[pct-l] (no subject)

[Reinhold Metzger]

LITZKY,
What a cute name!!!
As you gathered by now the weather at Mt. Whitney is about as predictable as
a woman.
In other words totally unpredictable.
In the summer the weather is usually sunny, warm to cold to stormy and
extremely cold, especially in early summer, so be prepared for cold weather
and warm weather.
Like I said, totally unpredictable,but beautiful and intriguing, like a
woman.
I guess that is what is drawing me back time after time, after time.
I have bin to the top of Mt. Whitney at least 16 times and still am never
sure about the weather, except that it can get very cold.
Late August two years ago, between Guitar Lake and Mt. Whitney at around
12000 ft, a middle of the night storm dumped several inches of snow and rain
collapsing my flimsy, ultra light, home made tent totally saturating me, my
down sleeping bag and everything else.
After considering my options of staying put vs bailing out to Whitney Portal
which would mean climbing another 1600 ft in the middle of the night into
colder & colder weather while soaking wet, during a rain - snow storm, I
decided to stay put.  I put on all my remaining cloth and hiking shoes,
crawled into my saturated bag and rolled up in my collapsed tarp tent.
By that time I already was so cold and my hands so numb that my fingers
lacked the strength and dexterity to zip up my sleeping bag.  I had to grab
the zipper with my teeth and zip it shut.

         Ohhhh,  HOW  I  WISHED  I  HAD  A  WOMAN  IN  THE  BAG  WITH  ME
TO  KEEP  ME  WARM.

Needless to say,..... I did not sleep at all that night,..... neither was I
a happy camper,..... but I survived......barely.

I hope that helps my scrumptious little one.

JMT Reinhold