Middle Teton


Middle Teton is the third highest peak in the Teton Range, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming. The peak is immediately southwest of Grand Teton and the two are separated from one another by the lower saddle, a broad high ridge at. The Middle Teton Glacier is located on the eastern slopes of the peak. Middle Teton is a classic pyramidal shaped alpine peak and is sometimes included as part of the Cathedral Group of high Teton peaks. The long Teton Range is the youngest mountain chain in the Rocky Mountains, and began their uplift 9 million years ago, during the Miocene. Several periods of glaciation have carved Middle Teton and the other peaks of the range into their current shapes. From the lower saddle, a distinctive feature known as the black dike appears as a straight line running from near the top of the mountain down. The black dike is a basaltic intrusion that occurred long after the surrounding rock was formed.

Climbing

The first recorded ascent of Middle Teton was by Albert R. Ellingwood on August 23, 1923, via Ellingwood Couloir on the south side of the peak. Ellingwood made the first ascent of South Teton the same day.
What is known as the southwest couloir provides the easiest route to the summit. Other sections on the mountain are rated as high as class 5.11, with the Middle Teton Glacier route considered to be the most technically advanced. The first ascent of the Glacier Route was completed on August 4, 1944, by Paul Bradt and Sterling Hendricks. This route is described as a "classic", and is one of the few early season purely ice and snow routes in the Teton Range.