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| Messages 1 - 9 of total 9 in this topic |
yetimatt
Mountain climber
United Kingdom
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Topic Author's Original Post - Jul 18, 2015 - 08:32pm PT
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Hi,
I'm a British Chamonix-based climber visiting the High Sierra in two weeks.
We were hoping to climb Mt Whitney via the East Buttress by either a car-car push, or Bivi'ing at Iceberg Lake, over Sat 1st - Sun 2nd August. From what I can gather I need a permit (either overnight or single day) for the 'Line Pine Creek Upper Fork' trail - is that right?
It seems that all of these are reserved already, what are our chances of getting a walk in permit (we're just a party of two)? And when is best to get it, we land Thursday evening in Las Vegas and intend to head over to Lone Pine on the Friday.
Secondly, we're intending to spend a week in the Tuolumme Meadows a few days later, should I be looking to book the campground here in advance? We were avoiding booking too much in advance to allow us to stay flexible and move with the best weather forecast.
Any help appreciated.
Matt
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looks easy from here
climber
Ben Lomond, CA
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Jul 18, 2015 - 08:48pm PT
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Walk-in permits are issued same-day only, I believe. And you're probably too late for a proper Tuolumne campground. May still be able to get a Wilderness Permit and sleep out in the woods, though.
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rurprider
Trad climber
Mt. Rubidoux
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Jul 18, 2015 - 11:07pm PT
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yetimatt...you have better odds of getting a walk-in permit Monday through Friday then the weekend. Maybe hit Tuolomne 1st and try Mt. Whitney midweek.
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John M
climber
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Jul 18, 2015 - 11:46pm PT
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Secondly, we're intending to spend a week in the Tuolumme Meadows a few days later, should I be looking to book the campground here in advance? We were avoiding booking too much in advance to allow us to stay flexible and move with the best weather forecast.
the meadows campground is half reservation and half first come first served. The reserved sites book up 5 months in advance. They are fully booked as of when I posted, but there are cancellations. Especially if it rains. You can try to get a reservation or you can try to get one of the first come first served sites. Midweek isn't impossible in August. Its a lot harder on weekends. Arrive early in the day.
As for Whitney.. I believe that all of the permits for the main trail are done by lottery. You would need a cancellation. There are 4 walk in spots available for the north fork of lone pine creak trail, which starts at Whitney portal but branches off after a mile.
From
http://www.summitpost.org/mount-whitney/150227
OTHER MOUNT WHITNEY ZONE TRAILS (INCL. MOUNTAINEER'S ROUTE): All other trails in the Mount Whitney Zone are also subject to overnight and day quotas between May 1 and November 1, however, only 60% are available via advanced registration with 40% reserved for walk-ins. For the North Fork of Lone Pine Creek (aka Mountaineer's Route), only 10 permits per day are currently available, 6 reservable, and 4 for walk-ins). Use self-issued permits at other times.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Jul 19, 2015 - 10:40am PT
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The Tuolumne campground sucks anyway....over regulated and tightly packed. There are several National Forest campgrounds just before you get to Tioga Pass from the Eastside. They are much nicer and still close to the action. Don't miss the fish tacos at the Mobil Station at the turnoff to Tioga Pass in Lee Vining.
The campgrounds I'm referring to are great jumping off spots for Dana and Conness and still only twenty minutes or so to the heart of Tuloumne.
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yetimatt
Mountain climber
United Kingdom
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 19, 2015 - 12:18pm PT
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Those replies are all great - thanks a lot.
The news about walk-ins being available for the Lone Pine North Fork is particularly good. The resounding message seems to be, for campground sites or permits, get there as early as you can.
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WanderlustMD
Trad climber
New England
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Jul 20, 2015 - 10:35am PT
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Ditto the Mobil beta. They also have a parking lot above where many people bivy for the night. Not as close to the pass, but a nice social spot without noise, etc. It is in-vehicle camping only; be respectful, etc.
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Ken M
Mountain climber
Los Angeles, Ca
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Jul 20, 2015 - 03:01pm PT
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The Overnight MR permit can be reserved starting 6 months before the date of entry (day you start your hike), like all other trails in Inyo National Forest's trails, via Recreation.gov. It is identified as "North Fork of Lone Pine Creek JM34" Six permits are reservable for each day, and 4 more are held back for walk-in requests, available the day before date-of-entry at 11 AM in the Visitor Center s of Lone Pine.
For a Mount Whitney Zone day hike permit (Main Trail or North Fork/MR), show up at the Visitor Center by 2 pm the day BEFORE your entry date. No-shows for the next day become available at 2 pm. Slots unused due to group size reductions become available earlier, as groups pick up their reserved permits, so you may be able to pick up a permit earlier.
Note: a "mini-lottery" drawing may be held at several times during the day at the Visitor Center. These are typically at 8 am, 11 am, and 2 pm -- times when crowds of people come in to pick up permits. Everyone needing a permit is included in the lottery, even those with reservations. Then, people are processed in the order of numbers drawn. Those with reservations may need to wait for those looking for walk-in permits, but the reserved permits are NOT given away due to a higher number drawn (as long as the pickup deadline has not passed.)
Check the Unused Whitney Permits pages to get an idea of your chances of getting a walk-in permit for overnight or day hikes in the Whitney Zone.
For overnight permits on all trails except the Main Mt. Whitney trail (such as Kearsarge Pass, Cottonwood Lakes and the North Fork (Mountaineers Route approach)), 40% of the quota space is unreservable and is saved for walk-ins. These become available at 11 am the day BEFORE your entry date and are available at any Inyo National Forest permit office. (The exception is the North Fork/MR overnight permits -- these are only available at the Visitor Center in Lone Pine.) This quota space is in addition to any cancellations. No-shows also become available at 11 am the following day (the day of entry). So when you walk in to ask about available permits, be sure to ask for both next-day AND current-date permits.
As to your chances for walking in and getting a permit, here is a table for 2014, listing each day, and how many permits were AVAILABLE. In your case, this would only apply to a dayhike situation:
http://www.whitneyzone.com/wz/ubbthreads.php/topics/39655/Unused_Whitney_Permits_2014
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FRUMY
Trad climber
Bishop,CA
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Jul 20, 2015 - 05:49pm PT
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Tuolumne is easy during the week, weekends can be harder. Get there early 6am at the latest on weekends. We have had weird weather lately & that might scare some folks off. Best of luck to you.
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