Grand Teton - Exum Ridge

A funny thing happened this summer.  What started out as idle scheming, nothing different from what always goes on, magically became an amazing reality.  Matt Palubinskas, Matt Jillson and I got away for a 5-day road trip to the enchanting playground known as the Tetons.  I'd been there as a young boy with my family, but couldn't remember anything about the place except the sweet t-shirt I'd gotten on that trip.  It was time to go back.  Matt and Matt had a profound love of the place, fueled by earlier climbing trips, and wanted to go back to tick off a harder route on the Grand.  As is typical for my style - I dove headlong into the guidebooks and talked to anyone I knew who'd done any significant climbing there.  I wanted to do something hard and avoid crowds.  I initially became intrigued by doing a traverse called the Cathedral Traverse, which links 3 of the many peaks on the Grand Traverse, Teewinot, followed by Mt. Owen, finishing on the North Ridge of the Grand.  Jillson was enthusiastic, but Matty, the most experienced with three prior Tetons trips, was nervous.  He was probably right.  We ended up deciding on the Full Exum Ridge, Grade III, 5.7.  Perhaps one of the most well-known alpine rock routes in the country, it was hard to scoff too much at that.

867 miles of driving ensued.  I met Matt and Matt in Moses Lake, as I was coming down from several days of camping in Winthrop.  I stuffed my gear into Jillson's little red Jetta hatchback and we set off.  We finally pulled into Jackson at 11pm and got a tent site at the Gros Vente Campground just outside the National Park.   

The next morning was crystal clear, and I got my first view of the Tetons as we drove into the park:     





We were at the Jenny Lake Rangers' Station by 8am in order to get a permit, and despite being 3rd in line, the Lower Saddle sites were already full (damn Exum Guides!).  We settled on Moraine permits, packed, and set off.  The hike up Garnet Canyon to the Moraine took about 5 hours at a leisurely pace.  What an awesome place!  I wanted to climb everything in sight.  We arrived at the Moraine around 2:30 pm, started setting up tents, when Jillson pulls out not one, but a full 6-pack of Two Beers IPA!  Dehydrated, tired, and feeling the 10,500 ft of elevation, one beer made us all a little loopy, but really hit the spot!

Jillson knocks one back:

We met three other groups at the Moraine who were all planning on doing the Full Exum the following day.  Since we were climbing as a threesome, which none of us had done much of beforehand, we didn't want to be first and slow everyone else down, but we wanted to get up there early enough to beat the predictable afternoon thunderstorms.  On our approach day, they came through quickly at 3pm, and were gone soon after.  That evening felt like hell.  I don't know if it was altitude, or if I ate something bad.  I had the shits, and felt so bad that I talked about bailing the following day if I didn't improve.  This was new for me - I've never even considered not completing a climb I'd come a long way to do.  We settled on a 4am alarm time, and crashed out.  Luckily in the morning, I felt like a million bucks.

In the morning we ended up being the third party on the route, with one party of three behind us.  The two parties in front of us were both twosomes.  Following others in the morning helped avoid wasting time searching for the route in the dark, and we were able to walk straight to it.  By the time we racked up and sorted gear it was getting light.

Jillson checks out the sunrise on the Middle Teton from the base of the route:

Matt P. wasn't feeling that well, so the plan was to put him in the middle, and for Jillson and I to swap leads for the entire Lower Exum, 6 pitches.  Then Matt P. would lead the entire Upper Exum, as he'd climbed it before.  I took the first lead since I had all the pro already.  Another guy at the bottom said, "Lucky you, that means you get all the money pitches!"  I was okay with that.  The first two pitches were 5.6, then the last 4 were 5.7.  The first pitch followed a chimney with a few chockstones.  The previous two parties climbed the face just to the right of the chimney, so I followed them.  Apparently this is a harder variation, which makes sense because it felt pretty stiff for 5.6 climbing.  At the time I just thought it was the early time, the altitude, or that I was just rusty.  But it probably goes at 5.7 or 5.8, was really solid, and super fun.

Me nearing the top of the first pitch:

Matt P. brings up Jillson from the top of the first pitch:

Jillson led the second pitch, which started off with an easy ramp, and then transitioned into a steeper dihedral that was really fun.  I was struck by how solid the rock was - more so than any Cascades rock I'd ever climbed.

Jillson on pitch two:

On the third pitch, the climbing just got better and better.  It was steep, hard rock, 5.7 climbing.  Kind of like a little preview to the famous "Black Face" on the fifth pitch.  I took the lead, and brought the crew up to the little alcove up top.

