On October 26th and 27th, 2024, Bobbi Clemmer and I did a Saturday/Sunday double dip in Grand Teton National Park, climbing the Reticent Wall (5.8, III) on Saturday and joining Lainey Fellows and Will Dietz for a classic Baxter’s Pinnacle lap on Sunday.
It’s been another wonderful, intense and memorable alpine climbing season in Grand Teton National Park. This weekend marked the definitive end to summer rock climbing as we know it. Since having injured her shoulder on the Snaz in mid-August, the Alpine Peanut had been sticking to a minimalist diet of easy alpine faire spliced with an intentional shift towards ski season strength training. After taking a few weekends off from climbing she was brimming with energy and ready to scurry towards the sky without apprehension. October 26th is the latest either of us had climbed summer-style in the park. The nights are longer, days shorter and colder, and a few wicked weather pulses delivered a steady sheen of white to any aspect without direct sunlight above valley level. We chose the Reticent Wall because of a steep easterly aspect, rumors of excellent rock, and because 5.8 represents our magical middle ground between totally casual – 5.7 – and pretty darn physical – 5.9. Bobbi has made an intentional shit towards consistent trad leading this summer, and was eager to try and onsight her first pitch of 5.8 in the high alpine. I was just happy to be back in big places with my best friend, eager to support her progression.
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Right in line with its accolades, the Reticent Wall proved to be a truly excellent rock climb for the grade. Atypical for the Tetons, the route offered long and sustained pitches of intriguing climbing on a squeaky clean wall far steeper than one would expect for 5.8. All five pitches offered memorable movement and features. Perhaps the most interesting was a hand traverse on pitch one, crossing leftward from a layback flake to an easier crack system by way of a blank face cleaved by a single horizontal splitter crack. One measly incut foothold spanning the 20 foot gap between cracks forced an almost dynamic lunge and foot-swap that evoked distant images of the “Dyno Pitch” on Astro Elephant. Pitch two was Bobbi’s 5.8 testpiece, reportedly the crux of the route, ascending a spitter thin hands crack in a shallow dihedral, then once again bouncing left to an adjacent crack system with a few committing stem maneuvers. Watching her piece together the pitch was inspiring, as there were many sections where she was forced to climb further between protection points than she wanted in order to preserve the pump – hard trad climbing 101. And then you have pitch three, which unlike the description we found to be the actual crux, and fittingly fell into my hands – a truly four star pitch ascending a very steep leaning crack with two wedged layback flakes – unrelenting, powerful and exhausting for 5.8. We swung leads through two more 5.7 pitches to a timely 4:00PM summit at approximately 10,000 feet. Changing into jackets, snacking and rigging for rappel with a backdrop of Mount Owen’s Northeast Snowfields conjured deep efrequencies of change. The mountains are so powerful. Sometimes, if you listen closely, you can truly feel their persona in your bones. Today we were well aware that contrary to what the crusty locals may say, winter is coming.
Our descent from the Reticent Wall was filled with endless faff which included one stuck rope that needed to be cut, and a second stuck rope above pitch one I was able to retrieve by soloing to the anchor via ledges further south. The sandbagged approach “scramble” which featured at least one step of significant fifth class foolery, required a rope at two different points for comfort on the descent. In classic alpine fashion we got back to the car far later than expected, right around 9:00PM, approximately 13 hours after departure.
A stealthy camp in who-knows-where and a particularly cloudy sky afforded us the ability to sleep in later than expected on Sunday. We rendezvoused with Lainey Fellows and Will Dietz around 10:00AM and jetted off on the extremely short approach to the Tetons’ most accessible multi-pitch – Baxter’s Pinnacle. Both Bobbi and I had climbed Baxter’s at least five times, but got to experience the awe of this excellent route through Lainey and WIll’s eyes, neither of whom had. In fact, this was Will’s first GTNP climb. We boogied quickly as two teams of two, Bobbi and I swapping leads and Lainey rope gunning Will. Three gentle rope-lengths up to 5.7 brought us to the final 5.9 pitch on the intimidating, golden, hundred foot namesake pinnacle. Once again Bobbi stepped up to the plate, leading this pitch for her first time, which features some very committing moves above small protection right off the ground. From the summit we extended our anchor over the edge to watch Lainey and Will climb, an excellent viewpoint which made me feel like a Reel Rock filmer. Watching Lainey hike the remarkably exposed last pitch with virtually no alpine lead experience, then watching Will follow with with commendable poise for a new rock climber, was a delight to watch. Our four person pow-wow on the summit was an fitting way to cement a new friendship, pitted against the lovely backdrop of the Cathedral Group – The Grand Teton, Mount Owen and Teewinot.
All things considered I couldn’t have asked for a better way to cap the alpine season, and am finally spiritually ready to welcome winter. Despite holding a lurking feeling of not climbing enough in the alpine this year, my log reflects a total of 139 pitches across 23 routes – funny how forgetful the mind can be. Rather than climbing a harder grade, the major success of summer 2024 was becoming far more confident, expedient and proficient at the 5.10 grade, which last year brought many quiet tantrums. I also got to establish my first new route, and rope gun my first Grade IV 5.10 wall. Bobbi’s progress is undoubtedly captured in the blossoming of her alpine lead ability. We swung leads on three different routes up to 5.9, and she even led the Owen-Spalding with another chica – the Peanut had never climbed in the alpine without me before. As for this weekend, it doesn’t get much better than 10 sunny pitches in the world’s most beautiful mountains, and a night of camping with cool air beneath a crystal clear starscape. Winter is on the way, but six months from now I’ll be eagerly awaiting another warm season in the promise land.
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DISCLAIMER
Ski mountaineering, rock climbing, ice climbing and all other forms of mountain recreation are inherently dangerous. Should you decide to attempt anything you read about in this article, you are doing so at your own risk! This article is written to the best possible level of accuracy and detail, but I am only human – information could be presented wrong. Furthermore, conditions in the mountains are subject to change at any time. Ten Thousand Too Far and Brandon Wanthal are not liable for any actions or repercussions acted upon or suffered from the result of this article’s reading.
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