Chris, Alan and Matt show off their new skills from AIC 2003! (phwoar, that wind must be strong!)

Sayonara Kurosawa…ciao Fellini…au revoir Depardieu! The Banff Festival of Mountain Films comes to Wellington!!!

"Well of course the Banff Mountain Film Festival is one of the greatest, if not THE greatest film festival on mountaineering matters in the world" -Sir Edmund Hillary

Well, if Sir Ed says so...........

On September 5th the New Zealand Alpine Club is bringing this festival to Wellington for the first time. Featuring films on climbing, exploring, and mountain culture, the evening will have lots of variety for the outdoor film lover. Included in the nine films, which range in time from 2 to 52 minutes, will be an adventure in the mountains of Papua New Guinea, a base jump off the north face of the Eiger, and a fascinating look at Himalayan culture. Be prepared for lots of adventure, humour, and adrenalin.

When: Friday Sept 5th 7:30pm
Where: Memorial Theatre, Victoria University
Tickets: $15.00 available from Mountain Designs, Mainly Tramping and Bivouac
Only 375 seats! Don't miss out!

Thanks also to our other sponsors Fergs Rock 'n' Kayak, Hangdog Climbing Centre, and Format Printing for helping us bring this event to Wellington.

Section trips news: Growing and sowing

Please send all your fantastic trip reports to newsletter@nzalpine.wellington.net.nz, so everyone can enjoy your stories, tall or short, fat or thin, sharp or dim. We love to know what you're up to!

Re. Peat, Pinnacle performance

On the weekend of 19-20 July four hardy souls went ice climbing on the pinnacles... Terrence Handscombe, Andrew McKinlay, Paul McCullagh and Mike Peat thought sitting on cold cramped ledges in the middle of winter sounded like a good time. It's worth pointing out for the uninitiated that the actual ice climbing component of going ice climbing is minimal compared to the time spent sitting uncomfortably, stretching impossibly, cursing expletively and digging hopefully (for anchors).

The objective was to take a group of enthusiastic climbers of intermediate ability and expose them to the thrills (and hopefully not spills) of multipitch technical ice climbing. The trip clearly sounded so formidable that 5 climbers were forced to withdraw before we left Wellington. The survivors enjoyed a lovely stroll up to the hut on a still and starry Friday night.

After an alpine start on Saturday morning good ice conditions were found on the Pink Floyd Buttress. Momentary Lapse of Reason (3 pitches) and Comfortably Numb (2 pitches) were climbed along with several forays up to the skyline of the upper pinnacle ridge by various ridges and gullies before dragging ourselves back to the hut upon nightfall. On Sunday another alpine start was welcomed with grim resignation. The Moonshine Buttress was explored and the first pitch of Chiming Bells was all but climbed before having to back off due to thin unstable ice. A few small waterfalls in the Valley area were top roped before heading home.

All in all a successful trip was had with marvellous weather throughout and good company enjoyed. Waterfall ice has not formed well this season but the alpine ice / mixed climbing is pretty good so go and enjoy it while it lasts.

Mike

New Zealand Alpine Journal 2003: Contributions please!

Contributions sought… Yup - it's that time of the year again; time to put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard and start sorting out those slides.

We want your words and photos. Principally we seek reports of this year's most note-worthy climbs (either new climbs or repeats), articles or essays from any aspect of the greater sphere of climbing, local area reports, and yes… obituaries. As always photographs and artwork are welcomed.

If you have an idea you wish to discuss or any questions, or a submission, don't hesitate to contact the editor:

Mark Watson - NZAJ Editor
(day) 03 377 7595,
(eve) 03 942 3312
editor@alpineclub.org.nz
PO Box 786, Christchurch.

CLOSING DATE 1st SEPT 2003

OCEANS OF FURY - Grapes…No, Mountains of…of…WRATH: Adventure Philosophy Kayak and Mountaineering adventure in Tierra Del Fuego

Venue: Lecture Theatre 1, Government Buildings. Opposite the Cenotaph in Lambton Quay.
When: Friday 7.30pm September 12 2003.
How: By pre-purchased tickets $12.00 or students $10.00 from Mainly Tramping 39 Mercer Street Wellington.
Prize Draw: Of a new MSR stove, drawn on the night.

CHAIRPERSON’S QUIZ No. 3: Answer

The chairperson's third quiz question (Who am I?) saw a record number of entries; all were correct. The answer to the question was Matthias Zurbriggen. (For those flummoxed by the V15 problem, the "A"s in the riddle were Aconcagua, Argentina, Aoraki, and Aotearoa.)

The name of the winner, John Barnes, was drawn by Dick Price at the August section meeting, and -- as a result -- Barnsy from Palmy has been given a bottle of wine from a country beginning with A (Argentina actually, though some thought he deserved wine from Albania).

The Editor also thanks John Barnes who, in his excitement about having the right answer, in his eagerness to win, and in his misconception that the Editor was the person to respond to, PHONED THE EDITOR AT 6.30 AM ON SUNDAY MORNING to provide the correct answer. Nice one John! Let me make this clear - all answers to the chairman, who is Nigel Roberts!!!

