Manzanar to Mount Whitney: The Life and Times of a Lost Hiker

by Hank Umemoto

In 1942, fourteen-year-old Hank Umemoto gazed out a barrack window at Manzanar Internment Camp, saw the silhouette of Mount Whitney against an indigo sky, and vowed that one day he would climb to the top. Fifty-seven years and a lifetime of stories later, at the age of seventy-one, he reached the summit. Part memoir and part hiker's diary, Manzanar to Mount Whitney gives an intimate, rollicking account of Japanese American life California before and after World War II. As he wanders through the mountains of California's Inland Empire, Umemoto recalls pieces of his childhood on a grape vineyard in the Sacramento Valley, his time at Manzanar, where beauty and hope were maintained despite the odds, and his later career as proprietor of a printing firm, all with grace, honesty, and unfailing humor. And all along, the peak of Mount Whitney casts its shadow, a symbol of freedom, beauty, and resilience.

Genres: Mountaineering, Biography

224 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2012

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I’m both a hiker and have other books regarding the Japanese Internment during World War 2, this book needed to be in my library. Perhaps the author could’ve added more depth to his and his family’s lives during their stay at Manzanar though maybe it was so painful that he said all he had. I did enjoy the segments on his hiking, especially since he’s talking about major elevation gains, definitely not walks in the park.

[Marjorie Elwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fascinating memoir weaves Umemoto's quest to hike Mt. Whitney in with stories about his life, both in Manzanar - where he was incarcerated during World War II due to being of Japanese descent - and elsewhere. In his unique voice, he explains how lessons learned from early years are pertinent to his later experiences.

[Dixie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is very poorly written and difficult to follow. Just because you have a story to tell does not mean you should write a book.

[Eugene Miya · Rating 3 out of 5]

An OK book. An index would have proved useful. We have word processors and text editors, but we also have indexing software however crude.

The author did his time next to Mt Whitney in Manzanar. He vowed to hike up.

Lacking experience he made a number of common newbie errors: late season, late in the day, somewhat out of shape. He ended up having a late season minor epic in the dark below Trail Camp in the snow. Not good, but he survived to return a few more times. I won't detail to spoil your reading.

The author's intermediate life had a few hard times including some self-medication (alcohol) which he had to pass. He needed just a hair more guidance editing.

His ascents, all by the trail on the East side, were a decade or 2 after I did a few ascents (6 by 4 routes). The book will have more meaning if you have relatives who were interned. I appreciate the cover photo as most people who have been in summer snow fields can appreciate.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I had to describe this book in one word it would be "meh".
I guess I was expecting more drama and excitement. Unfortunately the book and stories feel more like a meandering stroll around a park, rather than an exhilarating climb.

[MJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ending made it all worthwhile. Hank's view of life had the same tempo as his hikes.

[May]

DNF.

[Shinichi Asami · Rating 5 out of 5]

highly recommended!!

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book at the book store at Manzanar and read it in order to learn more about the lives of the people imprisoned there. He revealed so much about himself in this book-that he was not a good student and never had much ambition, but ran a business and was able to complete many of his dreams in his life. As a psychological study it is interesting to see how the experience of Manzanar shaped someone of his age--young enough to be resilient, but old enough to understand his Japanese culture. I thought that the letter he wrote to the US government and placed at the end of the book to be very moving. He was not crushed by the experience at Manzanar nor by the racism in the US that preceded and followed the war. He actually lived in some pretty dreadful places, but always had goals. He never lost his sense of self-worth and had some pretty exciting adventures. As a person who has hiked a lot in the mountains of California, when he described some of his mistakes--the wrong clothes, setting out in terrible weather, staying too long at the summit, I just cringed.