July 17, 2013 - Trail Camp

Title: July 17, 2013 - Trail Camp

Hike Info:

Trail: John Muir Trail

Starting location:  Guitar lake
Destination:  Whitney Portal
Actual Destination:  Trail Camp
Distance:   9.2¹
Start Time:  6:03am
End Time:  6:50pm
Travel Time:  12:47 (0.72 mph)
Moving Time: 6:52 (1.34  mph)  ¹
Elevation Rise: 3,336'  ¹
Maximum Elevation:  14,506'

Description:

Psalm 19:1-4 (NIV), from today's quiet time:

The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

These words seem so appropriate, so right after all which we have seen and done. May my spirit offer the same words and praise.

The Night Sky silouetted by the top of the Sierras

I woke up at 2:30 to seeing the stars dance in the heavens. Then I turned over and saw lights on the move up past us, and on up to the mountains which we will climb today. My mind must have been excited as I could not return back to sleep for more than just a few minutes. 

Morning has broken

Sherri woke up around 3:30. I asked her if she was ready to start walking? No. But neither could she go back to sleep. So we laid there, watching the stars and lights, and thinking about how cold it was outside of our sleeping bags. Finally around 4:30, we got up and got packed. Just a wonderful sunrise, on the faraway peaks-rosy, orange and light. But we will not feel the warmth for several hours as Whitney and its range will be blocking the sun.

Guitar Lake

E'gads! Our propane canister has run out of fuel. Or is it just too cold? Whichever way, I am now glad we asked for Talia's canister back at Le Conte. Her canister fired right up and we had hot oatmeal on this cold morning.

Left our campsite at 6 and started up the long trail to Trail Crest. We will be in shadows all the way to Trail Crest.  Like the Tolkien song says, The Road Goes Ever Onward. But today is our last day on the Trail. Tonight Steven will pick us up, assuming we can make it down to Whitney Portal. Showers and burgers fill my mind as we walk along.

The trail is going up is strong and the oxygen is light.  This has us stopping for breath in the cold air, but the coolness does have the positive effect of having move along. Not really sweating. Before we know it, we have climbed up 500', then a thousand. I start playing a game of saying which pass we have just topped-Glen Pass, then Pinchot, Mather, Muir, and finally, of course, Forester.

Hitchcock Lake

We rise above Hitchcock Lakes, admiring the reflections of the rocks rising from the lakes. The sun is  shining on these slopes, creating a bright spots on our climb. We stop a couple of times to take off our packs. At 9, three things happens: we come out into the light, John B from Fresno appears, and we arrive at Trail Crest. All three are welcome, even though in a little while, the first will be less so. 

Trail up the side of the mountain

At Trail Crest, which is really about 200' below the actual pass, but the JMT does not go through the pass on its way up to Whitney. After unloading some of Sherri's pack and putting the contents into mine, we take off towards Whitney, with Sherri's pack, stocked with food and water. It took us three hours go from Guitar to Trail Crest. It will take close to three hours from Trail Crest to Whitney. 

Almost to the top

The climb up is along a trail which is always rocky, sometimes a bit narrow, and is perched on a steep incline for much of the way. Today was a light traffic day. When Sherri was up here before, the line could have been at Disneyland. You add in that the Badwater to Whitney Portal run ended today, you get a fair amount of trail runners as well. One sort of skidded in front of us, after passing us. He flopped around, trying to right himself, before realizing how close to the edge he was. But for us, we took our time and was cautious.  As we approached the top, the altitude was taking its toll on us. We stopped more and more often to catch our breath. We felt relieved as we turned the corner, and started up the third of a mile incline up to the peak. Many others were stopping and breathing along the way.

Smithsonian Hut

At the top (36.57886, -118.29185), we found the Whitney hut, actually called the Smithsonian Institute Hut. It was constructed to observe a solar eclipse. In the trail registry, we saw that the Ray and Rachel had made it to the top on Monday, July 15th. It was good to see that. But we did not see an entry for Nicole.

