It is that time of year in Jackson, time to start exploring. The powder stashes have been blown up and the side country has been skied. It is that time of year when skiers go further, looking for new lines and undiscovered zones.

I didn’t have to go far to ski a line that I had never skied before. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but was prepared for anything.

Entrance to Bird Brain

In years past, there has been enough snow to ski into the very tight entrance of Bird Brain. The team: Eric Seymour, Griffin Post, and Tanner Flanagan decided it would be safer to rope into the entrance. The exit of Brain Brain is a mandatory repel. We wanted to make sure that there was a safe anchor for the bottom rapel before all of us descended into the couloir.

Gearing Up - Entrance of Bird Brain

Eric Seymour dropped in first.

Eric Seymour Dropping In

Belay ON!

The snow was great in the couloir. We decided to keep Eric on belay until he found the second belay station. Or at least a safe rapel zone. The snow was sluffing hard and we didn’t want to watch Eric fall off the bottom cliff.

Eric Seymour Looking for a Safe Belay Station

Once Eric located a safe belay station, we all skied down to him. The turns in the couloir were really good! And there is nothing like heavy exposure and sluff to get your heart pounding.

Look Closely into Griff's Goggles and You Will See the Team

The second rapel was super fun!

Dropping Into the Second Rapel

Griffin Post Existing Bird Brain

At the bottom of the rapel there were some really nice powder turns.

Pow Turns!

I have to admit, “Bird Brain” is more of a novelty couloir. Even so, it is a testament to how diverse Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is. Depending on my mood, I can spend the day ripping slush or get out the ropes and go for a little adventure!

Bird Brain

Top of the Grand Teton, 13,770

It has been 13 years since I stood on top of the Grand Teton.  I have a list of excuses why, but so does everyone else.  Earlier this summer, I was visiting with a childhood friend who had never climbed the Grand.  As a Jackson Hole local, he felt that standing on top of the Grand was a right of passage.  After a few glasses of wine, I decided we should do it for our birthdays because they are only a few days a part. As the set date, August 6th, grew closer, I started to get nervous about my commitment.  It had been a long time since I was up there.  Would I remember the route?  Was I qualified to take my friends up?  With doubt on my mind, Eric and I decided we better do a trial run.

Grand Teton with a Fresh Coat of Paint

The Owen-Spalding is the easiest route to climb to the summit when conditions are good, meaning dry. The route is named after William Owen and Frank Spalding who along with Frank Peterson and John Shive first climbed it August 11, 1898. After talking to many friends and Exum guides, I learned that OS route was finally dry and good to go. Eric, my husband, and I decided the OS route would be the best choice for us because we are not exactly mountaineers. Yes we are familiar with climbing gear and know how to use it, but we would never claim to be bad-ass mountaineers. We enjoy being in the mountains.

I asked a friend if he would take us up, but he thought Eric and I would have more fun if we figured it out ourselves. So I bought the book, A Climber’s Guide to the Teton Range, and photo copied the description and photos of the route. My buddy gave me a list of the gear we would need and Eric were off on our adventure.

Sunrise in the Meadows

We started hiking a 3:45 am. The sunrise in the Meadows was incredible; the rays bouncing off the Middle Teton were breath-taking. It was one of those moments when you feel lucky to be alive and witness such beauty. From the Meadows we hiked to Lower Saddle which sits at 11, 600+ feet. Exum has a base camp set up in the Lower Saddle. We met an Exum guide on the way up. He was really nice and invited us in to warm up giving us a lay of the land before we headed to the Upper Saddle. We reached the Upper Saddle by 10:00.

The “Belly Roll” and the “Belly Crawl” are the first obstacles to catch your attention. According to, A Climber’s Guide to the Grand Tetons, it is where most parties rope up. If you talk to some Jackson Hole locals there is no need to rope up and it is possible to free climb the entire route. When Eric and I saw 18 inch wide ledge and the 2000 foot verticle drop, we decided to rope up. There was a traffic jam at the “Belly Crawl.” This was not surprising being August first and the route was finally dry. We sat at the “Belly Crawl” station for almost an hour and half. I was freezing. The clouds were rolling in and out and the wind was chilly.

