(Credit: wikipedia)

At 14,494 feet (4,418 meters) above sea level, California’s Mount Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48 states. Whitney is part of the Sierra Nevada, a fault-block mountain range formed when shifting tectonic plates led to the cracking and faulting of the Earth’s surface. Limited access (one needs a permit to enter), so not too overrun and quite challenging.

Here is an interesting article on the hike that was recently published in the Wall Street Journal. Link is at the end. Lots of material available on this great hike all over the internet. 

mtwhitney