Ancestral Footsteps: Blamping Conquers Mt. Whitney

Mountains, Melanin, and Memories.

Photo by Author | Summit of Mt. Whitney

Approximately 30,000 people attempt to climb Mt. Whitney every year, but only an estimated 10,000 successfully reach the summit.

At 14,500 feet, Mt. Whitney is the highest point in the contiguous United States.

The Indigenous Paiute tribe has a cultural and historical relationship with the mountain and refers to it as ‘Tumanguya,’ meaning ‘old man’ or ‘guardian spirit.’

This past weekend, over two days of backpacking, after 24 miles, over 15 hours of hiking, approximately 6,500 feet in elevation gain, and a 2 AM wake-up on the final push, two of my closest friends and I successfully reached the summit by way of the Mt. Whitney Trail.

Photo by Author | Entering The Whitney Zone

In what was quite possibly one of the most mentally and physically challenging things I’ve ever done, my inner voice kept whispering over the heaving of my breath, one step at a time.