Mount Whitney

Jill's Journal: That would be the peak of Mt. Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous United States. It towers at 14,495 feet above sea level.

Mt. Whitney makes up one-third of the trifecta of geographical mountain facts that have stuck with me since elementary school. The other two, in case Mrs. Petrone ever asks, are that Mt. Everest in Nepal is the highest mountain in the world and Mt. McKinley (also known as Denali) in Alaska is the highest point in the U.S. Since neither of those two peaks were nearby today, it was kind of exciting to lay eyes on Mt. Whitney.

We started on Whitney Portal Road for the 12-mile journey from Lone Pine to the highest point on Whitney accessible by car.

We had a few thousand feet (up) to go when I snapped this picture. The road turns steep and winding with a switchback or two. Scenes of the road are prominently featured in a Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz movie, The Long, Long Trailer, and in a Humphrey Bogart film, High Sierra.

Here are the girls at the end of the road at 8,631 feet, the closest we would get to the summit. If you’d ever like to climb Mt. Whitney, this is where the trailhead is found. It’s a strenuous 22 miles round trip and about 10,000 people annually obtain the permits to attempt the climb. The girls were disappointed we wouldn’t be climbing to the top. If they truly comprehended how far 22 miles is or what it means to gain 6,000 feet in elevation during a hike, they’d be thanking us.

Madelyn weighed herself on the backpack scale. It confirmed she’s too big to be carried on hikes.

There’s a nice picnic area at the trailhead. Doesn’t this make you want to settle in for a peaceful afternoon in nature?