Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Middle Teton, SW couloir

There are two mountain goals I made this summer:
1) climb the Middle Teton
2) backpack the Teton Crest trail
Checked #1 off the list yesterday with Sven and Brenna. It was great not needing to wake up super-duper early for this one-- we left at 6:30am. The weather looked great and while it's the 3rd highest peak in the range, it's still almost 1,000ft lower than the Grand and way less technical (no roped climbing here). It would have been a hike, but the early season snow made it crampon/ice ax worthy (which I prefer anyway. . . easier on the knees going down and I am terrible at manuvering over boulder fields in general, but even worse pregnant). 

Brenna and I leaving Sven in the dust. . . we look good in a fake run. 

Sven and I makeing our way across the meadows. The Middle is the obvious mountain in the photo and we are so not even close to the saddle here. . . still 2,500ft of snow and boulders. 
still climbing to the saddle . . .

still climbing to the saddle . . . switching from snow to boulders means ditching crampons and axes and gracefully (or not so gracefully) tip-toeing across the rocks like some kind of alpine ballerina. 

hello Idaho! and at the saddle. Iceflow lake is below us just starting to thaw. 
Quick break on the tundra. Gummy bears, trisquits, cheese, gulp of water, marmots, bathroom break and photos. 
Then up the SW coulior:
Nothing like couple photos and Sven singing songs about how everyone should be like his wife to make you feel like a third wheel. . . kidding. I love being a third wheel! Especially if it means getting out in the peaks while Brian watches Liesel all day . . . maybe I should sing a song about how everyone should be like Brian. 
Obligatory summit shot. Me + 5 month old-baby-in-the-womb. . . won't be too many more days like this for me in the next few months!
heading down at 1:30 from the saddle. . .   
Me and Brenna descending. All 6,000ft back to the car and back to basecamp. 

Good day. Good friends. Good man to watch my good baby. Good spaghetti and good ben&jerry's 
(I found out on my emergency ice-cream run that the Jenny Lake general store prices each flavor of Ben and Jerry's differently-- is it legal to charge $2 more for Phish Food than Chubby Hubby)? 



8 comments:

sNick said...

I was at dinner with a friend tonight who said she visiting the States and was with two boys up in the Tetons who said they wanted to take her on a walk. Ten hours later they had climbed the Grand. She now officially hates hiking. I'm still waiting for the pictures to verify the story, but I think she knows what she was talking about, and if she does, that's just CRAZY.

I like your new title font, PS.

gail said...

Angela you rock, when I was pregnant I had a hard time getting from one end of the house to the other! Heck, I can't do what you are doing now. You are something. Love reading about your adventures! Enjoy

Catherine said...

WOW!! What an awesome hike! Seriously. I am so impressed that you did that 5 months pregnant! The view looks amazing. Seems like you made really good time. I love the footnote about B&J's....that's crazy!

Lindsey said...

girl you crasy. crasyintense! awesome. I can't wait for Fat Camp August 2012!

Leslie said...

You are so tough. I know you made this look way easier than it was. Glad you got to tick it off!

Dan~Alyssa said...

wow I am totally jealous! looks like it was a blast and you don't even seem like the extra prego weight slowed you down! so I feel lame saying I am from Idaho and not knowing this, but which of the tetons are hike-able vs. climbable? and the climbable one I have heard is multi-pitch trad climbing averaging like 5.8/9?

gc.hatch said...

Wow, Angela! I can't believe you pulled this off 5 months pregnant! The view is absolutely spectacular - way scarey! I couldn't get past the saddle because of the steep drop off on the side. Is the summitt really as narrow and small at that picture makes it look? Glad you made it back safely and coodoos to Brian for watching Liesel so you didn't have to carry her on your back the whole way.

Jerry said...

Awesome, Ang! I love the pictures. You look so happy, so tough, so at-one-with-the-earth, so amazing! I'm glad you got to check #1 off your list. And I'm glad that you made it up and back safely (some of those pictures look a little intense).

P.S. I like the layout of the pictures (with two side by side, etc). Props to you!