ALPINE CLIMBING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22619, 6 January 1937, Page 14

ALPINE CLIMBING

ASCENTS IN THE SOUTH TWO NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS A successful first traverse of Mount Wilczek and Mount Elie de Beaumont, near Mount Cook, from the west was n'ade by a party consisting of Messrs. D. 'A. Cart.v (New Zealand Alpine Club) and Franz Josef Guides J. Cox and G. Somerville. Un the first day of the trip the party descended the Spencer ice fall and traversed the Spencer glacier and camped at the junction of the Spencer and Callerv Rivers, after a heavy day hampered by mist and rain. The next day's programme was to climb to a site,for a high bivouac on the ridge between the Spencer and the Burton glaciers, within striking distance of the peak of "Wilczek. This bivouac was established in mist when the party could proceed no further. Later that evening the mist cleared and a tentative route for the next day was selected. On the next day the climb was begun at 4.45 a.m. along the ridge. Several gendarmes of very rotten rock took about three hours to negotiate before the party reached the snowfield on the western slope of Wilczek that pours over into the Burtor. glacier. A traverse of this snow-field was straightforward, and the real ascent of the peak was begun about 10..'30. A very steep snow .slope on the northwestern face led up to slabs of rock, heavily plastered with ice. The rock ■was found to be very difficult, and had it not been for an ice-filled couloir the ascent could not have been made. Finally the summit reach was attained, and a traverse of a steep razorback with severaj small peaks, all slightly corniced, was accomplished. The crossing to Elie de Beaumont was without incident, and the summit of tho mountain was reached about 2.30 p.m. The descent of Elie de Beaumont into the Tasman glacier was made without difficulty until the lowest big Bchrund "as reached. This looked impassable and an attempt was made to turn the slope of Walter. The usual barrage of rocks and ice made this impossible, and the party retreated to the schrund. After exploration a possible route was found and negotiated safely. ' A big day, finished at tho Malte Brun Hut at'9.ls p.m., after a heavy trudge down the Tasman glacier. Tho earlier days of the climb were full of interest, as the Spencer glacier had been almost untouched, and the Gallery and Burton glaciers had not previously been explored bv mountaineers and had been entered only by prospectors iri tho late 'nineties. A traverse of Mount Tasman has been made by Mr. H. K. Douglas, of "Wellington/with Guide M. Bowie, of the j Hermitage, .Mount Cook. The traverse \ of Tasman, recognised as New Zealand's finest ice mountain, has been accomplished only once previously, by Mr. H. E. L. Porter and Mr. Marcel Kurz, in' 1926.