Matt brings up Jillson from the top of the third pitch:

At this point I was feeling a little bad for Jillson.  The fourth pitch above us looked fine, but pretty short.  If Jillson led it, then I'd get the famous Black Face pitch, and we'd be almost done with the Lower Exum.  I proposed an alternative.  We'd let Matt P. lead the the fourth pitch chimney, Jillson would take the Black Face, and I'd finish off the Lower Exum.  That way Matty got to lead part of the route, and Jillson would get one of the money pitches and I would hog all the best ones.  Matty P. was a bit reluctant, but racked up and dove headfirst into the chimney.

Matt emerges from the chimney after placing some gear:

The Black Face of pitch 5 looked a bit daunting, but according to the guide "the holds are all there".  Jillson asked for my chalk bag, which hadn't come out yet, made Matt combine and carry his pack, and then set off.  He climbed slow and deliberate, but when asked, said he was having fun.  He finally let out a whoop of elation as he reached to belay alcove.  Matt P. put in some strong work by following with quite a massive pack, and I cleaned.  What a killer pitch of alpine climbing!  Hard rock, fun moves, good protection, and a stellar setting.

Jillson chalks up on the Black Face:

Matty follows with a big pack:

 I took the sixth pitch.  Another 5.7 pitch, it dropped over onto the the other side of the ridge, and then ascended a long dihedral until the Wall Street and the start of the Upper Exum Ridge was reached.  I transitioned out onto the Wall Street ramp and made the friction step-around move without any pro, but didn't find it very hard.  The other guys chose to stick to the dihedral, avoiding Wall Street altogether, and joined me at the spacious ledge as we ate, enjoyed the feeling of having completed the Lower Exum, and prepared for some simulclimbing above.

Matt P. on the sixth pitch:

The Upper Exum Ridge was stellar as well.  It was mostly low-5th class with some mid-5th class moves, and we simul-climbed the entire thing with Matt P. leading.  He did manage to take one 5.8 variation at one point, at which point I pulled on a cam and Jillson pulled on the rope in the spirit of moving quickly and getting through it.

Jillson enjoys fun climbing and nice exposure on the Upper Exum: 

Matt P. leads a mid-5th class section:

Me and Matt Jillson on the Upper Exum:

More exposure on the Upper Exum:

 We topped out on the Upper Exum around 2:30pm.  Matt P. was exhausted, feeling a similar illness to mine the night before.  Since he'd been to the summit of the Grand twice before and wouldn't be covering any new ground at this point, he elected to wait at the top of the descent route while Jillson and I tagged the summit.  Some 4th class and easy 5th class on the Owen Spaulding route led us to the true summit around 3pm.  13,770 feet!  We'd been keeping our eye on some clouds, which thankfully had chosen to pass well to our North, so we were in no real danger of storm activity.

Me on top of the Grand Teton, 13,770ft:

Matt on top:

We hung out for around 30 minutes, and then scrambled back down to rejoin Matt and start our long descent.  We would be descending the Owen Spaulding route, which involved one double-rope rappel, and then lots of 4th class downclimbing to regain the Lower Saddle.  Of note, two ropes are recommended for the rappel, but it can be done on a single 60-meter rope.

Me starting the rappel:

The lower half of the rappel is pretty fun as it is free-hanging:

A view of Wall Street (the big ramp) and the Exum Ridge from the descent down the Owen Spaulding:

After dealing with route-finding issues on the winding Owen Spaulding and a stuck rope on an unplanned rappel on the way down, we finally made it back to camp around 6pm, exhausted.  More IPA's followed.  That night a serious storm rolled through, bringing high winds to 75mph, rain, and hail.  All the groups that headed up the mountain the following morning turned around, and were headed down the valley by the time we got up and broke camp.  The hike out took around 3 hours, and we made a bee-line straight for Signal Lake, and one of the most refreshing swims of my life! 

Matt and Matt swimming in Signal Lake, with Mount Moran as the backdrop:

 That afternoon we headed into Jackson.  Amazing beef brisket sandwiches were washed down by several solid pints at Snake River Brewing, cowboy hats were purchased, the Teton Boulder Project was sampled, mini-golf was played, more beer was consumed.  What a day!  We felt like it kept on going and going, and we didn't want it to end.

Cowboy hats at the antler arch in Jackson:

We spent one more night at the Gros Vente Campground, and in the morning made the drive back to the Signal Mountain Lodge for a hearty, all-local, all-organic meal to fuel our long drive home.  It was well worth-it.

We were also treated to crystal-clear skies again and killer views of the Grand:

The drive home was long, but we were all excited to be reunited with the women in our lives, and that kept the car speeds up and made the miles melt away.  What an amazing route, amazing mountain, amazing area.  I hope to be back again someday.  There is plenty more to do.