Shelter Built At 8700ft On Mount Ruapehu
'The Press*' Special Service
WELLINGTON, May 25
New Zealand's highestaltitude structure—the Dome Shelter overlooking the Crater Lake on Mount Ruapehu—will be ready for use before winter sets in. The tent-like building, which has a ground area of 16 square feet and is designed to give shelter to sportsmen caught by weather changes, was planned as early as 1956. but its construction has been hazardous.
The building was closed in, but the floor still had to be put in and the inner door swung, said the chairman of the Tongariro National Park Board (Mr N. S. Coad). The specially heavy hinges required for the outer door had to be put on and the escape hatch finished. Explaining that it was called the Dome Shelter because it was built at the foot of The Dome, which overlooked the Crater Lake, Mr Coad said that it was specijally constructed to withstand the terrific winds at 8700 feet.
It would also be subjected to heavy icing and snow falls. Two doors were necessary to keep out the icy blasts and a shovel would be attached to a pole alongside so that climbers could dig their way in. The shelter had been very difficult to build and much of the material had been carried up by members of the various alpine clubs on the mountain. Although air dropping was hazardous at this height, some had been dropped by the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Ruapehu Alpine Lifts. Ltd., had also
helped as much as it could by taking material up to the top of the second chair lift. Some of the original funds for the shelter came from the family of Mr T. A. Blyth, a pioneer climber and skier on Mount Ruapehu. Mr Coad said.
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Press, Volume C, Issue 29523, 26 May 1961, Page 18
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298Shelter Built At 8700ft On Mount Ruapehu Press, Volume C, Issue 29523, 26 May 1961, Page 18
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