Is Grand Teton in the Cascades?

[dmuja]

Ok, I know its not - but I'm just wondering about the Exum Ridge route of the Grand T. If you've done it, some first hand beta might help...

 

dmuja

[willstrickland]

Go on a weekday. Last week of August or first week of Sept. Do the Direct. Skip the mank 4th class approach pitch by continuing right about 35 yards and then back left on grassy ramps. Chockstone chimney has two chockstones, go over one and behind one. Make sure you get the Black Face pitch, 5th pitch if you count the chockstone chimney as the 1st. If there are slow moving crowds in front of you, you can escape left after pitch 2? or 3? and pick up the Wall St ramp to the upper Exum. Be at the base of the route at dawn, move fast and get down before 1pm if at all possible, thunderstorms can be nasty up there.

 

The lower exum is the best climbing on the route, I've done the direct twice and I wouldn't do the upper section by itself. There are other really good climbs up that way too. If you're going to hike all the way up there, do Irene's Arete on the way up, and the NW couloir on Middle the day after you do the exum. One of the best trips I've ever had was doing those in a 4 day, 3 night deal with a rest day where we just moved from Irene's to the saddle before doing the exum. We carried over the middle on the last day and descended the SW couloir. You can also leave your stuff at the saddle and rap/downclimb the N. Ridge then reverse your approach to the NW couloir.

[cluck]

Haven't done the Exum direct, but I thought the upper Exum ridge was fantastic. Mostly 3rd and 4th class scrambling on excellent rock. There are a couple of low 5th class pitches (Unsoeld's Lieback, Friction Pitch) but there are plenty of opportunities for variations to make it as hard as you like. Make sure you've got the route wired as many parties waste time wandering off route and you don't want to be up high when the afternoon thunderstorms come rolling in. Descend the Owen-Spalding route and Bring 2 ropes for the long, overhanging rappel.

[Rodchester]

Don't need two 50s, if you have a 60 meter it will reach for the rap off.

 

fun fun fun.

[Thinker]

Stay an extra day or 2 and do the Petzoldt Ridge and Irene's Arete after the Exum.

[ken4ord]

You can also do the rap in two rappels, ie single 50m rope

[klenke]

Ken is right, you can rap in two rappels from the standard rappel point, so no need to carry two ropes. There might even be another party in the general area with which you can team up to combine ropes for a double-rap. This is what we did. It saves time in the long run if the other team is only two people. If they're six or so, then the extra waiting for them all to rap to get your half of the ropes back is not worth it (you can do two singles quicker).

 

Doug, knowing your technical climbing level (as you've described it to me), I would say the Lower Exum is not the route for you. You'd only want to do the Upper Exum. Traverse in from Wall Street to do it. The airy step across from the end of Wall Street to the beginning of the Upper Exum is not really all that difficult. It protects well enough and the belay anchor is solid.

 

Much to my chagrin I only got to lead the cheesier pitches (the unluck of the draw when you're a team of three). The friction pitch I didn't lead but imagined it would be freaky for a beginner leader. The climbing's not really hard but the protection isn't good (the rock is mostly featureless with little nubbins for holds).

 

I agree that going on a weekday (also when T-storms not imminent) would be best. The route is a real cluster#$%& on a weekend. When we were there, we even had a ranger team free-climb the route past us. My buddy was on the friction pitch half-sketched when these three rangers breeze right past him.