Gotcha! Our "Love Rat" CHAIRPERSON'S 4th QUIZ QUESTION: It's reigning Royals!

In June the section chairperson told members about his close personal association with Princes Di (just like James Hewitt, selling his shabby story to the tabloids, in this case Vertigrowth. Love rat! Ed.). Nigel's fascination with royalty clearly continues unabated, because his fourth quiz question is:-

During the last century, a reigning monarch was killed in rock climbing accident. Who was it; which country was the monarch from; when did the accident happen, and was a conspiracy involving the CIA responsible?

Email your answers (with the phrase "Quiz number 4" in the subject line) to chairperson@nzalpine.wellington.net.nz by midday on Sunday, 31 August 2003.

Our esteemed chair also pointed out that 31 August is the sixth anniversary of the death of Princess Di ...:-)

NZAC National instruction programme

Course Numbers are limited so book early! Fully qualified alpine guides or rock instructors will be used to lead all courses and there will be an instructor - student ration of 1:4 ensuring an excellent learning environment.

Intermediate Alpine Instruction (Two Days) $130
2-3 August Mt Ruapehu

Intermediate Rock Instruction (Two Days) $99
23-24 October Otago
1-2 November, Canterbury
23-24 October Auckland
1-2 November , Wellington

Intermediate- Advanced Mountaineering (Five Days) $750
3-7 January 2004 , Unwin Hut Mt Cook
10-14 January 2004 Unwin Hut Mt Cook

Richard Wesley
National Administrator
phone 03 377 7595
email richard@alpineclub.org.nz

Canyoning and First Aid courses: 15% NZAC discount

Canyonz Ltd is running a Wilderness First Responder Course for the first time in NZ. Located in Auckland, the 7-day course is a worldwide-recognised course that trains participants to respond to emergencies in remote settings.

The WFR title is THE qualification to have if you are an outdoor guide in the USA (or if you are looking at working there), or if you wish to acquire a very complete First Aid qualification. It is more complete and more outdoor-focused than a standard two-day outdoor first aid course or a Pre-Hospital Emergency Care (PHEC) course.

Places are limited. Location: Auckland. Registration deadline: 7th September. For more info call 0800 422 696 or email info@canyonz.co.nz.

Canyoning level one course
4 days from 25th September to 28th September

This course is a great opportunity to learn the proper canyoning techniques and it is also the first step towards working as a canyoning guide or assistant guide. It is suited to people with basic knowledge of knots, abseiling and anchors. Topics covered will include risk management and safety, anchors, canyoning specific knots, rigging and abseiling techniques, whitewater, and a lot more!

The first 2 days of the course will involve canyoning, the last 2 days will be dedicated to specific canyon rescue techniques.

The added benefit of the level one course is the presence of Dave Black, who is an ACA (American Canyoneering Association) certified guide and instructor. He will be observing and teaching the course and will warrant cross-crediting to ACA level one. The ACA is the only training organisation for guides in the USA and offers cross-crediting to European organisations.

Places are limited. Location: Auckland. Registration deadline: 7th September. For more info call 0800 422 696 or 0800 462 965 or email info@canyonz.co.nz.

Respected club contributor dies

Well known Club supporter and honorary member (since 1986) Joan Johnson passed away recently, in Wellington. Joan, along with her husband Neville, who passed away 2 years ago, was a great worker for the Club and assisted Neville, who was the Club secretary for many years, in administering the Club. She was a warm and delightful person. Joan's family recently kindly donated Neville's NZAC Journals to the NZAC.

And here are the club trips ....

Wellington Section Trips

Trips are a key part of the section, so if anyone has an idea about a trip, no matter how vague, come and chat to Mike Williams (trips@nzalpine.wellington.net.nz)

Trips can be of any length, any level of difficulty, and any size. Simply email us, or approach us at the monthly meeting, and we can help you get going on a safe and enjoyable trip.

See you in the hills!

Weekend August 30-31

Weekend September 20-21

Weekend October 4-5 (Note change to date)

Long Weekend October 25-26-27

Weekend November 8-9

Week November 29- December 7

Week January 3 - 11, 2004 

Long weekend January 17-18-19

For sale…wanted…climber partner needed

For sale: Asolo plastic alpine boots and Black diamond foot fang crampons to fit, $200 the set, ice hammer and short axe, $75 each, snow pig and snow stake, $20 each. All good condition. Phone Simon 382 8836 hm 916 3847 work.

WANTED: Plastic mountaineering boots in good condition, all sizes. Phone Kate or Mike on 03 7534 099, PO Box 4, Franz Josef Glacier, South Westland. Phone 03 7534 099, e-mail westcoastclimbing@xtra.co.nz.

Ski tour or climbing partner wanted!: 1st - 19th Sept and 6th - 31st Oct for short or long trips. 8 years climbing experience and now trying my hand at ski touring. Please leave a message with contact number. Steve (Christchurch) 03 3775034, steven_jeff@yahoo.com