Trying to summit Mt. Whitney right in the middle of May can be a rough time of the year for an adventure. Lucky for me, the Sierras had below average snowfall this past winter, which meant less ice and snow to deal with above 10,000′. Consequently, I was able to scale back my gear list. I’d only needed to pack minimal winter gear (microspikes, trekking poles, and warm clothing) to navigate the Mt. Whitney Trail safely.

This packing list is everything I carried on this 2-day hike. At the end of this packing list, I’ve included details about the additional gear I added to my packing list for this particular trip, including what items I left behind (and why), and what I’d definitely do differently if I were preparing for this trip all over again.

(Items with an asterisk beside them indicate a deviation from my standard gear set-up for long distance hiking.)

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BACKPACK SET-UP

• Backpack – Gossamer Gear G4-20 (42L) in electric blue 
• Accessories – Gossamer Gear Hipbelt Pocket (which I use as a fanny pack)
• Accessories – Zpacks Shoulder Pouch (to carry my phone, headphones)
• Pack Liner – Therm-a-rest NeoAir pump sack (also used to inflate my air mattress)
• Emergency ID – Road ID attached to pack 

SHELTER & SLEEP SYSTEM

• Tent* – Nemo Dragonfly 2 freestanding tent with Tyvek ground cloth
• Sleeping Bag* – Enlightened Equipment Enigma down quilt (10 degree)
• Liner* – Sea to Summit Reactor Compact Plus (adds up to 20° warmth to sleep system)
• Air Mattress – Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite (size: regular) 

FOOD/COOKING ITEMS

• Stove – MSR PocketRocket2 + 4 oz. fuel canister & mini lighter
• Cook Pot* – Montbell Alpine Deep 9 cookpot (0.4L)
• Spoon – Toaks long handle titanium spoon (w/ polished bowl) 
• Food Storage* – Bearikade Scout 500L bear canister
• Water filter – Sawyer Micro Squeeze & CNOC Outdoor Vecto 2L bladder
• Water storage* –  1L and 1.5L plastic bottles

ELECTRONICS

• Phone/camera – iPhone XR (128GB)
• Garmin InReach mini – GPS satellite communicator
• External battery – Anker Power Core 10000 external battery w/ USB cables for iPhone & InReach
• Navigation – Free Guthook Guide (Mt. Whitney Trail) downloaded on my iPhone
• Headlamp* – Nitecore NU25 headlamp (360 lumens)
• Electronics Storage – Sea to summit Ultra-Sil Dry Sack (size: XXS) 

HIKING ACCESSORIES

• Trekking Poles – Leki Cressida Thermo women’s poles
• Sit Pad – Therm-a-rest Z sitting pad
• Microspikes* – Kahtoola microspikes

HIKING CLOTHING (WORN)

• Hiking Bottoms* – LL Bean fleece lined tights & Patagonia Baggies 5″ shorts
• Hiking Shirt* – Simms long sleeve hooded sun shirt
• Hat – Headsweats Race hat 
• Sunglasses – Suncloud Cookie sunglasses with polarized lenses
• Watch* – Garmin Fenix Watch
• Wallet – Roam minimal wallet (w/ ID & debit card only)
• Undergarments – Patagonia Barely sports bra & underwear 

FOOTWEAR

• Shoes – Altra Timp 1.5 trail running shoes 
• Hiking Socks – Injinji socks 
• Gaiters – Dirty Girl gaiters 

OUTERWEAR

• Puffy coat* – Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer down hooded jacket 
• Rain Jacket – Outdoor Research Helium II jacket
• Warm Hat – North Face beanie
• Gloves – Smartwool liner gloves

EXTRA CLOTHES/CAMP ITEMS

• Underwear – Patagonia Barely underwear (extra pair)
• Sleep clothes* – Smartwool merino wool leggings & Icebreaker 1/4 zip baselayer top
• Sleep socks – Darn Tough crew socks
• Storage – Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil stuff sack (9L)

HYGIENE ITEMS

• Toiletry Storage – Ziplock baggie
• Dental Care – Travel toothbrush/toothpaste + floss
• Vision – Daily wear disposable contacts & glasses
• First Aid Kit – KT tape, Body Glide (0.8 oz), bandaids, ibuprofen
• Knife – Swiss Army knife (w/ mini scissors)
• Cleaning – Wet Ones (travel size)
• Skincare – Chapstick and sunscreen
• Toilet* – WAG bag, TP and bandana (pee rag)
• Trash storage – Large ziplock bag

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POST-HIKE THOUGHTS

Although this was only a short 4-day adventure (two days for travel and two for my hike), I still needed to pack just as if I was going out for any backpacking trip. I’d need all the essentials – a tent, sleep system, cooking, etc.

