On the morning of June 25, 2022 Christain Gruner and I set out on the adventure of a lifetime. Grand Teton National Park is on the southeast edge of Yellowstone, in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The highest peak in this mountain range, "The Grand" abruptly rises at 13,775 feet above sea level- making it the highest moutnain I had attempted to summit to date. We planned to hike to 10,000 feet first night and then cap out at the lower saddle, then wake up at 3:00am for a summit attempt the next day. Temperatures would be near freezing, we would need climbing ropes, crampons, helments, and other helpful tools if we expected to make it. This was my first experiecne using all of these tools (aside from crampons). Despite its prominence, technical challenge, and stunning veiws- even this mountain would not adequately prepare me t0 summit Everest. But it was a great stepping stone to expose my body to multi-day endurance mountaineering, not to mention altitude.
We woke up at 6am, ate a huge breakfast, met with our guide, and set out to the base of the moutnain. To be clear, we would never have attempted this journey with the experience of our guide, Kai Gerard. Kai had just recievd his international certifcation from the American Mountain Guides Association. The company we hired him from was just as excited as he was about it. it was a big deal. He had tons of stories. Most notably, he had summited Denali in Alaska 5 times. With any luck, Denali would eventually be my last stop before Everest. But thats still a few years away. In any case, if I ever make it that far, Kai will be the first prerson I call to start training for it.
There were so many iconic experiences on this climb, I struggle to keep them all clear in my mind. One of the things I loved most was about half way to the lower saddle, Kai knelt down near a stream of glacial snow melt, dipped his chin in, and drank water fresh off the mountain. I brought water purifcation tablets, but Kai insisted me that we didn't need them. Chris and I follwed suit and drank from the mountain as well. When I tell you this water was fresh- I mean it was the best tasting water that ever touched my lips. It was perfect. after about 10 hours straigt of climbing uphill, we reached the lower saddle, set up a tent, and camped out for the night. This was the highlight of my trip. Chris and I were joking around about how we need to be respectful of other campers and "quiet down," because lights out was at 9:00. There were other people who also planned a summit push the next morning. The idea that we had a bedtime was hilarious to us. We laughed our guts out for 30 minutes straight, then rolled over and slept like babies. it was perfect.
The next morning, we woke up, put on all our gear (this took about an hour) ate breakfast, and headed for the summit. Our headlamps danced toward the upper saddle as we made our way to the begininng of the Owen Spalding route. Fatigue set in, our legs were drained from the day before, but we still had 4-5 hours of climbing, scrambling and clenching our buttholes until we reached the top. The hardest part of this mountain for me was the base of a pitch the locals call "the belly roll." There are a couple different ways to navigate this section, but I hear all the rookies do it the same way. Essentially we had to crawl down on our stomach on the edge of a 3,000 foot cliff, shimmy across, and then climb up a 30' rock face to keep making your way closer to the summit. I wouldn't take my phone out during this section for obvious reasons, but it was intense. I got that feeling in my stomach that tells any rational man with limited experience, "turn back you fool, you don't have what it takes- this isn't your mountain. Turn back now and enjoy the rest of your life." I swalloweed hard, ignored my gut, and kept pressing forward. The view of the ground below as the sun was rising made my palms sweat. There were a couple more challenges like this as well, but none as intense as this. Eventually we made it to the summit, took a few photos, and celebrated victory. It was such a cool journey!
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