The Top

Celebration

Also on top, we see John from Fresno, along with George, Chris and Steve from Minnesota. Sort of like a family reunion. We talk for awhile. After much trying, got to send a text with our picture. Also Spot worked as well. 

That is when things got interesting. Called up Steven. He said that Andrea was coming in from the High Sierra Trail to surprise us. She would be there Thursday night, and climb over Whitney Friday. At least that is what her schedule is. That is a big surprise. What a wonderful daughter to think of us, and want to make our lives a joy. 

This does lead to one complication-what do we do now? Go back to Guitar Lake? Go down to Lone Pine tonight? Stop someplace else? We decide to stop on the trail down. We were not up to doing the climb out of Guitar again.

We called other family members, telling them we made it to the top. Also, that we have now officially completed the JMT, It is fun doing that--also fun just saying that. Got through to all, except Andrea, of course. David does say that not all of our Spot messages got through. The Minnesota group decides to leave the party after awhile. We talk with John for awhile longer, then he heads off as well.

Gary, King of the World

 

We stay on top for a total of an hour and a half, then start coming back down. It is faster-not as much need to catch our breath. But you do feel weaker, so we do not move very fast. Also with the rocky surface we have a tendency to be careful.

Whitney from the east

We rest at Trail Crest before we start our way down in the Lone Pine direction. We will try to make Outpost Camp tonight. Did I say down? The first little bit is another 200' climb, before we start our descent. Then down we go. Down, and down, and still more down. They have re-engineered this from seven years ago. I do not know, but Sherri  remembers a different trail. But the steepness, once again causes us to be cautious, so we go slow, about a mile an hour. Seems strange that we are going at the same speed down something as up it.

Trail Camp is by the pond

Around 6:30 we get into Trail Camp.  (36.56314, -118.27943) Sherri remembers this place as being human turd infested. But it looks like the Forest Service has cleaned it up quite a bit. As tired as we are, we decide not to do another two miles down to Outpost Camp. We find a suitable place. Then on the way to get water, a better place. Dinner is cooked. We see George, Chris and Steve a little ways from us and exchange greetings. Then it is off to bed. We look at pictures and fall asleep, knowing we do not need to get up early  tomorrow.

You may have noticed, that the description from the top does not contain these jaw dropping thoughts and observations. I guess by the time we got there, it just does not match up to the rest of the journey. It is the end, and that makes it special. it is wonderful to see the mountains upon mountains, looking down on everything around us. the cold, blue lakes, the barren landscape. but there is not a specialness to the place for me, like there is around some of the other high places we have been too. Even a lowly pass like Island, I have more desire to be at. I am not saying that I wish I was not here, but that the enjoyment is in the completion of the journey, rather than in the place. Do we think we will go up there again? Probably not.

Today's JMT Lesson: It does not matter how fast you go, as long as you get there.

Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Snacks
Oatmeal and add-ins, such as dried peaches, strawberries, nuts, granola. Tang.	Peanut Butter and Nutella on crackers	Beef Vegetable Wrap Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies	Clif Bar, Jelly Bellies, CytoMax, Propel, GORP, Bank Balls

 ¹The supplied figures above come from either the book John Muir Trail: The essential guide to hiking America's most famous trail by Elizabeth Wenk or from topo maps. There was only partial tracks for today in my GPS. Below is the readings from today's status on the GPS. I view it as only somewhat accurate.

Distance:  9.41 miles

Elevation Rise:  1,805'

Maximum Elevation: 14,505'

On the trail up

The Windows and Mt Muir from Whitney

Trail down to Trail Camp

Marmot Heaven

July 16, 2013 - Guitar Lake

Title: July 16, 2013 - Guitar Lake

Hike Info:

Trail:  John Muir Trail

Starting location:  Tyndale Frog Ponds

Destination:  Guitar Lake

Distance:   10.8 miles ¹

Start Time:   7:40

End Time:   4:45

Travel Time: 9:05 (1.19 mph)

Moving Time: 5:09 (2.10 mph)

Elevation Rise:   1,575' ¹

Maximum Elevation:  11,559'

Description:

Usual morning routine. Got on the trail around 7:40. But we have re-arranged our packs a bit. I am carrying  the bear canister Sherri was carrying with the idea that it might make going up to Whitney a bit faster and easier. With us down to less than a week's food, this should not be too bad. I can feel the weight, but not as bad as I expected.