My plan was to camp on public lands near Mono Lake on my way down to Mt. Whitney so I could sleep around 6,700′ elevation and acclimate a bit. The following night, I’d be spending the night 6.3 miles up the Mt. Whitney Trail at 12,000′ elevation. And then I’d summit Mt. Whitney in the early morning hours and return to the trailhead for a 16ish-mile day.

As most hikers know, elevation can be a game changer when it comes to weather and comfort. Even if there’s no rain, snow, or heavy winds, you should expect the air temperature to drop about 5.4 degrees for every every 1,000′ of elevation gained.

I’d need to ascend more than 6,000 feet between the trailhead and the summit on this hike. So, in addition to packing for the fluctuation between daytime and overnight temperatures in the Sierras, I also had to anticipate the mercury plunging an additional 30 degrees just from the elevation change.

SO… WHAT extra GEAR DID I ADD FOR THIS HIKE?

• Enlightened Equipment 10°F Quilt & Sea to Summit Liner. I bought my first Enlighted Equipment down quilt halfway through my 2019 AT thru-hike, and immediately fell in love with it. However, I knew my 30°F Revelation quilt wasn’t a good option for this early season hike. Instead, this trip was the perfect opportunity to try out the brand new 10°F down Enigma quilt I bought myself as a birthday present last October. I wasn’t quite sure whether it would be warm enough for Mt. Whitney in May, so I also packed my Sea to Summit liner to use inside the quilt. I’m grateful I packed this additional liner because it definitely dropped down in the 15-20°F degree range overnight at Trail Camp.

• Nemo Dragonfly Freestanding Tent. I purchased the Gossamer Gear “The One” tent for most of my 2021 hiking adventures, but I wasn’t comfortable with how a trekking pole tent might hold up on Mt. Whitney. I planned to camp overnight at Trail Camp, which has a number of established flat campsites, but it’s up at 12,000′ and mostly consists of bedrock. Therefore, I was a bit concerned that the terrain might not allow me firmly stake out a lightweight trekking pole tent well enough to withstand any potential high winds or bad weather on the mountain. Since this was just a short trip, I opted to use my freestanding bikepacking tent, the Nemo Dragonfly 2P, instead of my lightweight GG tent. At nearly 3 pounds, the Dragonfly is quite a bit heaver that anything I’d want to carry on a long thru-hike. However, it’s sturdiness gave me the some additional peace of mind. And for those who are curious, I didn’t purchase the footprint for this tent. I used a Tyvek groundcloth from Six Moon Designs instead.

• Bear Canister. I prefer to store my food in an Ursack (lined with an OPSAK) rather than carry a heavy, bulky bear canister. But this hike was in the Sierras, where bear canisters are still a requirement. I could have avoided lugging one up Mt. Whitney altogether if I’d hiked to the summit in a single day. But this was an overnight trip, and the USFS requires bear canister usage on the Mt. Whitney Trail on all such trips between late May to early November. I spent $10 to rent a small Bearikade Scout bear canister from Sage to Summit in Bishop, CA. This is the smallest canister they carry, and it’s very similar in size to the Bear Vault BV500 bear canister sitting in the back of my gear closet. However because it’s made from a carbon fiber composite, it’s 13 ounces lighter. Hikers looking for an even smaller alternative might want to consider renting one from Elevation Sierra outfitters in Lone Pine, as they carry BV450 canister for a similar rental price.

• Microspikes. I’ve owned a pair of Kahtoola microspikes for a few years now, but I never actually needed to use them until this hike. For anyone unfamiliar with microspikes, they’re essentially a traction system with small metal spikes that fit right over your hiking shoes (similar to how snow chains fit over the tires of your car in the snow). These spikes give you the ability to walk easily on ice or packed snow, and can keep you upright on the trail. I was very glad I packed my microsprikes because when I started my ascent up toward Mt. Whitney’s summit at 5:30 am, all the little streams flowing over the trail had iced up overnight and they were now super slick.

• Wag Bag. If nature calls, you can’t dig a cathole on Mt. Whitney. Much of the area along the trail is solid bedrock, and there simply isn’t enough soil to decompose the amount of human waste that would be deposited in the area if every hiker decided to dig a cathole during their trip. Thus, the USFS requires all hikers to pack out their waste in a wag bag instead. In non-pandemic years, the USFS provides free wag bags with your permit when you pick it up at the visitor center in Lone Pine. However, this year wag bags were available at the trailhead. You can also purchase them at Cabela’s, REI, and other outdoor retailers.

