Trampers Spend Two Gold Nights In Open

Chronicle (Levin), 19 April 1949, Page 4

Trampers Spend Two Gold Nights In Open

" * o' * BLENHEIM, April- 18. A mistake izi direction vj-hen the summit of Mt. Tapuaenuku was obscured cidud/. v^aS' the. e'auste of a party of • Wellington trampers beeoming' overdue fr&m'the'ir ba^e oi tfiA vvAstei'n foothiJIs o'f the modntaiii; The error eost them bne "riiglit in Tigorous conditions at 6000 feet Qir the eastern slop'es o£ AJt- Tapuilnuku &fld - anothfer SQmlevs'hat less rigor'dus in t&e' uppfe'r r'feaehes of the Bee & tributaf f of fhife' Cl&f ence. .-After Gompleting the traverse from Mt. Alarm to. Mt. Tapuaeiiuku, the .party iound )at nighffali that fhhir directiohs were astray, the first indieatrdii eanimg "from a eompass chsek vyhieh showed that they were traveUing' eal'f ' nnstead of wgst. Saturday night Was'spenf oi th'e eastern sidpes at 6000 ireet" under bitter . c'onditidnS. Their i-ations eotaprised a rusk and pifiee of barleyj .sugar ea'ch. About 5 a.m. yesterday>.ah atteiiipt was made to regaia tie summit afid to deScend to the base 6&mp on t-hd western side, but fatigue sopn began to tell and it was deeidefd •tq taiie the easier down grade route to the Clfire'iice Valley. After a further night ih the ^opdn', the party reached > ( Waiautoa ' ' Statioh this morning and came on to Blenheim today. In the meantiine o'thfer ttaxhpdrs in thfe Tapuaenuku area begun a search anfi arfangements were made for a police party to go' in from Blenheim. This afternoon ah Aif-Sea resctie plah'6' . trpiri the Norili Islaixd flew dvhr .tfA area and dropped flares in an effort to cfantact the seardhers arid drofjr a message. Men. were also sent in on fodt to fire tlie usual r'ecall sigual of three i rapid shots: It is expected that the , sfe'arch parties, some of whieK;-inai,y hay'4 I t6 spend, the night at Hodder Hnt, will all return' early^Jomorrow. ^