Bighorn Plateau

We start our first climb of the day, up to 11,400'. This is the pond we debated about going to last night on Bighorn Plateau. The pond itself is almost perfectly circular, and there looks like the water would be easy to filter. The view is fabulous from there. The place gives a clear view of the upper Kern drainage. And there in lies the problem. The campsite would have been very exposed, to wind, sun or any kind of weather. While it was a beautiful morning, we are still glad we stayed close to the frog ponds.

Whitney with Hut

Towards the Wallace Drainage

Once over the plateau, we start to descend into Wright and Wallace Creeks, where there are good campsites. We even get a good view Whitney, with the hut on top. We take a break at the three mile mark, at Wright's Creek. Nice place to stop and camp. The hiking group from Orange County catches up to us here and passes us. 

After crossing Wallace, we start a major climb up to the ridge which will bring us down into Crabtree Meadows. This is navigated pretty well, with some rests along the way. Chris and Steve catch up to us, and pass us in this section. We go into Sandy Meadow, where the map shows a creek. But every ravine is dried up. So we stop for lunch and just enjoy a view of the meadow.

Timberline Lake

Then it is on to Crabtree. By now the sun is high overhead, without the benefit of a filtering cloud. We are a bit hot when we pull into Crabtree. The trail does not run next to the creek, so we need to be content with looking down at it. We eventually have a second lunch beside the trail. Then go on for a half of a mile, when the trail pulls beside Crabtree Creek.  There is a nice little spot where we drop our packs, filter water and take a short nap. There is a "No Camping" sign, but nothing about "No Stopping". George catches up to us here.

Guitar Lake

At Timberline Lake, we take a few pictures, and meet the Crabtree Ranger, Greg P. friendly fellow. Then it is off to Guitar Lake. This will be our launch point for Whitney tomorrow. In the meantime, it is a thousand foot climb from Crabtree to Guitar and we are feeling it. With the sun beating down on us, it is even penetrating our clothes. But we make it there. Not as many people as Sherri expected, still we search a bit for a site, finally finding one on the east side of the lake. (36.57165, -118.3125)

We ordered a room with a view

Sherri is pretty tired. I think the altitude is getting to her. We are at 11,500'. She does fix dinner and we eat well, with the thought of possibly going out tomorrow. It is early to bed, watching a Dr. Who episode.

Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Snacks
Oatmeal and add-ins, such as dried peaches, strawberries, nuts, granola. Tang.	Peanut Butter and Nutella on crackers	Beef and Cabbage Wrap	Clif Bar, Jelly Bellies, CytoMax, Propel, GORP, Bank Balls

 ¹The supplied figures above come from either the book John Muir Trail: The essential guide to hiking America's most famous trail by Elizabeth Wenk or from topo maps. My GPS did record the full track on this day, but it is substantially different than the books. I am inclined to believe the books on the mileage. But I think that I am under counting the elevation rise because the book does not have the top of the ridges.

Distance:  9.48 miles

Elevation Rise:  2,221'

Maximum Elevation: 11,558'

Range to the south

Gary and Whitney

Mountains to the west

July 15, 2013 - Tyndall Frogs Ponds

Title: July 15, 2013 - Tyndall Frogs Ponds

Hike Info:

Trail:  John Muir Trail

Starting location: About 10,600' on Bubb's Creek

Destination:  Tyndall Creek

Actual Destination:  Tyndall Frog Ponds

Distance:   9.8  ¹

Start Time:  7:00

End Time:  4:30

Travel Time:  9:30 (1.03 mph)

Moving Time: 5:39 (1.73 mph)

Elevation Rise:   2,706' ¹

Maximum Elevation: 13,100

Description:

Slept somewhat restless. I think Sherri did also. Got up around our normal time. But the sky seems darker, but the only clouds are far off. Probably means more clouds this afternoon. It will do us well to get over Forester Pass earlier than later.

