Trip report. I am envious, and it sounds like you had quite the experience. I seem to remember your face from Teton Mountaineering; was in the Hole for three weeks this summer on work and got to do the middle. Awesome pics and description, keep up the good work,
Thank you both for the nice comments! I'm pretty excited... this is the first time I've made the front page! I also found a couple more good pictures of the route and put them up.
and sorry about the bad route. I was just up in the Tetons too - manage to make it up there every other summer or so. So many good routes there... just bad luck that you found one of the really horrible ones!
Thank you. I wouldn't say that it was horrible. Sure, the rock was rotten, but like I said... it's a mountaineering climb, not a great rock route. I went in with the attitude that it probably wouldn't be the greatest climb in the world (besides, if it were, everyone would be there!) but that it would still be a fun and exciting adventure, and it was. Sometimes it's routes like this that help you appreciate how good other ones are! Overlooked routes like this are what make the Tetons or any mountain range so interesting, ... you may have 14 terrifying and horrible pitches, but it's that one proud lead on gorgeous golden granite that makes it all worthwhile. In the end you can look back and see what an awesome adventure it was, and also have a good story to tell! Another neat thing about this route was we didn't see another soul the entire 22 hours I spent there. Routes like Irene's Arete, the Exum Ridge, Guide's Wall, Open Book, and Owen-Spalding are all amazing fun rock climbs on quality rock, but you have to wait in line behind 3 other teams before moving forward. No one climbs the North Face of the Grand because it's good rock (in fact it is some of the worst in the Tetons) but they climb it because, well... it's the north face!
The attitude that a climb probably won't be the best in the world is a great one to go in there with... mostly because it won't, and secondly because when it isn't, you won't be too disappointed! I find that, and that a climb has an uncertain outcome, to be two of the great things to stuff in the backpack when you leave the car. Was just in the Tetons myself and found an incredibly fun route with no one near it - the E Ridge of Disappointment. COngrats again on your climb....
Thanks so much for this trip report. I did this route with Reave Castenholz and Tim Riordan in the early eighties. Reave died a couple of years ago, and your trip report brought him back. Thanks again.
Being Western Oregon climbers, we found the rock to be solid.
We did the same thing -- the yellow face, the 5.8 chimney system, and the getting up to the top and looking over at the true summit (thanks for the picture, by the way). The only difference was we spent 2 days in a cave at the base of the route during a rainstorm. I will never forget staring at the beautiful, complex, wall across the canyon as the rain came down, or Reave's consistent stoke as we climbed through the dank recesses towards the blue sky on the third day, or the knee pain as we ran down Teewinot.
Dan Dalton - Oct 10, 2006 6:02 pm - Voted 10/10
NiceTrip report. I am envious, and it sounds like you had quite the experience. I seem to remember your face from Teton Mountaineering; was in the Hole for three weeks this summer on work and got to do the middle. Awesome pics and description, keep up the good work,
Dan
PellucidWombat - Oct 11, 2006 1:14 am - Voted 10/10
Great Trip ReportNot only was that quite an adventure, but it was well-written too. Thanks for sharing!
Anneka - Oct 11, 2006 4:15 am - Hasn't voted
Thanks!Thank you both for the nice comments! I'm pretty excited... this is the first time I've made the front page! I also found a couple more good pictures of the route and put them up.
Anneka - Oct 11, 2006 8:49 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Fun and informative....Thanks again! I hope you are successful!
Andinistaloco - Oct 12, 2006 12:51 am - Voted 10/10
Cool story...and sorry about the bad route. I was just up in the Tetons too - manage to make it up there every other summer or so. So many good routes there... just bad luck that you found one of the really horrible ones!
Anneka - Oct 12, 2006 2:12 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Cool story...Thank you. I wouldn't say that it was horrible. Sure, the rock was rotten, but like I said... it's a mountaineering climb, not a great rock route. I went in with the attitude that it probably wouldn't be the greatest climb in the world (besides, if it were, everyone would be there!) but that it would still be a fun and exciting adventure, and it was. Sometimes it's routes like this that help you appreciate how good other ones are! Overlooked routes like this are what make the Tetons or any mountain range so interesting, ... you may have 14 terrifying and horrible pitches, but it's that one proud lead on gorgeous golden granite that makes it all worthwhile. In the end you can look back and see what an awesome adventure it was, and also have a good story to tell! Another neat thing about this route was we didn't see another soul the entire 22 hours I spent there. Routes like Irene's Arete, the Exum Ridge, Guide's Wall, Open Book, and Owen-Spalding are all amazing fun rock climbs on quality rock, but you have to wait in line behind 3 other teams before moving forward. No one climbs the North Face of the Grand because it's good rock (in fact it is some of the worst in the Tetons) but they climb it because, well... it's the north face!
Andinistaloco - Oct 17, 2006 1:40 am - Voted 10/10
Re: Cool story...The attitude that a climb probably won't be the best in the world is a great one to go in there with... mostly because it won't, and secondly because when it isn't, you won't be too disappointed! I find that, and that a climb has an uncertain outcome, to be two of the great things to stuff in the backpack when you leave the car. Was just in the Tetons myself and found an incredibly fun route with no one near it - the E Ridge of Disappointment. COngrats again on your climb....
Corax - Oct 12, 2006 10:07 pm - Voted 10/10
Nice storyI enjoyed reading this one.
schmid_th - Oct 13, 2006 7:13 am - Voted 10/10
Interesting story!Nice to read! Thanks for writing!
Thomas
Clarke Conant - Apr 30, 2014 1:04 pm - Hasn't voted
Same thing happened to me, in 1981Thanks so much for this trip report. I did this route with Reave Castenholz and Tim Riordan in the early eighties. Reave died a couple of years ago, and your trip report brought him back. Thanks again.
Being Western Oregon climbers, we found the rock to be solid.
We did the same thing -- the yellow face, the 5.8 chimney system, and the getting up to the top and looking over at the true summit (thanks for the picture, by the way). The only difference was we spent 2 days in a cave at the base of the route during a rainstorm. I will never forget staring at the beautiful, complex, wall across the canyon as the rain came down, or Reave's consistent stoke as we climbed through the dank recesses towards the blue sky on the third day, or the knee pain as we ran down Teewinot.
Thanks again for the great report!