Great day yesterday climbing and skiing the Ford/Stettner route on the Grand Teton with Brian Harder, Reed Finlay and Dustin Lemke. We got a 4 AM start and broke trail, booting from the meadows all the way to the summit…and my quads were quivering at the end of the day. We had a leisurely pace, it was a 13 hour day and my Suunto read a total of 7800′. The temps were very warm up high, but we had great powder skiing in the Ford Couloir. It was awesome!!! It was Brian’s first descent…so he was psyched, and both Reed and Dustin got their second, it was my third and definitely best one yet.
Just a photo TR today, gotta get back in the mountains…asap! Hover the mouse over the photos for descriptions. Thanks!
Way to get after it today, very nice work. Powder off the Grand Summit (shaking head) unbelievable.
nice shots Steve!
looks like a serious trip!
how much of a threat would be rockfall on the culoar?
does an early start make it safer?
Fantabulous bro! I am green with envy as I sit behind my desk. Very, very nice. Thank you.
amazing photos!
pictures like that make one second guess the direction they may have taken in life. Perhaps I should sell my kids, quit my job and get back after it. very impressive
Pictures of the bulge in the chevy and in stettner make it look almost easy, at least as that term is compared to the condition it was in the last time i was in there on the first of june a couple of years ago.
Did just one person have ice tool? did you all have? did some just have alpine axe? Curious as to what gear the crux of the couloirs required.
That pitch in the Chevy is one of my favorites on the Grand. Looks phat. No rock step this year?
Congrats, boys.
Bromio,
13 hours? What, are you getting slow in your old age? Ha-Ha!! Seriously though, that’s awesome. Nice work to all the boys. Keep it up, oh and perhaps suggesting to certain people to have a regular bowel movement might help them relax a litte with the negative comments.
Peace.
Alex,
Not much rockfall in the cooly, but some snow and ice coming off from above with the warm temps. Most of the time the earlier the better is the rule of thumb.
Gman,
We all had ice tools and we simul-climbed everything. My friends have used a couple mountaineering axes in the past…but I’d much rather have tools.
Angiush,
No rocks to speak of.
Lucius,
Yeah right…I’m saving my speed ascent for later this season 😉
i skied the southwest on the middle on the 24 and saw your tracks, way to go. the southwest and the cave were smooth windpack all the way to the meadows. i met you on avi bowl early season, and we took a 3 or 4 laps together. keep sending it.
Dude, I was sitting at work the other night thinking I’d had a pretty good day skiing @ the Pass.
Then I saw your post and it pretty much ruined my night. Way to get after it!
Thanks Colin!
I’ve been afraid to ski the pass lately. So right back at ya!
[…] Last week’s warming at higher elevations, followed by more cold, has helped stabilize the snowpack, allowing skiers and riders to explore places they usually would avoid during more dangerous storm cycles. Rando Steve and friends, for instance, skied powder on the Grand Teton on Jan. 25. If you haven’t seen the photos, check ‘em out. Brad Boner of the JH Daily got a shot of the tracks the following day. […]
[…] Last week’s warming at higher elevations, followed by more cold, has helped stabilize the snowpack, allowing skiers and riders to explore places they usually would avoid during more dangerous storm cycles. Rando Steve and friends, for instance, skied powder on the Grand Teton on Jan. 25. If you haven’t seen the photos, check ‘em out. Brad Boner of the JH Daily got a shot of the tracks the following day. […]
[…] it be okay to remove all the anchors in the Ford/Stettner Route on the Grand Teton? Or what about an anchor at the top of the crux in the Apocalypse Couloir? […]