• Warmer Clothes. My typical hiking attire is usually pretty simple. I rely on Patagonia Baggies shorts, a collared shirt, and a sun visor. However, I needed to dress quite a bit warmer for this high-altitude hike. I essentially used two separate clothing set ups for this hike. Between the trailhead and Trail camp, I relied on my shorts and a UPF sun shirt (with a hood) to protect me from the intense UV rays on the exposed terrain. Once I got above 12,000′ elevation, I transitioned to warmer, fleece lined tights, a wool baselayer, my down puffy coat, a buff, a beanie hat, and gloves. This system worked well, with one exception. I really needed warmer gloves to combat the wind and cold on the morning of my summit hike.

WHAT GEAR DID I LEAVE BEHIND THIS TIME?

• Camp shoes. When I’m on thru-hike, I can’t wait to get to camp at the end of the days and kick off my shoes to let my tired feet breathe. That’s why I usually carry a lightweight pair of open-toed sandals to protect my feet. However, since this hike was super short and I knew I was going to want warm feet on the mountain, I decided to leave my camp shoes back in the car.

• Bug gear. Usually when the snow melts, the bugs come out in droves in the mountains. However, since the majority of this trip was going to be above treeline, I left my insect spray and bug net at home. I didn’t have any issues with mosquitos or insects while at camp or during the climb, so this turned out to be a solid choice.

• Miscellaneous. I made a few other minor gear swaps on this trip just for kicks. None of these was targeting my comfort on Mt. Whitney. These were just some new items I wanted to try out for the 2021 hiking season (e.g., trying out a new USB-rechargable headlamp, using a smaller cook pot, etc). This short 2-day trip seemed like an ideal trial run for these items. In the end, I voted “thumbs up” for the headlamp and didn’t really develop an opinion one way or the other on the cook pot.

WHAT WOULD I DO DIFFERENTLY?

If I were hiking Mt. Whitney again I’d considered a making the following changes before hitting the trail.

• Gloves. As I mentioned above, the one piece of clothing that was woefully insufficient for this hike was my gloves. I had a pair for Smartwool liner gloves and used a pair of hand warmers inside them. This combination didn’t cut it once I got above 13,000′. As soon at the wind kicked up, it seemed to rip right through these wool gloves and my fingers were completely frozen. Luckily, I always carry two extra bags (the kind your newspaper gets delivered in on a rainy day) and I was able to fashion them into ad hoc mittens over my gloves. It looked silly, but my hands were 100 times warmer once they were shielded from the bitterly cold wind. Nonetheless, I’d definitely recommend bringing a pair of super warm, windproof gloves to anyone who wants to hike Mt. Whitney in May.

• Watch. I normally stick with a lightweight $35 Timex digital watch on almost all of my adventures. However, I convinced myself I wanted to accurately measure my elevation and distance on this hike, so I brought my Garmin Fenix GPS watch instead. This item was an epic fail. I had a really difficult time getting the sleeve of my jacket over this chunky watch, and it was simply overkill for what I needed on this hike.

• Water Filter. I’ve carried a number of water filters over the years, and regardless of which one I use, I’m always careful to store my filter in my sleeping bag on colder nights to keep it from freezing. I’ve never had a problem with that technique either. That is, until now… When I attempted to filter my water at Trail Camp on the morning before I summited, my filter didn’t seem to work at all. Instead of a steady flow of water through the filter, all I got was a couple of slow drips. My only backup was my stove, and I wasn’t going to spend the next hour boiling several liters of water instead of getting an early start on the trail. So, I ended up just filling my bottles with unfiltered water from the nearby tarn (yikes!) and then I crossed my fingers that I wouldn’t get giardiasis. In the future, I definitely need to test my water filter before heading out. My digestive health is too important of an item to leave to fate.

• Snow Gear. I got super lucky on my trip. Thanks to the low snow year, there was considerably less snow on the trail than it tyipically has this time of year. I didn’t have to pack any serious winter gear (ice axe, crampons, etc). However, a massive cold front was just one day behind me, and it resulted in a late season snow storm that dropped several inches of snow on the area. If my permit had been during that inclement weather window, I definitely would have needed to add a lot more winter gear to this packing list.

Final Thoughts

Mt. Whitney was a pretty short adventure, but definitely a memorable one. If you’re interested in learning more about what happened along the way, check out:

• My Trail Journal for Mt. Whitney
• Summiting Mt. Whitney Hike…By the Numbers
• My Other Gear Lists