ON THE HILLS
Himalayas.— F. S. Smythe was in the strong team which attempted Everest in 1936. Owing to the destruction of most of the expedition’s homeward mail by an Indian postmaster, now in prison, we got none of those letters with pungent phrases, red-hot from the scene of action. Ruttledge was our guest at the 1936 Dinner, and Tilman at the 1937 Dinner. The 1938 Everest party is to be, Tilman, Smythe, Shipton, Odell, Oliver, Lloyd, and Warren.
We have been asked for no ladders, so perhaps the west side of the North Col is to be tried first. May the weather be kind !
In 1937 Smythe spent four and a half months in Gahrwal, and from a base in the Bhyundar valley had seven successful climbs and two failures, besides much botanical work. Four were magnificent climbs ; the best was Nilgiri Parbat (21264) with two Bhotia porters from a low camp at under 15,000 feet, the longest and hardest day he has had in the Himalaya. After 22nd July he and Oliver tried Rataban, and then explored the Banke plateau with only five porters, so carrying big loads. Besides two smaller peaks they were successful in the end in climbing Mana Peak (23860) over a peak of 21500, a very hard climb indeed. Smythe did the last 800 ft. alone, over ” Chamonix granite.” They had only one completely fine day in the next five weeks of monsoon weather, tried Nilkanta in vain, and up the Rishi managed to get to within 1,000 feet of Dunagiri summit after a four days’ blizzard. Six feet of snow drove them away.
Smythe returned to the Bhyundar in September to complete his botanical work, and brought home thousands of plants and bulbs. He has been much complimented on his contributions to plant geography.
The Alps—The summer of 1936 must have been the most continuously cloudy season ever known up to the middle of August, when it improved.
Bentley Beetham was in the High Tatra with the Somervells and Meldrum, see A.J., XLVIII, and also in the Alps at New Year and Easter.
Allsup on long leave from Assam, from Flims did Piz Sax, Sardona and Segnes, Vorab and Flimserstein with E. E. Roberts. Then they had a delightful round of six days, Ponteglias Hut, Piz Urlaun, Brigels, Kisten Pass, Ruchi-Hausstock to Panixer Pass and Elm, and back over Segnes Pass, mixed weather with two brilliant days for the peaks. Tn a fine week from Goschenen Alp, Lochberg, Sustenhorn, Hinter Feldschyn, but on the latter a prolonged storm on the top rocks prevented the solution of the tricky final pitch. Back again in Assam, AUsup has recently had some wonderful views of the inaccessible Eastern Himalaya.
G. A. Potter-Kirby was lucky beyond belief, one wet day in three weeks. At the Zermatt Dinner of the British Members of the S.A.C., he found himself about the senior member present, dating from the year of the Association’s foundation. Zermatt was having a bad time, very few English, a few Italians and Dutch. Exchange then 15-16 francs to the £.
J. N. Davidson was ski-ing early in the year and did the Monch in the summer.
W. M. Roberts was in Austria at St. Anton.
B. Nelstrop had a fortnight’s ski-ing in February, including the Titlis and the Joch Pass. Best of all he came through quite unhurt.
At Christmas, Beetham was at Lenzerheide and Davos, Bartlett in the Zillertal, Lawton at Wengen, Thornton at Andermatt. The latter reached Zurich by air in 4J hours from London.
F. H. Slingsby made a tour in Norway, but had not the good fortune to climb other peaks after ascending the Romsdalhorn.
The Alps, 1937.—This summer the weather was the reverse of 1936, excellent up to 13th August, exceptionally and continuously cloudy afterwards.
The President, J. M. Davidson, had bad weather in Tyrol, but climbed four peaks.
Bentley Beetham climbed in the Julian Alps in Jugo-Slavia, then went into Austria, and to the Zugspitze area.
E. H. Sale, W. E. Evans, and D. L. Reed were in Austria, and amid much June snow climbed Schaufelspitze, N. Wildgratspitze, Stubaier Wildspitze, Liserner Ferner Kogel.