Wall below Forester

The trail does climb, but we are in the woods. Glad we have climbed a few passes before this one. We know it is a long haul, but you can never be too prepared for something like this one. We even pass by where we stayed 40 years ago, even though, it takes a it of remembering to see the spot.

Bubbs Creek Drainage

Still, it is up, up, and more up. But along the way, there are jaw dropping views. So we keep going. Doing a whole lot better than Glen yesterday. While we travel about 4 miles and climb 2,500'. But given that, we really did not start to breath hard until about 12,000' elevation. Even then, we were able to go pretty well. The grading of the trail is probably one of the best we have seen.

Another thing is the vistas keep on showing new views of the slopes we have been looking at. The clouds which have been forming constantly give us a new backdrop to the mountains. Not only that, but when we lower our eyes, our gaze is met by delicate flowers growing on whatever soil they can find.

 After hours of hiking, we finally have made it to the top of Forester Pass. Out of all the people who have passed us, only two remain-Chris and Steve from Minneapolis. They are waiting for Chris's father. We have been around them for the past couple of days. The views are fabulous in both direction.  We are at the boundary of Sequoia and Kings Canyon. You can even see over into the eastern side of the Sierras.  We stay up there for about an hour.

Up to Forester

South from Forester

Looking back at Forester

Down Forester

Then we start down. This is a trail cut from the side of a cliff. Just phenomenal! You are looking straight down some thousand feet. Yet the trail is wide enough for a horse. But, you do not want to go too far away from the side of the cliff wall. Hope the pictures come out. We did find some trail art-was this for us? Or am I being narcissistic?

When we reach the first creek from a tarn, we stop for lunch. Chris, Steven and George all have stopped here as well. Relaxing, and enjoyable, but we are baking a bit in the high altitude sun. So we start down towards Tyndall Creek. It is a long trek down. The sun does wear on us. But even more so, is the pounding and skipping around of going downhill. Unless you do some of these long Sierra downhills, you may think that downhill must be easier than the climb. But going uphill, you get into a rhythm of step, breath, step, breath. Downhill, most of the time, there is not such a nice spacing as that.

We do stop for a break along the way. There are some big marmots scampering around. We are asked if one of them is a wolverine-nope. We finally make it to the woods, which provides some protection from the sun. Then in a little ways, we see Tyndall Creek itself. George and group have already found themselves a place. But we think we have a little bit more energy, so we go on. 

Towards Tyndall Creek

We debate whether to stop at the frog ponds or up on Bighorn Plateau. So we climb the 400' up to the frog ponds. Once we get there, we rest for a bit, then decide to stay. Found a nice site by the trail (36.63479, -118.38577). A hiking group from Orange has already pitched their tents the sites close to the pond. The other sites are nice, but if others come, people will be tent to tent to tent. 

Today's JMT Lesson:  You have only reached the top when you have arrived.  (From a fellow hiker)

Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Snacks
Oatmeal and add-ins, such as dried peaches, strawberries, nuts, granola. Tang.	Peanut Butter and Nutella on crackers Humus	Unstuffed Potatoes Milano Mint chocolate cookies	Clif Bar, Jelly Bellies, CytoMax, Propel, GORP, Bank Balls

 ¹The supplied figures above come from either the book John Muir Trail: The essential guide to hiking America's most famous trail by Elizabeth Wenk or from topo maps. There was only partial tracks for today in my GPS. Below is the readings from today's status on the GPS. I view it as only somewhat accurate.

