Trip Report: Grand Teton - Exum Ridge
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Grand Teton - Exum Ridge By Nathan C |
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| CLIMBING | 07/17/2026 | ALL |
| Our journey began on Thursday night at the AAC Climbers' Ranch, a dirtbag oasis nestled at the base of the Tetons. There, the team assembled to divvy up gear, finalize plan details, and pack in for a good night's rest before the big hike to come. Despite delays in permit pickup, we still escaped much of the day's heat while switchbacking up the Lupine Meadows trail and into Garnet Canyon. A scenic display of wildflowers, and the towering cathedrals of granite surrounding us, helped take the edge off our heavy packs as we plodded into camp on the Moraine, some 4000 feet above where the day started. Though evening rains had lulled us to sleep, 3:30 still came early. We broke camp and marched onward past the Lower Saddle with a conservative, but deliberate pace. After no small amount of scrambling, we roped up at the base of Wall Street - a sidewalk in the sky which narrows to an airy gap called the "step-across", where an airy move with 1500 feet of air beneath your feet marks the start of the Exum Ridge. From there, the Exum Ridge ascends the prominent Southern skyline of the Grand for 1500 vertical feet. Breathtaking views of the Middle Teton and beyond only further cement this route's iconic status. Sections of scrambling are broken up by frequent 5th class steps and several pitches of sustained rock climbing. For those who had trained on alpine rope skills in the weeks and months prior, now was the time to perform - and perform they did! Matt and Jorge took point on the first half of the route, yielding the lead to Steph and Dan around the Jern Dihedral. Steph rose to meet the crux of the route, the "Friction Pitch", head-on - sending it after some well-timed jazzing-up from a local Jackson celebrity out for a solo mission. Dan cashed in on full-value exposure during the V-Pitch, a dihedral which drops dead vertical off the mountain's Western face. Nathan helped both teams with routefinding and beta, occasionally hopping on a "fix-and-follow" line to protect the crux pitches. All enjoyed the final few moves onto the summit ridge - the airy "Boulder Problem In the Sky" Despite going in with questionable weather forecasts, we lucked out with warm temperatures and benign cloud cover - though a massive avalanche on the Middle Teton Glacier would remind us of the dynamic environment we were in. From the summit we took in beautiful views of Cascade Canyon, Alaska Basin, and other features as we happily and uneventfully made the two rappels to the Upper Saddle, then picked our way down loose scree and talus back to camp. Our freeze-dried meals were extra tasty that evening! The final day was marked by the long slog back out of Garnet Canyon. By now, most had sworn off ever carrying heavy packs up there again. Rallying in town for beers and celebratory slices of pizza, we remarked on our accomplishments for the weekend. Steph claimed redemption after a grueling single-day push up the Owen-Spalding last year. Dan, Matt, and Jorge realized the efforts of their training on one of America's most iconic climbing routes. Nathan bagged his 9th summit on the Grand, and got even more stoked for the upcoming single-day push only a month away. If you're viewing this digitally, be sure to check out Dan's video of the trip. |
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