April 5, 2011
Heading down to Lone Pine for some pizza and beer!
We summited Whitney over the weekend (Saturday) around 9:15 a.m. in windy conditions. The whole team made it in good style. The weather improved as we descended and we were back at high camp by around 1:30 pm.
It was a beautiful afternoon in camp, resting and enjoying the sun. Sometime after midnight it started to blow and snow and got pretty wild. The guides’ tent suffered two broken poles and we had to collapse it to survive the winds. Working outside I clocked some of the gusts at 70mph. Luckily the rest of the tents held up OK with minor damage. The guides spent the rest of the night in their collapsed tent with no ill effects, and by about 5:30 a.m. the winds died and the day began with clear, sunny skies once more.
We packed up, and started walking down a little after 8:00 a.m. We passed the next climb as they were preparing to depart from Lower Boy Scout Lake and move up to high camp. It looks like they will have great weather for their climb, high pressure is building over the area for Monday and Tuesday. Our team continued on down and we were in Lone Pine for a lunch of pizza and beer shortly after noon. It was a great climb and a great way to finish my visit to Whitney this year. My thanks to all the members who share these climbs with me. I’m already planning next year’s visit.
George Dunn