Distance:  10.0 miles

Elevation Rise:  1,708'

Maximum Elevation: 13,100'

Bubbs Creek Valley

Last Camp before Forester

Higher view of Bubbs Creek Drainage

Sherri Climbing

Flowers of Forester

March 5, 2013 - Outer Loop

Title: March 5, 2013 - Outer Loop

Trail head: Mariposa Grove Parking Lot

Hike Info:

Trail:Outer Loop Trail

Destination:Back side of Mariposa Grove

Distance: 6.4

Travel Time: 3:33  (2.10 mph)

Moving Time: 2:48 (2.28 mph)

Elevation Rise: 1,235'

Maximum Elevation: 6,756'

Description:
A small storm is coming in tonight, but we thought we could squeeze a hike into before things got bad. We were right! We left Fresno at 9am and head for Mariposa Grove in Yosemite. We hike this area frequently, so it is a place we enjoy and only about 90 minutes from Fresno.

When we got there , it was cool, with a light breeze blowing through. Got started a little before eleven, and immediately started climbing up the road, which is the Outer Loop Trail. During the first mile or so, it is a 400' climb, not bad, but coming from sea level, it always takes a little bit of adjustment. It has been warm enough and dry enough that the trail is pretty clear of snow. Last year Steven and I skied a lot of what we will be doing today.



At the mile mark, we come to a junction. The one trail goes directly to the Grizzly Giant, about a mile away. The trail we take heads a little downward and towards a ridge separating the Grove from Wawona. We cross a pretty little creek and then start up a ridge. This ridge is the one Steven and I missed last year skiing this area.

While there is no scenic vistas, we are still struck by the beauty of the woods, particularly the Sequoia's. Even bare of snow, they stand majestic, as giants of the forest. But not the ugly kind of monsters, but more of what Tolkien had in mind with his Ents, shepherding the younger trees.

We arrive at the Galen Clark Tree. As Sherri says, it is nice to visit a tree named after a real person who had impact on the area and its preservation. Of course most of what I see in Yosemite and Kings Canyon is appropriately named.


We go past the Fallen Giant. Then to the fallen Stable Tree, which was used as a place to house horses. (Why did the tree fall after the horses were removed? It had become unstabled. Get it?) we finally come to the Grove Museum, which is close. We were going to eat lunch here on the fence rail, but decide to go on and see if the bathroom is open-it is not. But we have our peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches overlooking the grove on a cut down tree stump.

Then it is back down the trail. We come to the California Tunnel Tree and the Grizzly Giant- a very majestic and picturesque tree. We continue down and back to the parking lot, just short of 3pm. A nice hike and a pleasant day. Of course, we do stop at Todd's to wrap up our day.

Place: CA-Wright

Wright Creek (Mt Whitney)
(Long, Lat)

Description:
Name proposed by Sierra Club, 1925, for group of lakes extending from southwestern base of Mount Tyndall toward Sandy Plateau, and for creek connecting these lakes with Wallace Creek. Wright’s name was given in 1881 to a mountain on the Great Western Divide, but it never became current.

James William Albert Wright; A.B., Princeton, 1857; came to California from southern states and settled in San Joaquin Valley; accompanied W. B. Wallace and F. H. Wales to Kern River and Mount Whitney, 1881.
  From Place Names of the High Sierra (1926) by Francis P. Farquhar

Trips:

• July 16, 2013-JMT: Sherri and Gary
• August 2007-JMT: Sherri and Andrea

Pictures:

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References:

•  

Place: CA, Mt Whitney

Mt Whitney-14,475' (Mount Whitney) (36.5784890, -118.2919407)
Whitney Meadow-9,708' (Johnson Peak) (

36.4321589

-118.2664763)

Whitney Creek-7,835' (Mount Kaweah) (36.5513258, -118.4037029)
Whitney Portal-7,871' (Mount Langley) (36.5888232, -118.2259237)

From Up and Down California by William Brewer     
MOUNT WHITNEY, IN DISTANCE
AS SEEN FROM THE SLOPE OF MOUNT BREWER
From a photograph by Ansel F. Hall

Description:

Josiah Dwight Whitney (1819-1896); born Northampton, Massachusetts; A.B., Yale, 1839; New Hampshire State Geological Survey, 1840-1841; Geological Survey of Lake Superior, 1847-1850; Geological Surveys of Iowa and Wisconsin, 1855-1857; State Geologist and chief of California State Geological Survey, 1860-1874; professor of geology, Harvard, 1865-1896; LL.D., Yale, 1870. (Brewster: Life and Letters of Josiah Dwight Whitney, 1909, portrait.—Portrait in S.C.B., 1925, XII:2, plate XLIV.)

