Weather forecasts

Really good climbing, maybe some route finding (with lots of variations)

Resources

• https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105804852/irenes-arete
• https://www.summitpost.org/irene-s-arete/164644 (lots of good pitch-by-pitch descriptions)
• Steph’s writeup: http://www.stephabegg.com/home/tripreports/wyoming/disappointment
• Some good photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/dacus/sets/72157624912399758/with/4972144733/
• https://drdirtbag.wordpress.com/2011/06/25/disappointment-peak-irenes-arete-iii-5-8/

Gear

• 60m rope
• Rack?
  • Probably #0.3-#3, with doubles up to #2
  • Mountain Project: Gear to 3″
  • MP comment: Conservative rack would be doubles from 0.3-2 and one 3, bring all long slings as route wanders a bunch
  • Summitpost: Gear from small to #3, doubles in mid to hand size can be helpful
• Radios? No mentions, seems fine without?

Camping

You apparently can camp at the “Meadows”, which are 2,000 ft gain up from the trailhead (entire approach is like 3,200 ft gain). Permits must be obtained for any of the campsites, the day before at GTNP Jenny Lake Ranger Station, and are $35.

Map: https://www.nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/upload/garnet.pdf

National Park map: http://enjoyyourparks.com/uploads/Grand_Teton_National_Park_Map__PDF_.pdf (doesn’t have any backcountry campgrounds labeled)

Map

Time estimates

• Car-to-car
  • 12 hrs (Steph, group of 3 at “relaxed” pace)
• Approach
  • 3 hrs (Steph)
• Descent to car
  • Little less than 3 hrs (Steph)
• Climbing: 5 hrs (Steph, calculated by difference of approach/descent and total time)

Approach

The approach from the “caves” is the standard approach.

At the Caves-Lower Saddle trail junction (there’s a sign), turn off on a faint climbers trail and hike towards the base of the arete.

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Look for this tree, it marks the base of P1

Climb

Irene’s Arête is one of the more popular rock climbs in the Tetons, featuring seven pitches of excellent rock and exposure up an aesthetic knife-edge ridge crest. This ridge is the one in profile when looking east from the Caves (just above Garnet Canyon), and is relatively easy to access. Many variations are possible on this route.

Steph

Pitch 1 – 5.7

Climb shallow cracks to the right of the crest and belay at a flake.

Pitch 2 – 5.8

Up a hand crack and pass two fixed pitons to belay ledge on right side of crest.

The start is the crux of the pitch (a buldge) but the feet are good and there is a piton just above the bulge that you can clip before making a committing move if you know to look for the piton. But the piton is old, so Steph backed it up with a 0.75 cam.

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Pitch 3 – 5.7 (or 5.9)

Begin just left of crest with face climbing (runnout but easy) leading out right to a left-facing corner in a black-rock area and continue up around around to left side of arete to ledge. Really fun climbing.
Variation: Crack on climbers’ right, 5.9.

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Pitch 4 – 5.8

Climb on either side of the crest, going up on face to an area of black rock, past an overhang and face climb steep groove to sloping ledge.
Variation: climb a crack directly above the belay, 5.8.

Steph took the direct start which is one of the 5.8 variations to the start (I think the original route goes left around the arete a bit according to the route description). This is a really fun pitch on steep juggy solid rock.

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Pitch 5 – 5.7 (or 5.9)

Climb on left of crest via cracks and face to gain horizontal knife-edge section of the ridge.
Variation: Climb a corner directly upward, 5.9.

Belay off of a large block on the ridge.

Steph climbed the direct corner 5.9, said it’s quite steep at the top.

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Pitch 6 – 5.7 (or 5.8 or 5.9+)

Descend 150 feet to the right and climb a break in the wall.
Variation 1: Climb arete crest directly, 5.9+.
Variation 2: Fist crack to right of tree, 5.8.

Steph climbed a weakness to the right of the tree but just left of the 5.8 fist crack, said the fist crack would have probably been a better choice.

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Pitch 7 – Easy 5th, 200′

200 feet of easier climbing gains summit plateau.

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Summit

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Descent

Going down to Amphitheater Lake involves some class 4 slabs that you can rope up for

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Plans