(click on any photo to enlarge) We woke early to get a somewhat 'alpine' start. We left Guitar Lake at about 6am. The sun had not come over the Sierra Crest so it was still semi-dark and chilly. Our plan was to climb both Mt Muir and Mt Whitney. As it turned out only Funk climbed both. The Whitney climb from the west is much easier than the trudge up from the Portal to the east. After about 90 minutes, we were at Trail Crest where the east and west trails meet.
From Trail Crest it is still a little more that a mile up to the top of Whitney. Christi, Funk and I arrived at the turn off for Muir. Christi took off to the top of Whitney alone as Funk and I started up Muir. Muir is supposed to be pretty straight forward climbing with a 'bit of class 3 exposure', as the guide book says. Well the climbing was not bad at all but the last two moves had too much exposure for me.
Funk pondered and then just went for it. I was impressed! I was disappointed not to add this one to my list because it means I have to come back up here and attempt it again! So we down climbed back to the trail and continued up to the summit of Whitney.
Some of the windows through the Crest give you and incredible view down into the Owens Valley some 9000 ft below. As we were heading up we caught T Funk and Christi from behind. Christi had summitted and ran back down to Trail Crest, picked up T Funk, and accompanied her to the summit. As it worked out we all came to the summit together which was cool. There was already 10 people on the summit.
We hung out and ate some goodies, took a bunch of photos, then signed the summit register. This was T Funk's first ever 14er and she is very stoked. We started our decent with light feet and big smiles.
The walk back down to Guitar Lake was quick and easy. We went for a swim and packed our camp up. Once the Funks arrived and dismantled their camp, Christi and I took off down the trail to find a site in Crabtree Meadows where there are trees and shade and a creek to lounge in.
Crabtree is a heavily used area that has managed to stay beautiful and scenic. We walked for a couple of hours and found a great site just outside the meadow.
We set up camp and went to the creek to clean up and relax. The Funks arrived later in the day having chosen to lounge around Guitar Lake for the afternoon. We cooked and ate dinner together and shared our stories of individual levels of suffering for the day. Another fantastic day in the Sierra! Tomorrow is Forester Pass at 13000ft and then into the beautiful Bubbs Creeks drainage.
(click on any photo to enlarge) We woke early to get a somewhat 'alpine' start. We left Guitar Lake at about 6am. The sun had not come over the Sierra Crest so it was still semi-dark and chilly. Our plan was to climb both Mt Muir and Mt Whitney. As it turned out only Funk climbed both. The Whitney climb from the west is much easier than the trudge up from the Portal to the east. After about 90 minutes, we were at Trail Crest where the east and west trails meet.
From Trail Crest it is still a little more that a mile up to the top of Whitney. Christi, Funk and I arrived at the turn off for Muir. Christi took off to the top of Whitney alone as Funk and I started up Muir. Muir is supposed to be pretty straight forward climbing with a 'bit of class 3 exposure', as the guide book says. Well the climbing was not bad at all but the last two moves had too much exposure for me. 
Funk pondered and then just went for it. I was impressed! I was disappointed not to add this one to my list because it means I have to come back up here and attempt it again! So we down climbed back to the trail and continued up to the summit of Whitney. 
Some of the windows through the Crest give you and incredible view down into the Owens Valley some 9000 ft below. As we were heading up we caught T Funk and Christi from behind. Christi had summitted and ran back down to Trail Crest, picked up T Funk, and accompanied her to the summit. As it worked out we all came to the summit together which was cool. There was already 10 people on the summit. 
We hung out and ate some goodies, took a bunch of photos, then signed the summit register. This was T Funk's first ever 14er and she is very stoked. We started our decent with light feet and big smiles. 
The walk back down to Guitar Lake was quick and easy. We went for a swim and packed our camp up. Once the Funks arrived and dismantled their camp, Christi and I took off down the trail to find a site in Crabtree Meadows where there are trees and shade and a creek to lounge in. 
Crabtree is a heavily used area that has managed to stay beautiful and scenic. We walked for a couple of hours and found a great site just outside the meadow. 
We set up camp and went to the creek to clean up and relax. The Funks arrived later in the day having chosen to lounge around Guitar Lake for the afternoon. We cooked and ate dinner together and shared our stories of individual levels of suffering for the day. Another fantastic day in the Sierra! Tomorrow is Forester Pass at 13000ft and then into the beautiful Bubbs Creeks drainage.
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