In July, 1864, a field party of the California State Geological Survey under William H. Brewer, with Charles F. Hoffmann, James T. Gardiner, and Clarence King, saw from Mount Brewer the main crest of the Sierra a few miles away. One peak they named Mount Tyndall. “The other high point, eight miles south of Mount Tyndall, and, so far as known, the culminating peak of the Sierra, was named by the party Mount Whitney.” (Whitney Survey: Geology, 1865, p. 382.)

“Whitney had forbidden his subordinates to name for him the mountain which is now called after the Rev. Lorentine Hamilton. This time, in their chief’s absence, they stood upon their rights of discovery, and called their great peak, Mt. Whitney.” (Brewster: Life and Letters of Josiah Dwight Whitney, 1909, p. 238.)

“For years our chief, Professor Whitney, has made brave campaigns into the unknown realm of Nature. Against low prejudice and dull indifference he has led the survey of California onward to success. There stand for him two monuments,—one a great report made by his own hand; another the loftiest peak in the Union, begun for him in the planet’s youth and sculptured of enduring granite by the slow hand of time.” (Clarence King: Mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada, 1872, pp. 280-281.)

Clarence King attempted to reach the summit of Mount Whitney in 1864, but failed by a few hundred feet. (Whitney Survey: Geology, 1865, pp. 388-391.) In 1871, King climbed what he supposed to be Mount Whitney and published an account of the ascent. (King: Mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada, 1872, pp. 264-281.) On July 27, 1873, W. A. Goodyear and M. W. Belshaw rode mules to the summit of the supposed Mount Whitney and perceived that a peak a few miles north was higher. King, upon learning of his mistake, hastened to the Sierra and ascended the true Mount Whitney, on September 19, 1873, but not before it had several times been ascended by residents of Owens Valley. (King: Mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada, 4th edition, 1874, pp. 281-297; James D. Hague, in Overland, November, 1873.)
First ascent, August 18, 1873, by John Lucas, Charles D. Begole, A. H. Johnson, all of Inyo County. They endeavored unsuccessfully to affix the name “Fisherman’s Peak.” (Wheeler: U. S. Geographical Surveys West of the 100th Meridian, I, Geographical Report, 1889, p. 100.)

Occupied by scientific party under Samuel Pierrepont Langley, of the Allegheny Observatory, August and September, 1881, for observations on solar heat. (Langley: Researches on Solar Heat. Professional Papers of the Signal Service, no. XV, 1884.) Occupied by parties from Smithsonian Institution and Lick Observatory, 1903, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1913. (S.C.B., 1904, V:2, pp. 87-97; S.C.B., 1910, VII:3, pp. 141-148; Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution, 1910, pp. 65-66.)

For other records, accounts, and discussions of ascents, see: W. A. Goodyear, in Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, 1873-1874, V, pp. 139-144, 173-175.—W. A. Goodyear: letter to the editor of Inyo Independent, July 30, 1888, reprinted in Eighth Annual Report of the State Mineralogist, 1888, pp. 230-232.—Badè: Life and Letters of John Muir, I, 1923, pp. 392-396.— W. C. Wyckhoff: Sunlight Mysteries, in Harper’s, June, 1883, pp. 81-94.—Frank Adams: Up Whitney by the Lone Pine Trail, in Sunset, June-July, 1906, pp. 74-80.— J. N. Le Conte: The High Sierra of California, in Alpina Americana, no. 1, American Alpine Club, 1907.—Appalachia, January, 1892, VI:4, pp. 285-288; May, 1903, X:2, pp. 135-142.— Mount Whitney Club Journal, Visalia, California, 1902, 1903, 1904, nos. 1, 2, 3.— S.C.B., 1893, I:1, pp. 1-8; 1896, I:7, pp. 290-292; 1903, IV:4, pp. 289-290; 1904, V:1, pp. 60-63 1904, V:2, pp. 87-101, 138-139; 1905, V:3, pp. 258-260; 1905, V:4, pp. 316-317 1909, VII:2, pp. 105-118; 1910, VII:3, pp. 141-148; 1910, VII:4, p. 248; 1911 VIII:2, pp. 137-138; 1922, XI:3, pp. 253-254.— Farquhar: Exploration of the Sierra Nevada, in California Historical Society Quarterly, March, 1925, IV:1, pp. 32-36, 38.