J. L. Thomson climbed Wetterhorn and Strahlegghorn.
J. Rigg was in Eastern Switzerland, and in the Silvrettas climbed Piz Buin, Fluchthorn, Augstenberg, and Silvrettahorn.
F. H. Slingsby had the great misfortune to break his leg coming down from the Wetterhorn. At the bottom of the great snow slope from the Dossen Sattel to the Hut, the guide leading, the party slipped and struck the rocks. Two were so injured that they had to be carried down the long descent to Innertkirchen by the Oberhasli Section Rescue Organization. Slingsby’s injuries were such that he was not able to go to his office until 10th November. We all hope that the continuing treatment will enable him to walk and carry as sturdily as formerly.
W. M. Roberts did the Resti Pass and others between Adelboden and Kippel.
P. N. Bartlett was in the Dolomites—the Tschierspitze, Grosse Zinne, Langkofel, Tofana, Cinque Torri, Rosengarten-spitze, Rosengarten Nordturm, and a peak in the Zillertal.
F. S. Booth, H. S. Booth, H. L. Stembridge, F. B. Cooper and E. E. Roberts, starting from the Grimsel Road, climbed the Diechterhorn, Rhonestock, Dammastock and by the Zwischen Tierberg reached Stein. After one party had done Funffingerstocke II and III, the other Ober Heuberg, they trudged down the long Meiental and picked up D. Shaw at Amsteg.
The six then climbed Gross Windgalle (which except for thirty feet, is not a rock-climb), five the Diissistock, and four Gross Scheerhorn. The Hufi glacier has so much retreated and is so crevassed at the edges that it was impossible to cross it to make the traverse from the Hufi Hut.
Shaw, Roberts, and G. C. Williams (S.M.C.) then experienced 10 dreadful days, with one fine exception when they made a minor expedition. In the end the last two bagged the Sonnigwichel, a peak of grand rock, in spite of mist, snow, and a route not as per book.
B. Nelstrop, with Messrs. Byrom and Chapman, reached Chamonix, 5th September. After doing the Aiguille de I’M, they climbed the Grepon, 4 a.m. to 6 p.m., and inevitably bivouacked. Thereafter the weather was so bad the party went touring Switzerland.
S. Marsden and A. W. Wilson visited the Goschenen Alp in September, and climbed the Sustenhorn without guides. The delightful S.A.C. Hotel, Maderanertal, they found almost on the snow-line.
In the spring of 1937 H. Yates was more enterprising than other ski-ers, and spent his annual holiday in a hamlet high up above Bourg d’Oisans (Dauphine).
Other Holidays, 1936.—Allsup, home April to November, on leave from India, took some of the cities of S. France on the way. He spent much time in the Lake District, and visited the Highlands with the Editor—Ben Venue—all the peaks of Cruachan but one—Beinn Fhada to Bidean round on a perfect day—1,000 feet of cutting up Ben Nevis No. 3 Gully, etc.
Calvert in July drove round the Sutherland coast to Gareloch beginning at Betty Hill on the last day of seven weeks’ fine weather. It is odd no one can ever hit these long periods of fine Highland weather except on the last day or the day after. Ben Loyal was reached at the second attempt. He saw two accidents, saw two cars ditched, and twice went for aid. The Sutherland coast is no place for the ordinary driver in a chin-deep car.
Devenish tramped along the Roman Wall. Quite a large party spent a slothful time in the Scillies.
1937.—J. J. Brigg and the late W. A. Brigg made quite a considerable tour on ski in Yorkshire in the late winter.
M. Botterill was yachting as usual along the Western Highlands, and R. Rimmer was with him round Mull for 12 days in June, only two fine.
Woodman too has taken his yacht up and down the same coast.
