Dayhike: Carillon, Russell, Whitney, Keeler Needle, Muir 6/18/05 I posted a few photos of the switchbacks in another thread. I also have more photos that may be of interest to those doing other routes (Mountaineers Route, Mt Russell, etc.). REPORT On Satuday (6/18) I dayhiked Carillon, Russell, Whitney, Keeler Needle, and Muir from the Portal. In the process I took a good deal of photographs. My route was nearly identical to a hike I did last September, though this time I got one more peak despite all the snow. My ascent up Mount Russell was via the East Ridge. I descended the South Headwall of Russell and then ascended Whitney via the mostly snow covered North Face. Then on the way down the main trail I did Keeler Needle and Mt Muir. For those going up the North Fork, there's no snow until after Lower Boy Scout Lake. Beyond that you traverse part of a snowfield (below Thor Peak) until you reach the slabs. The slabs were also clear of snow so you can get to Upper Boy Scout Lake without having to deal with very much snow. Above UBSL you'll be mostly on snow. Snow coverage in the couloir up to the Whitney Notch still looks good. The sandy slope above UBSL that leads to the Russell/Carillon saddle had a strip of snow most of the way up so that you don't have so much sand to deal with (this strip of snow is what enticed me in the first place). I put on the crampons and ascended the strip of snow to the upper saddle/plateau between Russell and Carillon. It was still strenuous. Unlike the weekend before when the condition of the snow was excellent, low temps a night or two before had frozen the snow into hard icy stuff. There were also a lot of sun-cups which made the snow uneven. The East Ridge of Mount Russell is pretty much devoid of any significant snow except for a patch just below the East summit (visible from the Russell/Carillon saddle). This patch is steep (and looks scary from the saddle), but a nice path through the snow was left by previous parties. I had my ice axe out and made sure I planted it well, but I did not bother to put my crampons on. This is not a place you want to slip however. Between the east and west summits I did not enounter any significant snow. There was no significant snow when I descended the South Headwall and down the south slope. As expected, the North Face of Whitney had large snowfields and after a few minutes of ascending I was able to stay on snow most of the way to the top. Again the snow was hard and here it had more fins and ridges than suncups. It was definitely not optimal but was far better to ascend than to descend and I was glad I wasn't going back this way. From Whitney down to Trail Crest there are some patches of snow but nothing that requires the use of crampons or ice axe. Mount Muir was completely free of snow as was the Keeler Needle. The snow slope to the side of the switchbacks is another matter. I had hoped that it would soften up in the late afternoon so that I could have a nice quick glissade down to Trail Camp. This was not the case. It was about 5:15pm when I reached Trail Crest. The snow on the slope was just as hard and unpleasant as that which I had encountered earlier in the day. Unfortunately I now had to descend this stuff. I started to do a glissade but quickly found this to be painful (due to the hard icy snow) and a bit dangerous. My shell pants were ripped up in no time. I tried moving around to a sunnier part of the slope but could not find any soft snow. For awhile I alternated between trying to glissade and simply walking down the slope. Neither method was pleasant. A few times I tried using glissade chutes left by others. These chutes were smooth and slick. The snow was too hard to push the ice axe handle into. I had to resort to some creative use of the ice axe to control the descent. Eventually I was passed by two individuals who were walking down the slope with crampons on. This appeared to be the optimal way down and I was annoyed that I hadn't done this from the beginning. I stopped, put on my crampons, and then cramponed down to Trail Camp. What I was hoping would take 5 minutes took an hour. I should also point out that it didn't appear that anyone has used the switchbacks yet. While the upper switchbacks are mostly clear, the area where the cables are is still packed with snow. Thus, at the moment, the snow slope is still the only option. Bring an ice axe and crampons and be especially careful! If you're camping at Trail Camp you shouldn't have a problem finding a dry spot and you can obtain water from the small lake. Despite the complication below Trail Crest I made good time back to the Portal. I used a bypass trail that kept me on snow most of the way down to Lone Pine Lake. This trail allowed me to bypass Outpost Camp on the way down. Fortunately this snow was just a bit softer and I was able to take large strides. It was a very direct route unlike the meandering main trail. A lot of this snow can probably be bypassed if you stick to the main trail though I think above Mirror Lake you will be mostly on snow to Trail Camp. Anyway, that's the report. The photos are here: Whitney Region Dayhike 6/18/05 -Rick