11: beautiful you

Dear Friend,

Here you are at the beginning of the 18th week of 2025. What will you do with the next 7 days? Will you garden, take on double-shifts at work, adopt an elderly dog or cat & give it the best last years of its life, and / or maybe, will you go climb a mountain?

This is Mount Whitney. It is one of the mountains that make up the eastern sierra range. Its peak is at 14,505’, the highest peak on the US mainland.

Are you a newbie in your hiking career? Well, with a bit of altitude (and possibly attitude) adjusting, along with luck getting the proper permit, you, too, can scale Mount Whitney. Common sense might be shrieking, “But, Wait! I’m afraid of chilly wind and bears and I’m not in shape for such things!” 

Of course, it’s wise to use your best judgement and know your limits before boldly venturing out and up so far and high! Since weather is unpredictable, it can be very dangerous.

Though it is considered a 'non-technical' hike in the absence of snow (July through September), it is not a walk in the park. But it's nice to know that you (in general) can, (as in, you’re allowed to), hike Mount Whitney. Your dog, however, is not allowed in the Wilderness area.

We’re camping at a little over 5000’ near the base of Mount Whitney, grateful to wake up to the view: a wall of majesty.

Chiseled by time, wild weather, upheaval of the earth, and the ever-present breeze… The John Muir wilderness is home to black bear, marmot, birds, squirrels, big horn sheep, an occasional mountain lion, and… at this very moment, several dozen human beings are hiking on the mountain.

On Friday, we were fortunate to meet two different groups of hikers at Whitney Portal (elevation, 8374’) as they began their trek into the wilderness. Since there are a variety of trails and directions to take, it wasn’t surprising that these two groups did not take the same trail.

This family will be out for 3 days, their plan is to summit on the second day. They are experienced and fit, looking forward to this trip together, and they are NOT going into this weekend unprepared.

Part of being prepared is knowing when to turn around.

These guys will be out for 4 days, they will be hiking and camping the first two days before summiting Mt. Whitney on the third day and will complete their descent on the fourth day. They are also experienced climbers and know what to expect when traversing snow and ice.

We wished each group a safe journey before heading back down to our campground, stopping for Frank to photograph along the way.

We're nearing the end of April and there is quite a bit of snow in the higher elevations. As clouds are building, temps are dropping, and rain (and possibly snow) is expected.

This is the view on Friday afternoon after we left Whitney Portal. A storm brewing… and as Saturday unfolded and wind gusted and hail pelted our campsite... our thoughts have been with those hikers up there, for sure!

Before you commit to applying for a hiking-Mt.Whitney-permit, here is a helpful link to check out: 8 IMPORTANT Tips for HIKING MT WHITNEY.

Packs can weigh a LOT. Apparently, experienced hikers try for 10% of their body weight for a day hike and 20% of their body weight when hiking two or more days.

Let’s see, if you weigh 150#, and you are hiking for three days, that would be a 30# pack.

But, after talking with several hikers, it seems that pack weight rules vary from hiker to hiker. What each hiker brings is personal choice and can also be based on experience and the limitations of other hikers in the group. (Maybe you carry something for someone else because you are super sure they’ll need it even though, because they’ve never done this before, they swear they won’t).

Whitney Portal in the John Muir Wilderness is where you might park for a day hike or for a much longer trek. There is a weigh hook so that you can determine how heavy your backpack really is.

And at the Portal, receptacles are available for bear-safe-storing of your food, and discarding your Garbage & Recycling, and Human Waste.

Poop. A word that causes a myriad of reactions. Say it in the presence of 31 second graders and you might be sloshed with a wave of giggles and escalated banter. Say ‘poop’ at a banquet table and there might be dirty scowls from a dozen well-dressed guests. But if you ever ingest anything at all, don’t you know, a short time later, there IT is, and, one way or another, you will need to go, ‘get comfortable?’

In living creatures young and old, a healthy digestive tract, though often taken for granted, is a cause for celebration.

Have you spent much time looking at your entire being as something of a wonder factory? So many things are working inside - beautiful you - right now. And byproducts of life are an important part of the beauty!

But human waste also carries germs and things that can make us very sick. So, yep, John Muir Wilderness has a pack-it-in, pack-it-out policy. Nothing gets left behind. Leave No Trace is taken very seriously by conscientious hikers.

WAG Bags (Waste Alleviating Gel) bags are (usually) available at the weigh station (or can be purchased elsewhere before your hike). These are best used if there is any type of waterway or snow nearby, if the trail is frequented by other hikers, or when hiking at high elevations.

Vegetation and animal life are found at lower elevations, making it possible for soil-dwelling organisms to thrive. These organisms (bacteria and fungi) and soil organisms (beetles, worms etc.) are necessary to break-down excrement. But none of these live at very high elevations and so up there, hikers' poop just becomes a contaminant.

It is probably obvious that heavily-hiked places like Mount Everest, (which, until recently, didn’t have a Leave No Trace policy in place), are contaminated with dangerous levels of human waste, (along with lots of garbage), a true hazard for the environment, water sources, and other living creatures - including people.

Packing everything out including excrement is one small thing that helps nature continue to be a healthy place for everyone. Watch a quick video from Leave No Trace: HOW TO USE A WAGBAG

When spending a chunk of time out-of-doors where there are no facilities, it IS possible to get used to using appropriate 'portable toilet' bags in order to leave the wilderness as it was. Clean.

Thank you for being here to read Tracks by the Post. We are so grateful to know that you are there, and we appreciate hearing from you... Please Write, and let us know how you are!

Wishing you a beautiful week ahead!

Gently Be,

Leslie and Frank

PS: Our thanks to Ben and Jennifer for spending a few minutes with us before your hike(s). We hope that you and your hiking buddies had a wonderful, memorable, safe, and exciting adventure on Mt. Whitney! ...Go get warm!