You do not need to be an accomplished athlete or experienced climber to climb the Grand Teton. Most of our climbers have never done anything like this before and our guides lead the vast majority of them to the summit. You need to be fit and you need enough strength and agility to hike and climb in technical terrain. You will need to train in order to be successful and to enjoy the experience. All Grand Teton climbers must qualify for the climb during the day/days of instruction. The approach to basecamp day is also used to evaluate every climber’s ability to attempt the technical climb to the summit. Below is information that will help you prepare.

An appropriate level of both cardiovascular and motor fitness is required of all climbers. Cardiovascular fitness refers to the ability of your heart and lungs to supply oxygen to your muscles during exercise. Motor fitness refers to your strength, endurance, agility, and balance. Aerobic training will prepare you for the steep hiking, agility and balance work will help you move through technical terrain efficiently, and strength training will prepare you for the technical climbing.

The Grand Teton climb is a two-day endurance event. On the first day you will travel 7 miles and gain approximately 5,000 ft. of elevation. The trail is steep requiring strength and stamina. In many places the trail is rocky and uneven, and it passes through large boulder fields, requiring balance and agility. The second day involves uphill hiking, scrambling and technical climbing over another 2 miles while gaining approximately 2,000 ft. of elevation to the summit, followed by your descent to the trailhead. Adding to the challenge, is the fact that throughout the two day climb, you will be at elevations between 6,800 and 13,770 ft.

The absolute best way to train to climb the Grand Teton is to hike on steep trails similar to what you will be on during the actual climb. This training will effectively improve cardiovascular and motor fitness. If you live in a place with hills that you can use for training, a combination of steep uphill and downhill hiking, with strength training to prepare you for the technical climbing, is the most recommended and efficient way to prepare.

If you don’t live in a place that allows this, we recommend an aerobic training program that uses the same muscle groups in the same ways. Climbing stairs or stadium steps is a good alternative. If a gym is your only choice, the stairmaster should be your primary training machine, with occasional sessions on an elliptical machine or treadmill for a change of pace and to work slightly different muscles. Your strength training should include exercises to increase quadricep and hamstring strength, as well as core strength, balance and agility.

Your goal is to train to a point where you will be comfortable on the climb as described above. For most climbers, the climb involves approximately 6 hours of uphill hiking on the first day, and the second day is typically 4-5 hours to the summit, 2-4 hours back down to our basecamp, and 4-7 hours back to the trailhead.

While there are no definitive guidelines that ensure success in the mountains, a good measure of your readiness can be gauged from similar efforts. If you have hills to train on, you can use the metric of 1000 feet/hour for 2 or more hours, to gauge your fitness. In other words, at a minimum you should be able to comfortably hike up 2000 vertical feet in approximately 2 hours. Keep in mind that climbing the Grand Teton involves more than just hiking, but this guideline will help you determine whether your overall aerobic fitness is adequate.

If you are disciplined and familiar with the specific exercises that will accomplish your goals, you can complete your training on your own. In the last several years though, we’ve seen a change and most of our climbers purchase a training plan and then modify it to meet their needs. If you have never trained for a specific physical challenge, and don’t know where to start, or if you want to be sure you are training effectively, we suggest that you go this route. If you’ve already reserved a Grand Teton climb, additional information and a link to a recommended plan was sent to you in your confirmation email. Exum has partnered with Evoke Endurance and they provide a comprehensive 16-week Grand Teton training plan which can be modified to meet individual climber’s needs. The plan is inexpensive and Exum receives no monetary benefit from your purchase. The benefit to Exum is the same as the benefit to you – climbers arrive more prepared for the physical effort required to successfully reach the summit.