Mt. Whitney Winter

Indulge me a bit here, if you will.  Usually I try and post SMG trip reports here from the guests’ perspective.  What made this trip special for him or her?  What did he or she bring to the trip that made it so enjoyable?  How did he or she rise to the challenges our beautiful Sierra offer? Believe me, Jason had an excellent time on Whitney, going above and beyond his own expectations.  An early January Whitney summit is a big deal for this fine-art carpenter from Brooklyn.

However, I can best describe the trip in my own terms.  Never before have I seen so few people on Whitney.  Never have I been so pleasantly surprised by travel conditions in the mountains.  Most importantly, I am utterly blown away by how this foray to the hills has cooled my wicked case of “snow fever.”  Like virtually all US skiers right now, I am feeling in my very bones the lack of snow.  This snow sickness is a brutal beast.  It drives us crazy when the snow doesn’t come, and leaves us distracted and overwhelmed with joy when it does.  However, tromping around in a clean and crisp and icy Whitney Zone has left me appreciative of all the options we have here and thankful for the flexible mountain athletes that come to SMG.  During those 3 magical days (and over a subsequent week of crampon-clad day-tripping) never did the insidious depression of a snow-deprived soul rear its head. Check out some pictures.