pairs of gloves in my summit pack; I started from TC with my light Manzella All-weather gloves, and then switched to my newer medium-warmth REI Spring glvoes towards Trail Crest as needed. Nothing worse than cold hands on any hike..
DeletePhenomenal journey! Enjoyed the prelude and unlike Vegas I'm glad to see what happens on Mt. Whitney doesn't stay on Mt. Whitney but gets shared!
ReplyDeleteThanks Don! Especially on my larger hikes like this, knowing before the hike that I will share the adventure with you all has made hiking much more exciting to me than just trying to get the peak or hiking for just personal reasons. I try to make every journey an epic one.
DeleteTo All - the report is coming...before this weekend...work has been knocking me out every day, so by the time I get home and have dinner, I'm out like a light. Stay Tuned!