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Rosamond
Trad climber
Truckee, CA
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Sep 29, 2015 - 11:35am PT
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Sad to hear. But every single autumn, somebody dies of exposure somewhere in the sierra because folks don't take autumn at elevation seriously.
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enjoimx
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Sep 29, 2015 - 12:25pm PT
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Cool post LarryHorton!! Sounds like a sweet day in the mountains
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phylp
Trad climber
Upland, CA
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Sep 29, 2015 - 03:37pm PT
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^^^^ Ditto, LarryHorton. Good story.
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Psilocyborg
climber
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Sep 29, 2015 - 04:38pm PT
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Down parka, hat, gloves, rain shell should weigh in at 2 lbs. max. Why not??
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Sep 29, 2015 - 04:51pm PT
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Dingus Milktoast
Gym climber
Maestro, Ecosystem Ministry, Fatcrackistan
Sep 25, 2015 - 07:46am PT
I'm super curious - what was the weather report for 9/16 as of, say, 9/13? Do any ;of you who were up in the mountains that day happen to know? Was it totally unexpected? Or forecasted?
40% Chance of TSers and Snow mix above 10K for the entire Eastside them three days.
I was fishing at 10K' 32 miles north of Whitney on that exact day and was expecting per the local NWS Area Forecast and got Gropple, wind and temps in low to mid 40's....
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Gene
climber
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Sep 29, 2015 - 05:01pm PT
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Hey Eastsiders,
What is your most reliable WX source for the Sierra?
Thanks,
Gene
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Vitus
Trad climber
California
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Sep 29, 2015 - 05:03pm PT
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It is easy to get complacent about the weather in sunny California. Many years ago, in mid July, I climbed the East Face of Whitney with a friend. At 6:00 AM we were in tee shirts at Iceberg Lake enjoying the clear blue skies and warm weather. I packed a full shell suit and extra layers in my day pack. My friend looked at me like I was crazy. I insisted he pack extra layers much to his disgust. I had too many recent close calls with the Sierra weather to let my guard down.
While climbing the Giant Staircase clouds came streaming around from the southwest. Nice photo opportunity!
In twenty minutes we were enveloped by a snow storm. We wiped snow out of the holds on mostly 4th class climbing. We reached the summit in a whiteout. We wandered around in the whiteout and finally found the stone hut on the summit. Thirty minutes later a couple came through the door in shorts and tee shirts shivering. They were on the East Buttress. Luckily my shell suit kept me warm and I loaned my other layers to the couple. Three hours later the storm abated leaving about eight inches of powder snow on the summit.
Fast forward fifteen years of perfect Sierra weather. My son and I did the South Lake and North Lake loop through Evolution Valley during August with a southern flow of moisture coming up from Mexico. We got soaked to the skin and almost hypothermic going down into Le Conte Canyon. I thought the thunderstorm would be over quickly so we just wore our shell tops and neglected to cover our packs or wear our shell pants. The intense storm lasted four hours. Complacency almost ruined our trip. Everything inside our packs was soaking wet. Some lessons require repeated self inflicted beatings before sinking in!
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steelmnkey
climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
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Sep 29, 2015 - 05:10pm PT
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Amazing the difference a month can make.
A buddy and I did the East Face "old guy style" (none o' that car 2 car sh*t) in mid August and it was pretty amazing how warm it was up at Iceberg Lake at night and almost hot on the route. I think it was like 105 down in Lone Pine then, though.
Condolences to the friends and family of the fallen.
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Tony Bocanegra
Trad climber
Rancho Cucamonga,Ca
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Sep 29, 2015 - 10:38pm PT
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Here is a pic taken from the Summit of Russell on Sept 15th. I planned on heading up Whitney on the 16th but scraped my plans and headed home early after a longer than anticipated day on Russell's snow covered East Ridge. My condolences to the family and friends.
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Stevee B
Trad climber
Oakland, CA
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Sep 30, 2015 - 08:12am PT
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From The Kaweah Commonwealth:
Wednesday, Sept. 16: Rangers managed a search-and-rescue and death investigation for a Mount Whitney hiker:
After reaching the summit of Mount Whitney (elevation 14,505 feet), David Hulting, 45, of Whittier was hiking down the trail and at about 13,500 feet elevation when he collapsed and died. Park rangers transported the victim off the mountain where he was then taken to the Tulare County Coroner's Office. After an autopsy, the coroner determined that Hulting had a pre-existing medical condition and had died of natural causes.