Although the Highland weather was stated to have been fine in May, it was vile later. A. B. Goggs is unable to add a sequel to his boating article, the Editor had a half-day with sun out of 14, and others report similarly. However the general fine weather for a week or two in August struck Skye, and S. Thompson reports that being unable to sleep and driven by the midges to spend half the night walking by the sea, his party fled to Ben Nevis.
Nelstrop has done a number of the stiffer climbs, Bellevue Bastion, Clogwyn du’r Arddu, Scawfell Pinnacle Face, Pillar Northwest.
Platten has been constantly at work in the Mendips, camping, caving, and digging. After the second attack on Dan-yr-Ogof, he spent most of October at Glyn Tawe.
Brecon Beacons.—Some years ago I drove from Cardiff to Brecon. The road, after it has shed the accumulated ugliness of the mining valleys—and these were lovely once—climbs over Fforest Fawr and rises well above the 1,000 ft. mark before it descends in a ten mile slant to the fertile plain of Brecon. On that occasion, I promised myself a walk over the Beacons, a promise redeemed at Whitsun, 1937.
Few people realise that in South Wales there is a big stretch of country comparable with, and indeed very similar to, the Yorkshire moors, and hills higher than anything in the Pennines, excepting only Cross Fell. Were these hills as near to Leeds as they are to Cardiff, I should not have had only the larks for company in the glorious sunshine of Whitsunday morning.
A few miles north of Merthyr Tydfil the road passes the three reservoirs which supply Cardiff with its water, and these are unusually free of that peculiar waterworks architecture which forbids a moment’s illusion that such lakes are natural. Higher up, near the summit, one might be crossing the Pennine, yet with hills rising 1,500 ft. above the road. It was these hills, the Brecon Beacons, that attracted me, and leaving the car, I mounted the crest of a ridge which runs north, then east over the summits of the two Beacons, and then bends southwards again, suggesting a circuit long enough to be made into a day’s walk if plenty of time were spent lounging in the sun, and in wondering why these hills were so deserted while being so pleasant and accessible.
To the south the Beacons throw out buttresses, separating deeply cut valleys reminiscent of the Sedbergh feUs, but the slopes are not steep. Yet the ridge itself is fairly sharp, for there is an escarpment on the north side, below which gentle slopes lead down towards Brecon. Near the tops there are some exposures of rock on this side.
The two major summits stand about half a mile apart, separated by a col some 300 ft. lower. On the higher peak I found the meanest cairn I have ever seen on a considerable summit, built of a few stones and pieces of turf, which added
perhaps eighteen inches to the stature of the mountain. It flew a flag, a tattered and faded griffin, indicating, perhaps, that there had been a coronation. The lower summit, lacking nothing of the dignity, and only 30 ft. of the height of its neighbour, boasted no cairn at all. The Cribin, further on, is a fine peak, and the top of the short grass ridge towards Brecon is so steep, that people who get up with unnailed boots either go round or go down sitting.
These are fine peaks lacking honour in their own country. Seen from the south, the outline of the Beacons bears a striking resemblance to the couchant lion of Penygent seen from Ribblehead. Surely this is recommendation enough for any Rambler stranded for a week-end in South Wales ? Seen from the north, there is a striking line of sharp peaks, most striking of all when seen from Llanfrynach, E. of Brecon.
When the sun shines the steep northern escarpment is a marvellous sight, banded with scores of lines of rock to which clings a vivid green vegetation and cut by great earthy gullies of a vivid red. There are no ledges, so if you want to climb the really steep parts, make no bones about it, take an ice-axe.—W.E.E.
Geology.—The attention of those interested in the geology of the country in which they climb or cave is directed to an admirable series of booklets, published by the Geological Survey at a price of 1/6 each. They have 70 to 80 pages and are well illustrated by drawings, photographs, and maps. That entitled ” The Pennines and Adjacent Areas ” deals with the pot-holing districts of Derbyshire and Craven, while ” Northern England” describes the Lake District. The general name of the series is British Regional Geology and it may be obtained from H.M. Stationery Office.—G.S.G.