Knee Injury on the Mt. Whitney Trail 

August 14, 2024 – Inyo County Sheriff's Office officials report that on the early evening of Tuesday, August 6, 2024, Inyo County Search & Rescue received a call from an individual reporting that their hiking partner had fallen and injured her knee while descending the Mt. Whitney Trail, about 2 miles in from the trailhead; she was unable to bear weight. The injured woman had successfully reached the summit on a planned one-day round trip but began experiencing fatigue and dehydration. Her partner returned to the trailhead to await rescuers.

Inyo County Search & Rescue assembled a team of rescuers and drove to the Whitney Portal where they met the reporting party. A few team members gathered medical gear and left to hike to the subject, while the remaining members assembled the wheeled litter and followed. Upon arrival at the subject, she was determined to be in generally good overall physical condition albeit tired and somewhat dehydrated. After conducting an injury assessment of the patient, a leg splint was applied, and she was loaded and secured into the litter.

Transport of the subject was tedious because of the many rock steps, steep descent, and water crossings. The team was able to navigate these obstacles without incident and arrived back at the Portal around 1:00 A.M. The subject’s partner transported her to Southern Inyo Hospital for further assessment and treatment.

The subject offered that attempting the round-trip was far more strenuous than she anticipated, leading to her being unsteady and falling over lose rocks on the trail.

Inyo SAR is an all-volunteer and unpaid, professional non-profit 501(c)3 organization in cooperation with and under the authority of the Inyo County Sheriff’s Office. Providing search and rescue services to Inyo County and its visitors is only possible thanks to donations.

Source & photo: Inyo County Sheriff's Office