The Whitney Portal is home to many cragging routes as well as some longer, older Beckey routes. The sought-after climb is Bony Fingers, but there is supposedly quite a bit of development going on there in recent years. Unfortunately, comprehensive information is unavailable... I think.
Getting There
Take Whitney Portal Road west from the town of Big Pine, past Alabama Hills, and up into the mountains until it dead ends at the trailhead for Mt. Whitney. Pretty simple.
Bony Fingers features an incredible 90m finger crack! If it weren't for the knobs, this steep, beautiful splitter would be 5.12 instead of 5.9. Located on "The Whale", approach by turning off of the main road to the right on a dirt road a little ways before the main road ends. This can only be followed for about 100 feet before a gate. Park here. Hike past the gate towards the east until the road appears to sharply switchback up and left (ba...[more]
The Whitney Portal Road leaves from the town of Lone Pine about 40 miles south of Big Pine. Head west from Big Pine if you want to go to the Palisades or Temple Crag.
Marty Lewis is coming out with a new guidebook entitled "Bishop Area Rock Climbs—The climbing Guide to the Eastern Sierra-South" which covers the Whitney Portal area. Coming out this Summer.
By susan peplow From: what day is this? Mar 7, 2007
"Marty Lewis is coming out with a new guidebook entitled "Bishop Area Rock Climbs—The climbing Guide to the Eastern Sierra-South" which covers the Whitney Portal area. Coming out this Summer."
Yeah LuLu, where's our guides? Less handyman, more publication!
For those interested in the Portal but concerned about those old 1/4" manky bolts: Thanks to ASCA support over 250 bolts have been replaced with stainless fatties in the past couple of years, and next year will see more replacement activity. And of course, everything new has bolts that are up to code. For information on which routes have been replaced:
The list is fairly current as of this post, but still needs an update for Candlelight Buttress where all but a handful of bolts where replaced late in the year.
By susan peplow From: what day is this? Aug 11, 2008
New guide is ready to ship. Order your copy today at Maximus Press
Whitney Portal
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