Climbing Middle Teton

On my day off last week I climbed up the Middle Teton, the third highest peak in the Teton Range (12,804 ft). We took the Ellingwood Couloir route up the south side of the peak. At 5:00 AM we started out on the trail from the American Alpine Club Climber's Ranch in Moose. The sky was lit up with the most spectacular sunrise - bright pinks and purples. Two elk grazed in the open meadow, fleeing as we made our way up the trail. The forest was alive with the singing of many morning songbirds and only the tops of the highest peaks were golden with the morning's first rays of sunlight.
We hiked up through Garnet Canyon, reaching the Meadows, which was still covered in snow.

Me starting up the snowfield at the Meadows with Garnet Canyon in the background. 

Looking up at part of the Middle Teton from the Meadows. 

Once we got past the Meadows, the snow became steeper, so we strapped on our crampons and exchanged trekking poles for our ice axe. 

Kick-stepping our way up, we slowly but surely made it to the top of the saddle and had an amazing view looking down on Icefloe Lake, the Teton's highest elevation alpine lake. 

Looking down on Icefloe Lake (still frozen over) from the top of the saddle.

From this point we turned sharply to the right to start directly up the side of the peak. After scrambling up some loose rock, the terrain turned to 4th Class and it was back to traveling on snow - the steepest and hardest section of the climb. 

Scrambling up the loose rocky section of the route. 

Back on the snow, making our way up the couloir.

At around 2:00 PM we finally reached the summit! 

USGS summit marker!

View from the top of Middle Teton looking into Idaho.

Sitting on the summit with an amazing view of the Grand to the right.

From the summit we had amazing views of the Grand, which is directly next to Middle Teton (and 1,000 ft taller). We ate lunch and started back down, heel kicking down the steep couloir and then glissading down the rest of the snow fields, which was a blast (although my butt was numb by the time we made it to the base of the last snow field)! 

Descending the snow couloir - ice axe in one hand and a trekking pole in the other. 

Once we made it back to the canyon, the last of the hike out seemed long since we were tired. We made it off the trail and back to the climbers ranch parking lot at 7:00 PM - a 14 hour day, exhausted but definitely worth it.