MOUNT ASPIRING.

Otago Witness, Issue 3860, 6 March 1928, Page 9

MOUNT ASPIRING.

CLIMBED UNDER DIFFICULTIES.

By

E. M.

I. On December 31 last the ascent of Mount Aspiring was accomplished by a party consisting of Messrs Eric Miller, J. W. Aitken, H. W. Boddy, J. Shanks, and Roland Ellis. On only two previous occasions had the summit of the mountain been reached. This article describes the latest ascent.

There lies to the west of Wanaka a beautiful and mysterious river valley which winds in one great captivating curve with everchanging freshness of view to the soaring ramparts of the highest of the mountains. Great walls of sombre rock, snow-crowned, are all about, with streams of w’hite water’ gushing from their sides and cascading down to lose themselves in the green birch forest below, 'lhe greatest of the rock barriers, sheer and forbidding, marks the end. At its foot, as if to compensate for its rude

prohibition of further progress, is spread a great round meadow of lilies and daisies, white and yellow, venturing up to the very edge of the screen on which avalanches crash from the overhanging icefields. The head of the rock wall as often as not is concealed in a whirling cloud of mist hanking up over the raddle from the West Coast river valleys, as if hesitating to go further. This is a region of sudden and dramatic changes. Al] in a moment the sky will grow black as night with thunder clouds, and the crags reverberate with thousandfold echoes, strident above the monotone of torrential rain. Here in the vast bowels of the icefields are brewed the storms that rush eastwards down ‘he valley with devastating suddenness, earning for this region the name of " The Cauldron,” given bv the settlers in the lower reaches of the Matukituki Valley. Again, as if to belie its name, all is peace and tranquility; golden light pervades the scene and transforms it with Aspiring. The open countrj' was crossed changed to dazzling white with depths of sea green; the rocks are not simply leaden and heavy reaches and pinnacles ; but have assumed a warmer tone and a friendly and inviting air. The trees and mosses unroll their draperies of most vivid greens and browns, sweet and soft, and little black butterflies come out to hasten with their visiting. The valley seems confined and stifling, and the snow-crowned heights invite if only for their coolness. Looking upwards, in the mighty distance, far above the surrounding snowfields, majestic and resplendent against the blue, appears the dazzling silver cone of Aspiring, calling for conquest, promising good tidings to whomsoever shall venture the ascent—surely a sight to lure men Onwards and upwards to. seek the reward of Nature’s peace of spirit. If the deep gorge of the river valley be aptly named ‘ the Cauldron ” then assuredly is Aspiring the presiding witch for ever on guard, and from her lofty vantage point causing the mountain mists to boil over the cliff summits, and Stirling her broth of snow and ice with the force of mighty winds. She can but the clouds disperse or lie gently at her feet, and, benignly smiling, free the way

to her of all obstacles; but, when approached, she will treacherouslv drive the adventurer reeling back beneath blows of hurricane and storm. Or, if men persist, and endure her savage fury till the winds have spent their force, she win veil her head in clouds, and, though she be indeed conquered, yet will her secrets remain unrevoaled. On three occasions through the years, men have stood on the summit of the silver cone, but to none of them has it been permitted to reap the fruits of their labours and let their gaze rove over the vast extent of territory within their range of vision. Spirit of ice and snow. Goddess, whose hands are laid Upon the brows of men who needs must go To seek ‘hy loneliness, immortal maid. Within the fastness of thy frozen place; Dost thou their toil behold? Thine heart is dull with cold, Cold is thy shrine, and colder thine embrace.

It therefore remains for a mountaineering party to make the ascent and enjoy an unhampered view of the greater part of Otago. The writer trusts the detailed information given in the following account of an ascent may be of assistance. A study of accounts of successful and unsuccessful attempts to climb Mount Apiring, and of available photographs j-4aken from all directions, except, perhaps, f the immediate north, points to the route Aip the west branch of the Matukituki River as the only feasible one, besides being the most pleasant and interesting. It is taken as a guiding principle of the art that it is no disgrace to a mountaineer to spend some time looking round and considering the easiest way of obtaining his objective before risking an ascent, and that he is the best exponent who can reach his goal by perhaps walking peacefully up a snowfield while another is matching his strength against beetling precipices. In short, for comfort and speed, follow the beaten track. The partv which made the ascent on December 31, 1927, was constituted of five holiday-makers with no leader or porters, no guide except a map and a compass, and also no cook, yet everyone inarched well. It was quite a free and easy party, which set out to prove that Aspiring i a not quite so formidable as it looks, and that anyone reared in a cold climate and with a little* experience in the use of an ice axe can readily manace the: climb. ...

