To Taranaki and Back

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TO TARANAKI AND BACK On the weekend prior to Labour Sabre episode) and were in our sacks. Weckend, John Watson and I journeyed At 3 a.m. the alarm went and as there northwards to the peak they call Mount was a cold hard frost, a clear sky with Egmont. Neither of us had been to the nearly full moon, we, were out of our mountain before, and were slightly per- bags in a moment. In an hour we had turbed to find the nearer we got to the breakfasted well and were stumbling mountain the steeper it appeared. The through the tussock and patches of snow ranger at Stratford Mountain House, on towards the upper ski tow hut. We reachwhom we were bound by ethics to call ed that in about twenty minutes and with on-and. disclose our plan of attack, did 4000 feet of moderately steep snow belittle to quiet this feeling. Her acknow- tween us and the summit we decided to ledged that weather should be fine and crampon and rope up. The guide book that our proposed route of the east ridge said the route lay below Policeman (a was a good one. However, he requested rock buttress) but it looked easier to we cross the ridge and climb the east cross above. The short points of our face alongside as then if we slipped we bit beautifully into the snow would fall all the way to the bushline we had no need to step cut or belay. and so cramperna save the carrying party much John took the lead and the rope soon effort. He reminded us that the last became tight between us. Keeping to the party to attempt the route had ended in right of the ski tow, we slogged upwards, tragedy and with that wished as well. our ankles unused to the abortive angle The clouds wisping around the moun- at which they were continually placed, tain parted occasionally, and from the let us know about it. A gully alongside public shelter by the Maunganui hut just the Policeman gave us momentary half an hour above the road end, we had respite, but then finished in a vertical glimpses of what appeared to be vertical wall causing us to traverse out sidesnow. Reason prevailed that as a ski ways. With that we were on top of the tow was installed on the lower slope it Policeman at about 5600 ft., we turned couldn't be too bad. By 7p.m. we had to see the sky red behind Ruapehu and eaten, prepared our daysacks for the Ngauruhoe some 80 miles away. The illumorrow (duvet included after the sion was shattered by a tug on the rope,

BUS LEAVES 7.30 p.m. SEAWARD SIDE OF THE RAILWAY STATION! a NER A typical scene at the railway station at the start of a trip. This particular weekend was the start of the last Renata-Waiotauru and Renata-Kime rips.

John was eager to be on his way. He expansion bolt under the overhang we pointed diagonally upwards to the right are certain it could be clin:bed without and told me to aim for two rocks on the standing on the second's shoulders or skyline of east ridge. As we crossed to- further artificial aids above. wards them we were conscious for the A track round the mountain brought first time of the snow slopes dropping us easily back to the shelter hut before several thousand feet to the Ngara Bluffs. noon. But still the crampons bit beautifully. We repeated the process of early to Daylight was beginning to change the bed early to rise, and the following day colour of the snow from silver to blue found us at 4a.m. thrutching up a as we reached the east ridge. Only the rockey gully on to the Curtis Ridge. We tips of the crampon points were biting had intended to cross this and climb now, and as, John made certain his pick Fanthoms Peak by an attractive couloir was awell, we followed the ranger's out of Kapuni Gorge, but unroped and instructions and traversed horizontally with John's greater speed we became right. This was just below a line of parted and spent the rest of the dark bluffs and in some places powder snow hours wandering around looking for each had to be kicked away to gain purchase other. With the light we happily reunited for our crampons. After a couple of and as a fairly strong wind was blowing hundred feet we could see directly above and clouds were wisping about, decided us a gap betwen two bluffs. Icicles fell to plod the easy slope of the Curtis from the bluffs shattered on the slope Ridge. on reaching the point where it and continually pelted us as we moved increases in angle to join Egmont, we up, traversing slightly right and left found the snow very powdery, so roped alternate to relieve the ankles. Suddenly up. In a few rope lengths we reached John said "That must be the top up the Rangitoto Flat and wandered across there", but I was of the opinion that the to Fanthoms Peak. The clouds had clearslope must lessen and the summit would ed and it was beautiful. What a spot for still be a thousand feet away, but sure an A.I.C. or snow caving club trip. The enough a couple of rope lengths and we hut on Fanthoms Peak was covered but were passing through the Surrey Rodd somebody had cleared the snow to exentrance to the crater. No holding us pose about one foot of red corrugated now as we sprinted up the last snow iron, presumably the roof. cone to the summit just two and three- John was taken with the profile of quarter hours after leaving the hut. I Skeets Ridge, which could be accessible thought of June, still in bed no doubt, for climbing by descending from here. and wouldn't have changed places for a After messing about some verglassed thousand pounds. The shadow of the rocks we headed down for Dawson Falls. peak was umbraic on the bush and The snow was fairly soft and we hadn't meadowland and pointed westward like covered many steps before our craman arrow. Max would have said an pons balled up, dangerously. Removing omen. them, we considered a glissade. I mag- After a spell in a nook we cut in the nanimously allowed John to try one snow, we tackled the vertical wall of the first. Wow! In a few seconds he was a Shark's Tooth. This was fluted like an speck in the distance, as he managed organ and the green ice was hardly to avoid going over the bluffs, I decided scratched by the points. Eventually, by to follow. The slope was too steep for cutting great bucket holds we gained the a standing glissade, and in a sitting posiridge and even had to mantelshelf a tion with all the weight back on the small ice overhang to stand on the top point of the ice axe, the speed was conjust forty feet below the true summit trolled to about 32 feet per second. In opposite. a few minutes we had descended the Leaving the crater through its jaws, 2000 ft. of snow to bushline and were so we descended a moderate slope, aiming exhilarated we nearly climbed all the slightly right for Humphries Castle and way up to. repeat the performance. Howthe Tahurangi Hut. Taking it very ever, the call-of a brew was too great leisurely, we arrived there in an hour. and again by nine o'clock in the morn- After a second breakfast, we tried a ing our climbing was over. direct ascent of Humphries Castle, but So ended the most enjoyable even an Ace of Spades peg wouldn't climbing days ever had, any- STALAIE hold in the virtually non existent crack where. on the snout of the overhang. With one -Roger Cole.