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I am shamelessly drawn to pointy or otherwise visually striking mountains with summits that look hard to attain (especially if there`s an easier way up round the back). And the more famous the better. I never got past the stage of enjoying ringing up my dad from the other side of the world, and telling him "I`ve climbed x"! And then hearing him turn to mother in the background and say "hey, Flo, guess what, he`s climbed "x"! Devil`s Tower and Grand Teton belong firmly in this category of hill, with a capital X. And were a fitting target for a two-week Wyoming trip with a climber from Albuquerque, whom I met in Mexico. There`s no easy way up round the back of Devil`s Tower, but Grand Teton has a route that "goes" for most alpinists without having to haul a rope 7,000 feet up from its base. The Tetons have a vague reminiscence of the Chamonix Aiguilles, though the Jackson area is much more expansive than the Chamonix Valley, allowing the mind to drift away from the mountains a little, and relax from the tension, in between climbs. |
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Devil`s Tower form the entrance station |
Resident of Prairie Dog Town, |
Devil`s Tower from the south |
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Resident of Prairie Dog Town, |
Resident of Prairie Dog Town, |
Devil`s Tower from the west |
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David Benyak on the |
Devil`s Tower from the |
First pitch of the Durrance Route, |
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American flag at Visitor`s Centre, |
David Benyak on the |
Ian Swarbrick on the summit |
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Ian Swarbrick on summit |
Teewinot Mountain from the |
David Benyak abseiling the |
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Arrowhead Lake, Cirque of the Towers, |
Devil`s Tower
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Grand Teton, Owen and Teewinot |
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David Benyak victorious |
The Tetons and Mount Moran from |
David Benyak on the summit |
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Grand Teton, Owen and Teewinot |
Abseiling by the Owen-Spalding |
"Belly crawl", Owens-Spaulding |
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Messing around at a roadside boulder, |
The main Teton Range from the east |
Mount Moran and Jackson Lake |
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Grand Teton from the lounge area of |
Messing around at a roadside boulder, |
South, Middle and Grand Tetons |