The Explorer.

Otago Witness, Issue 1583, 25 March 1882, Page 28

The Explorer.

ASCENT OP DOUBLE GONE:

Heotor MovttTAim.— The Remarkables. Mr W. Hume, of the Arrowtown branch of the Bank of New Zealand, and Mr J. A. Miller, who recently ascended what are generally known as 'The Kemaricablea,' furnish the following account of their trip to a Provincial paper :—

The ' Remarkables,' which form so prominent and conspiouous an object in the scenery of this district, and which can be seen as far away as Cromwell and Invercargill, tempted our curiosity to such an extent as to determine us upon, the ascent. The north spur of the mountain, which, to all appearance, offers the easiest gradient, was selected as the most suitable and convenient. Our experience enables us to pronounce it the easiest and shortest, whether it be approached from Boyes' Flat or from Horshoe Bend. The travelling is, with a few exceptions, where slips are encountered, comparatively easy, considering the distance in which the height— C62o feet, which is the approximate elevation of the peaks above Lake Wakatip— has to be accomplished. The distance may be estimated at nearly four miles • which, including lunch, whiskies, and all other stoppages, occupied seven hours. The descent was made in two hours, without stoppages or whiskies— the ascent having exhausted the supply, and the bottle containing it being required for a resceptacle of parchment on which we recorded our namos and sentiments.

No real difficulty ia encountered until a spur enclosing a small lake at the very foot of the cones is reached. For some distance back the ground is strewn with debris of broken rocks and shingle to an incredible extent, making progress very tiresome, and where glaciers occurred we invariably selected them, as the easiest means of progress. At the spur just indicated we obtained ample ocular evidence that at no very remote date the peak of the 'Remarkablea' towered very considerably above the present cones, which then simply buttressed a much loftier pinnacle. What led to the downfall of the original peak, and the substitution of a lake in a deep hollow in its place, is matter for conjecture $ but it appears

that two causes brought about the collapsenamely, disruption and superabundant weight, as the mountain at this spot is crushed into blocks by both vertical and lateral fissures. Many of these blocks, of considerable size, we found it quite easy to dislodge with our alpenstocks, when they thundered down the western precipice with tremendous speed and crackle. Everywhere the eye turns it meets a scene of ruins piled upon ruins, which,' even in their remains, equal the present cones in height, while in bulk they vastly exceed them ; Deep and blaok chasmsVawn in every direction, and are bridged here and there by tremendous blooks of rock either lying across them, or jammed in gaping fissures, -which, in order to proceed, you have to cross. After some weary arid dangerous climbing we reach the top of the first of the three pinnacles by which the ' Remakables' are capped, to find that we are stopped in our progress by chasms 20 to 30 feet wide, which we had no means of crossing. To> reach the other pinnacles we would require to descend and work our way along the cliff overhanging the lake at the foot of the cones, but for this we had no time ; and even if we had done so, it would be questionable whether we would be able to scale the cones, unprovided .with picks and ropes as we were. To all appearances the gulch dividing the two cones would offer the readiest means of ascent of either cone, but to ensure success snow-axes and hammer-picks would be required. It may be mentioned here that the cones have never yet been scaled, and that the undertaking presents considerable difficulty. The lake mentioned, to judge by the inky blackness of its water, must be of considerable depth. Its funereal colour, and the surrounding devastation of broken and frowning rocks, give the scene a very dismal aspect. The view from the pinnacle we ascended is on Buch a scale that it oannot well be described in 1 words. The sou'theai glaciers of Mount Aspiring alone, viewed through a good glass, a§|fd objects for observation in which an hour cowl be spent without tiring of the view. The gracefully curved outlines of the top of Mount Earnslaw, and the snow-clad terraces resembling the steps leading up to a throne fit for Deity itself, are conspicuous objects in the scene.' ' In short, the whole northern view gives a fair representation of Arctic regions, where the contemplative imagination could find food for endless fancies. To the east a fair stretch of the upper part of Lake Hawea is seen, while in the west many of the jagged West Coast mountains rise to view. The rounded and farstretching outlines of the mountains to the south present no particular features of interest. On the whole the view is well worth the trouble and labour of the ascent. The distance from Arrowtown to the cones is about ten mUes, andthe return journey may be accomplished in a day»and-a-half. ' _^__