Mount Whitney
Lightning Danger
Many people have been caught by storms on Whitney, and other high peaks. Lightning kills about 75 people a year in the U.S., and mountain peaks can be especially dangerous. Hikers have even died in the shelter atop Mount Whitney during electrical storms. Some climbers reported the static electricity in the air was so high that the lightning rods on the shelter began to sizzle. There is no certain way to avoid a strike when you are exposed on a high peak. The best advise is to off the peak and move to a lower elevation as soon as possible. If your hair stands on end, or the atmosphere seems very highly charged, some experts say you should assume the “lightening position.” Basically, this means getting low to the ground and assuming a “balled up” posture, but not laying flat on the ground. If you have a foam sleeping pad, get on top of that. As you are approaching a peak, if a storm seems immanent, it's better to descend than take a chance.
About 4:00 AM the next morning, we were awoken by the sound of voices and the flashing of lights from below. The first climbers had already started their ascent of Mount Whitney. We had planned to start a little later, but since we were awake anyway, we took down our camp and started the climb too. It was cold, but the climbing soon warmed us. By the time the Sun came up, we were far above Guitar Lake. We stopped for breakfast, and enjoyed the spectacular view. Occasionally, we heard the sounds of powerful rock-falls echoing from the slopes of Mt. Hitchcock to the west.
At 13,500 feet, the Mount Whitney trail splits off. Although Mt. Whitney is an official end point of the JMT, it's possible to continue on to Whitney Portal without summiting Whitney, but most hikers try to summit unless constrained by weather. When we got to the trail junction, we saw numerous backpacks among the rocks—hikers trying to minimize their load during the summit push. We encountered lots of hikers as well; mostly short-term hikers coming up from Whitney Portal. Frankly, there were more people than we had seen during our entire hike! Most of the hikers coming from the south were haggard and spent-looking. We passed a group of students who told us they were totally exhausted. There are access limits in the “Mt. Whitney Zone,” and some of these hikers had one or two-day passes. Even if one is young and in good physical condition, it's hard to climb Whitney in a day!
After reaching the summit, we signed the record-book, took pictures, and admired the great view. At 14,491 feet, Mount Whitney is the highest peak in the continental United States.
Weather on Whitney:
The summit of Mount Whitney is flattish, and has a small shelter. High peaks are notorious for their unpredictable weather. Indeed, though the skies in every direction were clear, when we were on the peak, a misty cloud formed as air was carried over the peak. We could see vapor forming—seemingly out of nothing. We could feel dampness, and later droplets of water. There didn't seem to be any immanent danger, but we had seen the summit and had our pictures, so we decided to descend.
Whitney Portal