Into the Sierras we go! While the Sierra Nevada Mountains didn’t face the record snow year of 2023, we did have snow patches on both our ascent of Mount Whitney and Forester Pass!
We summited the 14,505 foot Mount Whitney on 6/7/24! It was Kyle’s 33rd birthday which made the day all the more special.
We got up at 11:15pm, and were on trail by 12am. With only a 2% waxing moon, we walked in complete darkness under a sparkling star strewn sky. Guided by our headlamps, we could see the Milky Way whenever we stopped for a break and turned our lights off. Guitar Lake and Timberline Lake were swollen with water from snow melt as we approached Mt. Whitney.
We traversed two large snow fields wearing our Micro spikes before pulling our ice axes out to ascending a more vertical snow patch up the switchbacks. The switchbacks were mainly snow free, with occasional drifts covering the path. We reached the top at 4:45 am and watched the sun rise with a handful of other thru hikers!
The birthday boy got presents, fun fetti cookies, and coffee for breakfast!
The next day, we hiked over Forester Pass, the highest point on the PCT at 13,120ft! This pass also had some technical scrambling and two snow traverses. We feel fortunate to have had other hikers leave foot prints behind for us to follow!
We finished our fist stretch of the Sierras by walking over Kearsarge Pass. We then hitched into the town of Independence, east of the Sierras.
Thank you for following along with our once in a lifetime adventure! If you haven’t already done so, and are financially able to, please consider donating to our cause!
Our next check in will be a little different as we are taking a week off trail to spend time you our family in Yosemite National Park!