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Sep 30, 2015 - 08:44am PT
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Interesting synopsis.
Sadly, my Client that died at 10.2K' on the approach to Langley several years back had pretty much the same media statement back at his home front.
The reality after the fact was that he had absolutely no business being anywhere near that altitude nor signing up for the specific event that ended in his tragic death. He too had "pre-existing" health issues that he was warned about by both his physician and direct family prior to getting on the trip but did not disclose that info to the org he was climbing with that hired us for this particular climbing event. His actual cause of death was HAPE due to those health issues.
Again, condolences to the family and friends.
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Hoots
climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
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Sep 30, 2015 - 09:35am PT
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Right. So I was told the full story by a colleague, the guide who found the party wandering around on top, and no matter what pre-existing medical condition you might have, spending THREE days ascending the EF in gnarly conditions has got to be seen as the main culprit.
This season has seen more overnight/unplanned bivy/very late return to camp ascents of the EF and EB than I have witnessed before. Lots of people getting in over their head. I mean, there always are, but it seems like it has really picked up this year. If nothing else hopefully this unfortunate accident can wake a few people up to the importance of solid judgement and decision making in the mountains, even if they are CA mountains...
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Sep 30, 2015 - 09:44am PT
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This season has seen more overnight/unplanned bivy/very late return to camp ascents of the EF and EB than I have witnessed before. Lots of people getting in over their head. I mean, there always are, but it seems like it has really picked up this year. If nothing else hopefully this unfortunate accident can wake a few people up to the importance of solid judgement and decision making in the mountains, even if they are CA mountains...
Good and very accurate post, IMO.
Thanks HOOTS for being... brutally forthright.
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CCT
Trad climber
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Sep 30, 2015 - 10:05am PT
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If I follow this correctly:
A party ascends the East Face of Whitney. Due to bad weather, they bivy for two nights on the route. People at the base know that they started the climb, and did not return to their tents, but cannot see their progress on the route itself due to bad weather.
On the third day the party tops out. One of their members perishes after they are on the summit. They are then found by a guide who activates SAR.
What a terrible tragedy!
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10b4me
Social climber
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Sep 30, 2015 - 10:46am PT
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This season has seen more overnight/unplanned bivy/very late return to camp ascents of the EF and EB than I have witnessed before. Lots of people getting in over their head. I mean, there always are, but it seems like it has really picked up this year. If nothing else hopefully this unfortunate accident can wake a few people up to the importance of solid judgement and decision making in the mountains, even if they are CA mountains...
when I climbed the east face(many years ago), we started off in sunny weather. The clouds moved in, and we heard thunder, but there was no lightning, and no rain. We topped out above the clouds, and descended the MR.
Back at camp we could here people talking on the east face. We looked up and saw four or five people hanging out on the Washboard. This was late in the day, clouds were lowering, and it was getting colder. Don't know what happened as we hiked back to the car.
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Dapper Dan
Trad climber
Redwood City
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Sep 30, 2015 - 05:07pm PT
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I'm wondering why they didn't seek shelter in the little cabin on the summit after they summited? Every time I've been up on Whitney (6 or 7 times) , the cabin door has been open ...
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clinker
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, California
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Sep 30, 2015 - 06:08pm PT
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I'm wondering why they didn't seek shelter in the little cabin on the summit after they summited? Every time I've been up on Whitney (6 or 7 times) , the cabin door has been open ...
Place is an ice box, ice on the floor freezes the door open and can coat the stone bench inside.
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The Chief
climber
Down the hill & across the Valley from......
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Sep 30, 2015 - 07:35pm PT
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And... that stone hut is the WORST place to be on this planet during a TSer. There's even WARNING signs all over it telling you so.
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Radish
Trad climber
SeKi, California
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Your right about the hut Chief! People have gotten struck by Lighting inside! And I'm not sure they made it out!
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