ALPINE — Ask Lt. Tony Salazar, the commanding officer of the Alpine Sheriff Station, why he wanted to climb Mt. Whitney in the Sierra Nevada Range and he’ll say, “Well, it’s just something I’d always wanted to do.”
     He finally had the opportunity last October, when Deputy Cliff La Plante, organized an expedition which also included Deputy Chuck Wagner. They collected their gear, including good sturdy hiking boots, climbed in the car and drove 395 to Lone Pine and the Whitney Portal where the trail begins.
     “There’s a primitive base camp there at 8,360 feet,” he explained, “where you can camp overnight before starting your climb. You get drinking water from the lake, small waterfalls and from the snowfields, but you must purify it to be safe to drink. You have to carry a lot of water and energy bars, that kind of food. Some hikers try to do the whole thing in one day but it’s really smarter to get some rest before starting.”
     The trio left the base camp about 6 a.m., climbing steadily to reach the summit by early afternoon. 
     “We stayed up there for about 45 minutes, I guess. The views in all directions are magnificent and we were so lucky because it was very clear day. They told us that sometimes the wind comes up suddenly and the clouds roll in fast. There’s a little shack up at the peak where you can take refuge, but it has a warning posted not to use it if there’s lighting because it does get struck and people have been killed.”
     “We heard later that we were the last group to reach the top that day and for several days afterward because the weather turned and the rangers simply won’t issue permits to climb when it’s like that. October is just about the end of the season for climbing, at least without crampons and ice axes. Even in October, there was some snow at the summit. I guess it lasts all year.”
     Whitney, the tallest mountain in the lower 48 United States, is 14,497 feet, which means that some of its visitors suffer from altitude sickness and can’t complete the climb. “We saw several people like that on the way up. They have to turn around and go back down immediately,” said Salazar. “We were lucky again, I guess. We were all fine.”
     He added that, once at the peak, you’re tempted to stay for a long time, “...and someone has to remind you that it’s just as long a hike getting back down and you better get started.” It took them until almost 9 p.m. using their flashlights, to get back to base camp and dinners of packaged Ramen. “You’d be surprised how good it tastes by then,” he chuckled.
     Salazar reported that one of the best things about the experience was meeting other people doing the climb. “A lot of them know they’ll never get all the way to the top. They’re just hiking up the trail as far as they can before turning around. And you have to be smart about that too, knowing your limits and knowing that, however far you’ve come, it’s just as far going back.”
     On the trail, he saw couples just out for a day’s hike, and one couple in their 70s who did reach the top, groups of Boy Scouts, even youngsters from school on a field trip. “I talked with one young man who was waiting for his dad to arrive — the dad was almost 80 years old — so they could get started.”
     People do try to climb the mountain during the winter but it’s not a wise thing because of the sudden unpredictable storms, and hikers have died trying to do it.
     Lt. Salazar is a recent graduate of the FBI Academy in Virginia. He wears his name badge on a woven FBI lariat around his neck and is very proud of the three months he spent there. He admits he’s never climbed a mountain before, but likes hiking, fishing, camping and outdoor activities.
     “La Plante is the real mountaineer,” he said. “He’s been climbing for a long time. He’s the one who set it all up and led the whole way.”

Courtesy Photo: Deputy Chuck Walker and Lt. Salazar paused long enough on the trail to take pictures. The trail starts at 8,360 feet to guide hikers upward to the mountain top..

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