Leaving. Dunedin one fine morning, Pembroke was reached early in the even- - the following morning” Niger Hut Was reached in two hours"" from Pembroke

by service car. The homestead of Mount Aspiring Station lies an hour’s journey further on. Here the packs and provisions, all in calico bags, were loaded on pack horses, and in four hours and 15 minutes the cavalcade arrived at Cascade Camp/at the confluence of Cascade Creek and the west branch of the Matukituki. The night was fine, and everyone slept under the trees in his eiderdown sleeping bag, not troubling to pitch the tent. Affixed to a large tree was a sheet of iron bearing engraved names of the five men who made the last ascent of Aspiring in March, 1913. At Cascade Camp the horses were left behind. In fact, all except one had started for home during the night. After a march of one hour through bush over a good track, Shovel Flat was entered upon, and a good view obtained of the peak of Aspirinb. The open country was crossed in three-quarters of an hour, and at the stockade at the edge of the bush a depot of provisions was made for use on the return journey, the packs being reduced to approximately 601 b weight per man. The left bank of the river was now followed to its head in the very centre of “ the Cauldron,” for five hours and ahalf from the stockade. Except for a short open space at the ice caves, where the river runs under a long bridge of ice fallen from the slopes of Mount Barff on the left, the way lay through birch forest, in the first half of which a deer track made going easier. Camp at the head of the river marked the end of the third day out from Dunedin, and the weary toilers, after a refreshing dip in the icy waters of the stream, and a meal, the last to be cooked with wood fuel for some time, stretched their tired limbs amongst the flowers in well-earned repose. Having manoeuvred the bulky packs through clinging ribbonwood and scrub, the worst part of the whole journey was now over.

Next day, before commencing the long climb which ended above the level of the Bonar Glacier, the packs were reduced by 31b or 41b apiece, a reserve of food being left in case the party should be driven back by storms to seek the shelter of th e valley. To the flying camp at an altitude of 7000 ft were carried provisions for seven days, two Primus cooking stoves, Igal of kerosene, sundry gear, and much extra weight in heavy winter clothing. The climb to the flying camp occupied nine hours, the way being half over easy rock faces and half over snowfields. For the first two hours the avalanche chute from the Quarterdeck of the Bonar Glacier was followed at one side. This was finally crossed at a part as wide as the average city street, and just in time, for at the moment when the last man climbed on th e rock wall at the far side the vanguard of a large avalanche hurtled by with the speed of an express train. Had the whole party, roped together, been caught in the middl e of the chute, the decision whether to have leaped forward or back to safety would have been urgent.

When at length the climbers attained the level of the ice falls, it was seen to be impossible to surmount them, as the last step of the tumbled heap of ice blocks was a vertical face 100 ft or more ia height. The party had perforce to find a way over the. lesser ice falls and snowfields to the right, and climb an extra 500 ft, almost to the summit of Mount French. At this time a cold north-west wind arose, bringing showers of sleet and hail from the Waipara Saddle. A site for camp was hurriedly sought, and, as all the suitable rock surfaces were exposed to the blast, there was no alternative but to erect the alpine tent on the snow in the lee of a wall of rock about sft in height. First of all, a large quantity of flat, slate-like stones wa s laid in a neat mosaic to form a platform; then the tent, with its waterproof bottom and jointed bamboo tent-poles, was quickly erected upon it. In order to make camp life on the snow more cheerful, each man was provided with a roll of felt the size of a coffin lid, and this he spread in lieu of his accustomed mattress. The felt served very well until it became wet through, later on, when it was cast out and relaid under the floor of the tent instead of upon it.

A wise precaution was the provision of a special ridge and guy rope for the tent, leaving the climbing rope free for use at any time. With a comfortable though not over-spacious camp, plenty of food, fuel, and a well-selected miniature library, everyone was quite resigned to a state of siege until the enveloping mist should decide to go. It went three and a-half days later, but not before everv conceivable kind of weather except a' thunderstorm had been tried out on th e campers. On the second night, the gale of sleet and hail, which had been bombarding the position all day, increased to its ful] fury, and threatened to push the canvas citadel out of shape. At midnight two men ventured out to fix some guy ropes which had been torn out, and again three hours later volunteers wer e called unon to go forth and sew up the tent fly, which had been ripped up one side and halfway down the other. The flapping fly made bursts of crackling reports like a machine gun, and the canvas walls vibrated so that no one slept. A little cold comfort was derived from a calculation that the distnbuted weight of humanity and boots, etc on the floor of the tent worked out at 221 b per square foot, so it was held to be unlikely that the tent’s contents could be spilled. This proved to be correct r«ext day many quarts of water which had been forced through th e tent walls were removed from little reservoirs on the floor, for a waterproof bottom has its disadvantages. . The sad-looking sleeping bags were dried out inch by inch over the stoves. ' . . >

(To be continued.)