Once we were through the “Belly Crawl,” we climbed up the “Double Chimney” to the “Cat Walk.” The “Cat Walk” is a very exposed 150 foot series of ascending slabs. It was, in my opinion, the easiest part of the route. It was really easy to walk along, but it can be deadly when icy. From the “Cat Walk” we climbed “Sargent’s Chimney” and then scrabbled to the top.

Eric Seymour and I at the top of the Grand

We were so lucky. We were the only people at the summit for 20 minutes.

Top of the Grand!

Eric and I at the Top of the Grand Teton

It is easy to let your guard down once you have reached the summit, but it’s not truly over until you are drinking a beer at Dornan’s. The descent involves a 120 foot rappel. The rappel is much faster than down climbing because you are able to avoid down climbing the “Catwalk, Double Chimney, Belly Crawl, and Belly Roll.” Not too mention it is really fun. Eric and I had doubled checked with many people to make sure the rope we brought was long enough for the 120 foot rappel. We have a few friends who haven’t had a long enough rope and had to be very creative when they reached the end of their rope. At the belay station our fears of not having the right length of rope surfaced. There were two other climber’s from Montana at the belay station who also had the same reservations. So we decided to attach our ropes creating a 140 meter rope. We were confident this would plenty of rope for the rappel. Eric dropped off first.

Eric Seymour

Eric Seymour

Jess McMillan

Yah! Free Fall!

The two ropes together was more than enough, but better safe than sorry. After the rappel we headed back down to the lower saddle. From the lower saddle, it is a long walk out.

Eric taking a snack break near the Meadows

Eric and I had great day. I think my favorite quote of the day was, “Wow Jess! That was really intense! I didn’t think we were going to do so much rock climbing.” And this from the guy who likes to run 100 foot waterfalls!

Air Force Friends we met along the way

Lower Mesa Falls

It has been a long time since I have run a waterfall. The last waterfall I ran was in Chile four years ago. A lot has happened in the past four years. My focus has moved from kayaking to skiing. Four years ago I was addicted to kayaking. I was living the endless summer kayaking year round. I don’t know exactly when my passion shifted from kayaking to skiing, but yesterday I rediscovered my passion for kayaking.

Jess McMillan - Lower Mesa Falls

Ben Stookesberry is one of the most talented kayakers in the world. He has devoted his life to kayaking and the persuit of running rivers around the world. He has produced 8 adventure kayak videos, his latest Hotel Charlie 4 – At Your Own Risk. Ben loves kayaking and his passion for the sport is addictive. Maybe that is why after four years, I decided to drop a 30 foot waterfall.

Ben Stookesberry Stomping the Right Side of Lower Mesa Falls

Ben Stookesberry - Lower Mesa Falls

Ben and Eric setting up safety at the bottom of the Falls

Check out Ben’s kayak advetures at
www.clearh2ofilms.com or www.jacksonkayak.com

Jess and Eric in the Red Square

Tracy - A fellow American who also had his flight cancelled

We had a great time checking out the sites and finished the evening with some great sushi. We are currently chill’n in the Frankfurt airport. Half way home!

The corn skiing was great!

The best part of the run was when we reached the bottom to see the line we were hunting for. We were so excited! It looked really cool, but I have to admit that it looked really steep. Clare decided she might want her helmet and Eric definitely wanted his camera. We headed back to the base to get prepared.

At the base we took a little break at the hospitality shack for some free gatorade and candy. After our snack, we headed back up the Marte chairlift on the hunt for Clare’s line.

We found the line. The best part about the line was the powder fields on the way down.

The zone we were in was so cool. It was full of spines and chutes.

