Get Outside and Explore
The first step in thru-hiking the High Sierra Trail (HST) is get up the nerve to hike 80+ miles in the wilderness, into the middle of nowhere and over one of the tallest peaks in the US, which is Mount Whitney, elevation 14,501 feet. This guide includes: Permit Process Cost of Trip Parking and Transportation Necessary Gear Water Sources Safety and Hazards Itineraries Time Required Rules and Regulations Highlights of the Trail
This guide details hiking over Mount Whitney from the High Sierra Trail, and what to expect. We completed the trail in July 2022, and this is our story. We would wake up at 3:30am on Day 7 of our journey on the High Sierra Trail. I did not take any photos in the pitch black darkness that morning, but had fortunately photographed our site the night before. We had camped on this mesa, that was just before Guitar Lake. We decided we would take our time as we hiked on up the switchbacks, in order to acclimate to the altitude gradually. Neither of us had hiked to 14,505 feet before, let alone with heavy backpacks. I had been to 12,000 feet before once, to Trail Camp, just below the 99 switchbacks, on the opposite side. There were so many unknowns.
This cover Day 4 of the High Sierra Trail from Big Arroyo to Kern River Hot Springs, Day 5 from Kern RIver Hot Springs to Junction Meadows, and on to Guitar Lake. Check out my HST planning guides, for hiking the High SIerra Trail from Crescent Meadow to Mount Whitney, over 80 miles.
I managed to score a permit in the Mount Whitney lottery for August 1st, back in spring. I had never even been to the Whitney Portal where the hike begins, but I had been to Lone Pine, the small town close by to it. This is a hike people dream about their whole lives. I was somewhat unprepared for it, but not afraid to try. I would be returning from a month-long trip visiting my Mom, just a day prior to my permit date.
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