Mt. Whitney Hiking 2017 (3) ~ Won the lottery!

From the visitor center in Lone Pine

The lottery result is now available!

   I got a notice about the result of Mt. Whitney lottery today.   I won an overnight permit in a weekend in the end of September.   Based on the progress report, it was not very popular date in the end of September.   As I mentioned in the previous post, it is a better probability to avoid the popular season even if the selection is not the first choice.

Action plan

    First of all, people who won the lottery, they need to complete the reservation process on the reservation site by the end of April (April 30th).  If you missed this date, then the right to make a reservation will be lost.  All dates which is not reserved by April 30, will be available for everybody after May 1.   To reserve the date, the reservation fee USD $15 per person and a transaction fee USD $6 will be required.

   Then, people who lost the lottery, they can check the reservation site after April 1 to see if there is any dates not assigned by the lottery.  Also, after May 1, all non reserved dates will be back to the site for everybody.   It is better to check often to get a date and make a reservation as the next step.


   Although I won a date, I will also check a better date after April 1 / May 1.   If I do not find any goo date by April 30, then I will proceed the reservation with the given date and keep looking for another date after May 1.

    I did not win the lottery last two years and I got a date after April 1 / May 1 to get an available date to hike Mt. Whitney.   So there is still some chance and do not give up. 

Mt. Whitney Hiking 2017 (2) ~ Progress report 2017

Popular dates as of March 8th, 2017

  The application filing was end on March 15, 2017.  There is usually a few progress report on the Inyo National Forest web site during the lottery period.  It is possible to check the status and select a better probability dates in your application.

   As of March 22, 2017, there is still a progress report as of March 8th, 2017 available on the internet.  The most popular date for overnight permit is the labor day weekend and 2 weekends in August for the day use permit.  It is obvious that the popular date is between July and early September.
   It is also very clear for the first selection dates.  Weekends are basically popular overall especially from July to early September, even if they are weekdays, the application is more than the limit so far.  The limit for the overnight permit is 60 people per day and 100 people for the day use permit.

   In general, summer time (the end of June to early September), it is probably a better condition to follow the summer trail.  The weather is getting stable as well.  It is clear that many people want to hike that period.   On the other hand, if people pick out of this period, then it is probably a better chance to get the permit.

   In my case, I've been there many times, therefore, it is OK if I could not get any permit.  So that I pick just weekends for a better flexibility.

   The result will be available this Friday (March 24).  Let's see hot it goes!

Mt. Whitney Hiking 2017 (1) ~ Filed the lottery application!

Trail Camp

Mt. Whitney Lottery

   It is already mid March and the daylight saving time just started last weekend.  It has been cold this winter, but it is getting warm and it was hot last weekend.   As I posted before, Mt. Whitney lottery is in progress now.   The application will be accepted till midnight on March 15th (Eastern Time).  It's about 2 days from now.   I have just filed my application.

My plan this year

   I am planning to hike Mt. Whitney this year again.   This year, I will post the process to be there.  I am not sure if I can get the permit or not.  However, I will post my process in this blog.

Filed my application

   First of all, as the first step, Mt. Whitney lottery is opened in February to mid March every year and it is the first step to file an application.  There are two types of permit for Mt. Whitney.  One is day use and the other is overnight.  They have different allocation for each day and more allocation for the day permit.  Although it might be easier to get a day use permit, I prefer to spend more time to take photos and spending more time on the trail.   Therefore, I will try to get an overnight permit this year as well.

   I prefer to minimize to take days off and try to get a permit in a weekend.  So that I picked almost all weekends from late June to early October.   In an application, we can pick up to 15 different days.  Late June to July, there might be some snow on the trail, we might need some special equipment.  Because of snow on the trail, not many people pick those dates.  Also after late September, there might be a chance to be snowing, people might not pick them as well.  I think the most popular time is probably July to early September.  Depending on skill and experience with snow, it might be a good idea to pick early / late season to increase the chance.  However, it might be hard to get a weekend permit after the lottery, therefore, I will prefer to try weekends with the lottery first.

   I have just filed my application and it will be closed by Wednesday.  The result will be available after 24th of March.   I just need to wait for the result before the next action.  I will post my progress to this blog!