Jackson Hole Pair Sends New Route

By Guest Writer, 2-12-07

	Caption: Squeeze Box route in red. Photos courtesy Stephen Koch

Hans Johnstone and I completed a new route on the north face of the Grand Teton, Squeeze Box ( IV, M7, A0, 1,000’ ), on Feb 6.

The line lies between Shea’s Chute and the Alex Lowe Memorial Route and ascends a weakness up a beautiful granite buttress.

I spotted the line during a flurry of activity with various partners in October 2004, which gave us the best ice conditions in the Tetons in years, and resulted in the Alex Lowe Memorial Route, which I climbed with Mark Newcomb. While skiing the Koven Couloir on Mount Owen on January 26, 2007, the unclimbed line looked in good enough condition for an attempt, which happened on January 28 with Brian Harder.

We had to remove a lot of snow to reveal the cracks, used for both ice ax hook placements and rock protection. We climbed about half the route but retreated due to approaching darkness. With the clear weather and high pressure continuing I was excited to make another attempt before the next storm cycle, which have been few and very far between this dry and cold winter.

Hans and I began skiing across the flats heading north from Taggart Bradley trailhead at 4 a.m. and began the more technical climbing up and onto the north face about 5 hours later. The climbing was both challenging and interesting with technical difficulties up to M7 (see below for rating explanation).

We encountered a challenging squeeze chimney, too narrow to climb facing in. The chimney, which offered little in the way of climbable ice for much of it, had me grunting and thrashing up on the lightly-featured granite.

Above this was a beautiful ice gully, which brought us to the black chimney. For the next two rope lengths we climbed steep rock with our ice axes and crampons. The
second to last pitch involved a tension traverse across smooth slabs to reach another set of bottomed-out seams that offered slightly more opportunity for the metal to catch on the minuscule and insecure features.

In spots, protection was not easy to obtain but the route unfolded nicely as we were treated to a beautiful Alpenglow on Teewinot.

With great desire to complete the route, I darted up the last pitch in the dark, aided by the light of my headlamp. While success was never guaranteed, we did finish the route, albeit, in the dark.

We rappelled the route and down-climbed across the Teton Glacier, arriving back to our skis. After switching boots and packing up, we made sweet turns on good snow down the glacier.

Lower down, the descent, with 30-plus-pound packs, became a bit of a nightmare when we broke through crust, sinking deep into the soft and unconsolidated snow.

This happened several times, resulting in spectacular face-plants. To add insult to injury, many of my face-plants ended with the pack smacking the back of my head, driving my face deeper into the snow. 

As I was excavating myself from one of these episodes, I was excited to discover a set of large wolf tracks at the bottom of Glacier Gulch.

After the wolf print sighting, we finally got to the flats where good snow conditions made for fast poling back to the car.

With mixed climbing techniques and skills increasing in climbing communities, there are countless opportunities for others to complete new routes on the north face of the Grand Teton and throughout the Teton range.

It is a matter of conditions and desire!

Squeeze Box rating:

IV Grade Four: A very, very long day
M7 Mixed Seven: Feels like 5.11+ rock climbing, usually some ice involved.
A0 Aid Zero: Aiders not required; carabiner handholds, piton footholds, pendulums and tension traverses, resting on gear.
1,000’: 1,000 feet long.

When not climbing, senior Exum Guide Stephen Koch works as a real estate agent for Art Hazen Real Estate and spends time with his wife, Saxon, and 6-month-old son Axl. More photos from the Squeeze Box climb can be found on his Web site www.stephenkoch.com.

Outside of his mountaineering adventures, Exum Guide and former Olympian Hans Johnstone spends time with his family and runs the Alpine House bed and breakfast in Jackson.