Hiking the Grand Teton isn't your typical day hike — it's 14 miles, ~7,500 ft of elevation gain, and at 13,000+ ft you have multiple exposed climbing sections and a 120 ft rappel over a hanging ledge. As someone who likes to be challenged, when I moved to Jackson in 2019 it was, obviously, one of the first things I wanted to accomplish.
That summer a friend and I found someone to take us up — and it was quite the experience. One of the main no-nos in the mountains is getting caught in an afternoon storm, and 700 ft from the top, that's exactly what happened. At 13,000ft a cloud of hail & thunder rolled in on us and for an hour we climbed in the storm nervous that lightning could strike at any moment killing or seriously injuring us all. In the end, the storm subsided just enough for us to make it to the top and after 16 hours and 13 minutes of hail, thunder, snow, rain & sun we made it to the top and back.
Over the next 6 years of living in Jackson, I wanted a redemption run up the Grand — but based on my previous experience, it wasn't on the top of my list. I climbed as many peaks and canyons as I could in the area instead. Eventually, not having the skills necessary to navigate the terrain on my own started eating at me so in the winter of 2025, I decided it was time to learn.
I told my friend Craig about the goal and he was 100% in. When the off-season came around, Craig called and asked: "What do you think about getting trained for the Grand in the Scottish Highlands?" The answer was an absolute no-brainer. I was in.
One of the most technical mountain ranges in the British Isles — jagged gabbro ridges, exposed scrambles, weather that turns in minutes. Two days with our guide Pete. Everything we needed.
The first day we got our bearings on rock climbs before Pete started teaching us how to place gear and build anchors. It was all new to us — stuff I'd wanted to understand for years but had absolutely no clue how to do. Pete was incredibly knowledgeable and gave us the foundation.
The exposure was real — 50 feet of air below us while we worked through systems that would need to be second nature on the Grand.
Day two we climbed a local Munro — still no idea how to pronounce it — putting every skill to use on actual exposed terrain. Scrambling, placing protection, moving as a rope team, rappelling. These were exactly the skills we'd need on the Grand. By the end, we knew we were ready for practicing in the Tetons.
Once we got back to Jackson, it was game on. Training, gear, fitness — all of it pointed at one objective.
If you know me, you know I love gear. I'll happily spend hours researching the best options — ropes, cams and nuts, harnesses, helmets, carabiners, tag lines, walkie-talkies. Probably way too much time, but that's part of the fun for me.
Once the gear arrived, we started practicing at local climbing spots and getting comfortable with the rope systems we had learned. A couple highlights on the fitness side were a 6-mile bike, 11-mile jog, 6-mile bike day with my buddy Scott, hiking Disappointment Peak with Craig, and Delta Lake with Sam.
Training was only part of the preparation. Throughout the summer, I was constantly gathering beta from friends who'd already climbed the route and reading everything I could find online.
A few days before the climb, we practiced rope systems in Craig's living room and rigged anchors around the condenser units in my concrete backyard.
13,775 feet. The preparation was done. Now it was just about execution.
Which is exactly what you hope for. The biggest challenge was completely running out of energy about 750 feet below the summit. Had to stop and stuff my face.
The other was getting mentally broken by the endless loose rock section called the Moraine — it felt like I was going to fall every ten feet, and it took us an hour to go about a mile. Afterwards, I found a quiet spot next to a waterfall, sat down, and reset. After that, I was good to go. 5 miles and 3 hours later, we were done.
"After 13 hours and 42 minutes, 14 miles, and 7,000 feet of elevation gain — we got it done."
Scotland, training days, gear research, practicing rope systems in living rooms and on backyard condenser units — it all added up. Once Craig and I committed to building the skills, the goal slowly went from feeling impossible to feeling inevitable. 2 summers ago, I didn't have the skills. Now I do.
Summer 1 goal: self-guide the Grand with Craig. Done. Summer 2 goal: take friends up. Two buddies, one historic climb, one perfect day.
Two of my buddies here in the Tetons were absolutely stoked to go up. They took the training seriously — started climbing mountains in early May, and one of them even stopped drinking for 3.5 months.
The climb was also kind of historic for these guys. Braiden was to follow in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, Joe Dewey, who climbed the Grand in 1924 and is recorded as part of the 10th group ever to summit. Cody was following in the footsteps of his uncle — one of the rare few astronauts to walk on the moon.
8 days before the trip, the summer smoke rolled in and blanketed the valley. Every day leading up was really rough — visibility low & poor air quality. I warned the guys I'd have to cancel if the smoke was bad enough. In the end, we all agreed to make the call the morning of. Cody spent the night, alarms set for 1 AM and we noticed something really promising when we got to the trailhead — stars!
"The smoke was a non-issue. We got an absolutely beautiful day — a little Jesus-blessing."
The 2 days after our climb were smoky and the following 3 were rainy and stormy. We found the one perfect window in an otherwise rough stretch. 16 hours and 50 minutes. Done.
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