From the upper saddle (13,160'), hike and scramble 70m NNE to the common rope up point and belay under the Whittich Crack. Use the upper or lower crack's edge as jugs to traverse the small lodged rock of the “Belly Roll”. Continue on ledge north to reach the "crawl", which is more of a straddle than crawl. It is a ledge not more than 18" wide with an overhang above. The exposure here is very exciting. Continue traversing the ledge about 15' to the double chimney (P1).
Directly above this is the Double Chimney (P2).
Traverse right on the easy “Cat Walk” in dry conditions only or confront the crux “Owen Chimney” when the “cat walk is wet or icy. The Owen Chimney is the crux with stemming mantels along 4 fixed pitons and a slung block.
The route from here goes (southeast) east to a third, very large chimney called Sargent's Chimney (P3). Usually, exit the chimney on left. From the top of Sarg's, continue up and to the left. Pay careful attention to your ascent path from Sarg's, you'll need to find it on the down climb and it isn't obvious!
For the descent, down climb Sargents Chimney and then make your way to the left to a 120' rappel that drops you directly onto the upper saddle.
The route finding can be difficult, particularly on descent given the whole mountain shows signs of traffic. There are many variations to the route depending on conditions.
Buy the guidebook: "A Climber's Guide to the Teton Range" by Ortenburger & Jackson. It is perhaps the greatest guidebook ever written.
Getting up to the upper saddle from the lower saddle is a climb all unto itself. The guidebook provides an excellent description.
A small alpine rack is fine provided you are familiar with using natural features for belays and 5.4 climbing is easy for you.
The climb is quite easy but there is a stretch just after the "belly roll" with a 5.4 move and about 2000 feet of exposure. I believe you would land somewhere near the bottom of the Black Ice Couloir if you goofed up.
You need a rope anyway because you have to rap down - or down climb the exposed 5.4 move, which you wouldn't want to do.
So take a light rack and enjoy yourself. Beautiful climb! May 18, 2006
Boulder, CO
From above this route is difficult to find and it appears improbable. I've downclimbed it once unroped when dry, but this was with a person who had gone up it the week before. This is a quick way to bypass the crowded raps, but I wouldn't recommend it. Jul 5, 2006
Western North America
Just make sure to trend to rappeler's right as you descend, and you'll land on walking terrain a few feet right and uphill from where most folks (with 2 ropes or a single 70m) will land. It's probably a 95' rap.
-Scott Jul 26, 2010
Colorado Springs, CO
Omaha, NE
Jackson, WY
Greenville SC
Small Town, USA
mapleton utah
Cody, WY
Should be called the Langford-Stevenson Route if justice were to be had.
They had the first ascent, Spalding after corresponding with Langford had even agreed they had climbed the same route and were the first.
Nathaniel Langford and James Stevenson, July 29, 1872 FA Grand Teton, USA Aug 25, 2016
Fort Collins, CO
Quebec
Bloomington, MN
Orcutt, CA
SALT LAKE CITY
Have some respect for yourself and others - know how to rappel before attempting this. Practice a few times. Don't learn on the fucking Grand Teton and slow everyone down. Practice at your local crag, or even in a stairwell to get the hang of it. Practice getting your ATC on and off quickly. You probably don't need a prussik for this. You wouldn't believe the shenanigans I saw watching 20 people rappel in front of me, from comical to downright dangerous. People hooking their thumbs in the ATC guide loop to accelerate their rappel or something (wtf??), to pocket knives flying out of pockets mid rappel and almost killing people. The worst was the idiotic rope handling that added 2-3 hours to everyone's descent. Practice flaking your rope and setting up a rappel in smooth, efficient manner. Aug 18, 2020
Rexburg
Blowing Rock, NC
OH, WA, UT
Rexburg, ID
Las Vegas, NV
What is the shortest length of rope a party of two could use on the way up?
I'm thinking we could bring two 35m ropes, and then just use them together for the rap.
Less weight for the hike up, and easier to manage.
Also, what is the best time to start from the lower saddle to avoid the guided groups? Feb 19, 2023
Jackson, WY
Gaithersburg, MD
- Radios are critical. Otherwise you won’t be able to talk to your partner at key points in the climb.
- Even with intensive study before the climb, routefinding is a challenge. Lesson learned for next time that I need to get even more detailed in prep. In the worst case, we went the wrong way on a route below the catwalk which fit the description, which was pretty sketchy, but then were able to turn back.
- The climbing is easy. The grades are not sandbagged.
- I would highly recommend using a rope. We used a rope for P1 and P2 (and then took the catwalk instead of Owen’s Chimney)
- Weather could definitely get you up there without warning. There was a zero percent chance of precipitation for two days in the future, and then it rained pretty hard that night and hailed up on top. Aug 10, 2025