Story by Sierra McGivney and Photos by Ben Farrar
June in the Tetons is the perfect practice ground for the Alps or Canada.
Mixed terrain and conditions prepare climbers for any outcome in the mountains. Snow rests in shadowed pockets on high mountain passes. And down in the glacially carved valley sits the Climbers' Ranch.
Yellow summer flowers bloom all around the rustic coed bunkhouse. For $30 a night (for non-AAC members), guests get to wake up in their off-the-grid cabins, walk outside, breathe the fresh air, and watch the sun illuminate the Tetons.
Before the Ranch can open up its doors to climbers, hikers, and outdoor enthusiasts, a number of projects need to be completed. Volunteers from all over the country—Louisiana, New York City, Maine, California, Washington, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, and many more places— travel to the Ranch for Work Week.
A free month of stay in the Grand Tetons for one week of donated manual labor seemed like a no-brainer to Sean O’Rourke. The climbing captured his attention but the people are what keep him coming back.
“It’s the thing that the AAC does that I identify with the most,” says O’ Rourke.
At the beginning of the week, strangers pick up paint brushes, power tools, and wheelbarrows to complete various tasks around the property. When you're stuck up in an attic with somebody, or painting or building steps, conversation evolves from: Where are you from? What do you do? To: What are you most afraid of? Why do you climb mountains and how did you get into it? Suddenly strangers become friends, sharing their stories and perspectives.
“You end up coming away feeling like more than friends but more like a family and that's what I think keeps people coming back year after year,” says Lauren Montgomery, the Grand Teton Climbers’ Ranch Manager.
Throughout the summer Montgomery will receive pictures from participants of the Work Week. Everyone keeps in touch throughout the year—good and bad news.
The Ranch was closed in 2020, so they had an overwhelming number of projects to complete last year. At the end of each year, they have to submit a list of their completed projects to the National Park Service. This year Montgomery and Ila, the Grand Teton Climbers’ Ranch Caretaker, sat down to look over the list of completed tasks for this year.
“Our list of completed tasks is already comparable to what we did last year. So it's pretty cool to see everything that we've done,” says Montgomery.
Joel Mikle started attending the GTCR Work Week in 2016 but his first taste of the Tetons was in the mid-1980s when the park was a climbing playground for him and his friends. As a kid, Mikle had walked among the giant mountains of Glacier, Yellowstone, and the Grand Teton National Park. He was in awe of the beauty of the western slopes.
One night after he had retired, he was moseying around the AAC website looking at the Grand Teton Climbers' Ranch lodging. Information about the Work Week popped up. Having no clue what the experience would be like, Mikle signed up.
Mikle jokes that the Grand keeps him coming back every year but truthfully it’s the family dynamic of the volunteers and crewmembers.
“They're just a remarkable group of people,” says Mikle. “Everybody's got the same reason for being there. They love the mountains, they love the outdoors, and the camaraderie, it's like a family.”
The volunteers don’t just stop after one week. Many come back at the end of the season to winterize the property. Mikle will be back in September to help out. In his free time, he’ll take his Jeep around the backroads and admire the beauty of the National Park.
Mikle knows how to use power tools so he’s often on projects requiring woodwork and plumbing. The big project this year was fixing the ceiling in Montgomery and Holman’s living space. The year before Lauren had peeled back duct tape on her ceiling to see a grotesque sight but didn’t have the time or resources to fix the ceiling.
“I mean, Lauren and Ila were sleeping with mouse stuff—gunk floating down in their face at night,” says Mikle.
One of Lauren and Ila’s jobs this year was to clean out the attic. It required full hazmat suits.
“I have a picture, it’s very Breaking Bad,” Montgomery proceeds to show me the photo of her and Ila in full Walter White and Jesse Pinkman garb.
Crewmembers and volunteers were constantly walking over and making sure the two had enough water to drink and set aside lunch plates filled with food for them. John Mauldin, a volunteer, fed Montgomery crackers through her hazmat suit. Mikle bought them flashlights that they could throw away at the end of the week.
“I think what’s special is everybody treats each other like family,” says Montgomery, “I'm impressed that there are people that only get one week of vacation per year and want to spend it at the Climbers' Ranch completing this work.”
The Work Week is Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 3:30/4 p.m. with an hour lunch break cooked by a group of volunteers. Another cook team comes in at 8 and starts making food for 40 people in the morning. Volunteers spend the day in the hot weather doing hard manual labor like weeding or spreading rocks.
Alan Nagel, the Ranch Librarian, attends every year to reorganize the library. He gets on his hands and knees, hand washes the floor, and buffs it.
“He's a gem,” says Montgomery.
The crewmembers help direct volunteers to different tasks like staining the historic lodge and answering questions. Montgomery feels lucky to have such a great crew this year.
“Staff would not be able to complete these tasks ourselves, so without the help of the volunteers, we would really be behind for the start of the season, and it's amazing what we can create in one week of work,” says Montgomery.
Thanks to all the donated time and hard work, the Grand Teton Climbers' Ranch maintains its status as a climber's paradise. With your help, we can support these volunteers and make their job easier. To donate to the Climbers' Ranch, visit the Community Foundation at Jackson Hole, Old Bill Fun Run here. If you share a love for the Tetons, climbing, and community, consider volunteering next year.