After skiing the powder fields, it was a little difficult to get to the entrance of Clare’s line. We had to traverse over a rocky ridge with exposure on both sides. The closer we got, the steeper it looked.

We decided Clare would ski first because it was her idea. I wasn’t too upset to let her ski first. It was difficult to see the exit of the line. The light was really flat and steepness of the chute was intimidating. Yeah, I was nervous.

Clare dropped in with confidence and after two turns was out of sight. Everything seemed to go well for her, so I buckled my boots, took a deep breath, and headed towards the entrance of the line. I was so stoked when I got there. The line was sick. It was about 60 degrees with a straight-line at the bottom.

After initiating my first turn, I realized the snow was good and started to enjoy myself.

I was so stoked when I got the bottom. I skied up to Clare and gave her a huge hi-five. It was one of the steepest lines I had skied in Lenas. We had a great day and I am looking forward to our next adventure.

]]> http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/09/exploration-and-new-lines/feed/ 2 http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/09/wind-continues-to-blow-in-las-lenas-9-1-08/ http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/09/wind-continues-to-blow-in-las-lenas-9-1-08/#comments Mon, 01 Sep 2008 19:58:45 +0000 admin-jessmcmillan http://jessmcmillan.com/?p=182 The wind continues to blow in Las Lenas. It is our third down day. After yesterday, we were sure Marte would run and if not we were prepared to go skinning. We were up at 8 and ready to go, only to find that it was so windy that nothing was running. Another down day. The thought of sitting and listening to the wind was too much for our crew to handle and we decided to brave the wind and go for a skin.After skinning for two hours in gail force winds, we decided it wasn’t worth it. Call us lame, but who wants to brave the wind to ski two foot deep sustrugi? We didn’t.Defeated by the wind, we retreated back to the trailhead and ate our lunch. There is a storm “blowing” in. Maybe we will wake to a fresh blanket of snow and no wind. Maybe?

The bus is supposed to come every day at 8:30, but sometimes it is a “little” late.

We stopped every day at a goat farm to trade eggs etc. This is about half way to Las Lenas.

The snow was consistent and we were happy to be skiing. The wind continued to blow. No that’s not powder, it is a spin drift attacking me.

Collin get’n some wind slab.

Chris wanted some too!

It was a little softer over here!

It started snowing on Tuesday, 8-26. We went to bed dreaming of pow.

On wednesday, Eric’s Birthday, we awoke to three feet of powder and Marte was running! You couldn’t ask for a better birthday present.

Eric sang “Happy Birthday to Me” the entire way down Edwardos.

I was all smiles!

Wednesday was an amazing day and we celebrated with an Argentine Asado. Huge thanks to Abe and Mike!

Thursday we were ready for more pow skiing only to find that Marte was closed due to wind. Conditions started to deteriorate.

First down day in Lenas. A few gringos tried to hike up and caused a small slide.

The wind has continued to blow.

]]> http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/08/las-lenas-wind/feed/ 9 http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/08/bike-and-wine-mendoza-argentina/ http://www.jessmcmillan.com/2008/08/bike-and-wine-mendoza-argentina/#comments Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:23:49 +0000 admin-jessmcmillan http://jessmcmillan.com/?p=159 Eric and I joined Collin O’Farrell in Denver and headed for Las Lenas Argentina. The first week has been great, wine tours in Mendoza and powder skiing in Las Lenas.

If you have a long layover in Santiago and do not want to pay the tax, $100US to enter the country, I highly recommend the Admiral’s Club. It will cost $30 US for all the food, booze, and free WiFi. Not a bad way to spend the day.

If you are in Mendoza, the Bikes and Wine Tour is a must. The tour includes a bike and a map. It is a blast. Don’t miss the museum, it was my favorite part. After the museum, there a 8 different vinyards and two olive oil factories. It is a great way to spend the day.

Wine was first produced by stretching a cow hide, women would get inside and squish the grapes, then they would open the hole and the juice would pore out.

It is nice to end the day watching the sunset over a bottle of Argentina’s best.