MOUNT NEAVE ASCENT

Taranaki Daily News, 5 January 1935, Page 8

MOUNT NEAVE ASCENT

WELLINGTON CLIMBERS’ WORK. WOMEN’S NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT. The first ascent of Mount Neave (7358 feet) and ascents of Mounts Louper, Ramsay, Roberts and Lord were made by members of a large, party of climbers from the Tarawa Tramping Club (Wellington) during a recent successful mountaineering trip in the head waters of the Rakaia River. The parties, which comprised 10 men and five women, experienced rain on a large number of afternoons, and they were driven back by unfavourable weather when within striking distance of Mount Evans, the unclimbed Red Lion Peak and Mount Whitcombe. The party was led by Mr. W. H. Scott, and the remaining members were Misses Mildred Huggins, Joan Singleton, Jean Shallcrass, Joyce Chisholm, Betty Lorimer, Messrs. S. Davis, O. Prebble, R. Kean, A. Thompson, T. Messer, T. Ross, P. Scully, R. Sinclair and M. Roberts. The main body went up the Rakaia River on December 23 and established a camp on the moraine of the Ramsay Glacier, beneath the slopes of Mount Whitcombe,

BEATEN BY WEATHER. Messrs. Davis, Prebble, Kean and Thompson crossed the Whitcombe Pass, and made their base camp in the. McKenzie Valley. Mount Neave, a fine roky peak on the main divide north of the Whitcombe Pass, was climbed by the party, which found some very interesting climbing. That was the extent of their success, however, for on succeeding days rain drove them off Mount Evans—climbed for the first time on New Year’s Day, 1934—when within 600 feet of the summit, and from Red T .inn Peak, after the lower of that mountain’s two summits had been reached. From their base on the Ramsay mor-' aine all of the remaining members of the party, climbing on three ropes ascended Louper Peak in heavy rain, interesting rock climbing being experienced on the summit ridge. This was the third ascent since 1914. On December 28 Messrs. Scott, Scully and Roberts and Miss Lorimer made an ascent of Mount Ramsay by way of the heavily-crevassed Clark Glacier. Good time was made on this climb, the excellent snow conditions enabling it to be done in six hours. The low peak of Mount Whitcombe was reached by the whole party on the following day,, but heavy rain forced them to retreat. On the return Mount Lord was traversed and also, it is believed, Mount Roberts, but the party cannot be sure of having made this ascent because of the bad visibility.

WOMEN’S ARDUOUS TRIP. Mount Lord was climbed again on the Sunday following, when two women of the party were • accompanied to the Strachan Pass in heavy rain on the first stage of their trip down the Vane stream and Wanganui River (Westland). This is an arduous journey that has been undertaken only a few times previously and never before by women. A message was received at Christchurch that they had arrived safely at Harihari. It was expected (hat in the Wanganui they would join a party of three Canterbury Mountaineering Club members who were returning after a stay in the Rakaia., The McKenzie Valley party returned to the Rakaia by the “high-level” route, which involves a traverse of the Katzenbach ridge and the Bracken snowfield. All members of ' the combined parties, with the exception of a few. who went up the Wilberforce with the intention of crossing the Whitehorn’s and Harman Passes to the Bealey, returned to Christchurch on Wednesday. The trip down the river was made difficult by heavy flooding following recent rains.