Climbers’ feet not frost-bitten

Press, 26 December 1979, Page 2

Climbers’ feet not frost-bitten

Mr Noel Doughty, one of the two men rescued from Mount Cook last Friday, says that neither he nor his companion had frost-bitten feet when they came off the mountain. He and his companion, Mr Peter Wiles, had accepted bandages “as the only footwear available,” Mr Dougherty said. Specialists had later confirmed that their feet had not been damaged by the cold. Mr Doughty said that he and Mr Wiles had climbed the three peaks of Mount Cook on December 16 and had bivouaced on the summit in perfect weather for two days. They had then descended the opposite side of the mountain to the Linda

Glacier but just, a few hours! from completing the climb! they had been forced by “severe storms and the re-| markable breakage of one| (crampon each to stop tor! four days in comfortable snow caves.” The caves had been “adequate to survive long storms,” said Mr Doughty. However after such delays it had been inevitable that a rescue operation was mounted. He and Mr Wiles were] - grateful to all those involved jin the rescue but regretted (the “over-dramatisation of their experience” which they (found less of an ordeal than did their friends and rela-