“A military reservation of a certain number of legal subdivisions surrounding this peak has been declared by authority of the President [Arthur] in General Orders no. 67, of the War Department, September 26, 1883. It is understood that this reservation is for the purpose of securing the location for a prospective Signal Service station.” (Wheeler: U. S. Geographical Surveys West of the 100th Meridian, I, Geographical Report 1889, p. 101.—Map of proposed reservation, in Langley: Researches on Solar Heat. Professional Papers of the Signal Service, no. XV, 1884.)

Altitude determined in 1905 by R. B. Marshall, U.S.G.S., a fraction over 14,501 feet. The highest point in the United States exclusive of Alaska. (R. B. Marshall.)  From Place Names of the High Sierra (1926) by Francis P. Farquhar

They [King and "Dick" Cotter] reached the summit of Mount Tyndall (14,025 feet) and from that point beheld and named Mount Williamson (14,384 feet) and Mount Whitney (14,496 feet). Lack of provisions prevented an attempt to reach the latter. From Up and Down California by William Brewer, Book 5 Chapter 2

On this occasion King reached the mountain, but made a bad choice of routes and failed to attain the summit. The first ascent was not made until 1873. For a further account of Clarence King’s efforts, see Francis P. Farquhar, “The Story of Mount Whitney,” in  Sierra Club Bulletin,  XIV, No. 1 (February, 1929).         From Up and Down California by William Brewer, Book 5 Chapter 2 footnote 10

From GNIS:

• Whitney Meadow:
• In Golden Trout Wilderness, at Golden Trout Creek and Stokes Stringer, 5.1 km (3.2 mi) east of Rocky Basin Lakes and 14.1 km (8.9 mi) north of Kern Peak.
•  Also called:
• Big Whitney Meadow
• Golden Trout Meadow-almost named this, but there was strong testimony against renaming it.
• Whitney Creek Meadows: Browning, Peter. Place Names of the Sierra Nevada. Berkeley, California: Wilderness Press, 1986. p238
• Whitney Meadows 
• Whitney Creek: In Sequoia National Park, heads at an unnamed lake on the west slope of Mount Russell and flows southwest to join the Kern River in Kern Canyon 3.5 km (2.2 mi) northeast of Red Spur.
•  Mount Whitney:
• Highest elevation in California at 14494 feet, 1.3 km (0.8 mi) south of Mount Russell and 1.4 km (0.9 mi) north of Mount Muir.
• Proposal to change name to Mount Churchill rejected by Board on Geographic Names (BGN) September 14, 1965.
• Also called:
• Fisherman's Peak
• Fishermans Peak
• Mount Churchill: Proposed name to honor Winston Churchill upon his death. Canada had named a high mountain after President Kennedy so a citizen thought it was fitting to name our highest peak after Churchill. This was rejected.
• Whitney Portal
• Former name of Hunter Flat, for William L Hunter, one of the early pioneers of Owens Valley, who made the first ascent of Mount Williams in 1884. This feature was called Whitney Portal at the official opening of the automobile road to the flat in June 1936.
• On Lone Pine Creek, 4.8 km (3 mi) east of Mount Whitney.
• Also called Hunter Flat

Trips:

• June 26, 2014 - Ten day trip along the High Sierra Trail and Colby Pass-crossed Whitney Creek
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Pictures: