This text was read by OCR from a scanned newsletter and has not been proofread yet, so expect odd characters and mistakes.
by Rodney Harris
Fi Da 0848 Hrs: First wave of UN Mt Angelus Assault Team gains toehold on inhospitable shores of Lake Rotoiti/foot of Mt Robert, closely followed by second wave, not to mention all the waves caused by the boat. . Countries represented: Germany , Ireland, USA, India ... even New Zealand. .
0930 - 1700: Party bravely struggles up sheer cliff faces of Mt Robert lashed by 7 - 10 knot winds, closely tracked by glider. Despite several camera shots, no hits scored. Sheer snow slopes traversed looking heroic, tough and experienced due to ice~axes. 1700 ~ 1800: Team members make Lake Angelus Hut individually and at well dispersed and quite deliberate intervals. Fittest and most competent mountaineers stay well to the rear of the party, this day as on every other, due to innate modesty. Writer puzzles at water filling up his bootholes on last approach to hut having intelligently, unlike the rest of group, taken most direct route. Discovers subsequetly he walked across Lake which was posing as a ski field. 1800 - 0700: Feeding, drying and sleeping time. All-weather, very rugged, down sleeping bags far too hot as usual due to dry, heated hut.
Second. Day 0700 = 0800: Everyone says goodbye to hut which no-one expects to see again, and to. other occupants who hope not to see us again. 0800 = 1400: Assault in worsening conditions on mythical Sunset Saddle. Members left to freeze as Brian, bare-legged, walks off in the percieved direction of the said alleged Saddle. Then returns, and we all walk off with him in a completely different direction. Turns out he was bluffing, so to speak. Gaze in wonder at Cascade track from a great height. Writer suggests weakly we use a compass. Meets with retort that no use if you don’t know where you are. Writers delicate personal feelings hurt. 1400 = 1700: Return to Hut. Occupants delighted to have the company of our small party of 12. 1700 - 1800: Getting dry and concentrating on feeling sheepish, frustrated and depressed at our tramping inadequacy. Not helped by skiers who comment with surprise on the ease with which they found the Saddle.
1800 - 1930: Writer ably supervises cooking of magnificent meal. Forgets, alas, to add own ingredients, eats bacon for rest of the week. Gratefully assisted by six others, giving simultanious directions from bunks. Considers swapping group decision making inclusive style process for simple dictatorship enforced by terror and violence.
1930 - 1935: The depression. Night-time: Nasy storm outside. So is the toilet. Sigh ... And on the third day 0600: ... we arose again and prepared ourselves for the Cascade Descent. BJ unperturbed by cracks in snow at top. Writer frequently disappears up to waist. What a waist! Steep descent past thundering (cascading?) waterfall, then lovely beech forest, then civilization. Lake Head Hut. Sensible members enjoy themselves and catch boat. Stingy masochists inflict final sprint on themselves round edge of Lake.
1557: Last three members of WI&MC emerge from Park, writer included. Murray (the leader) kindly lags behind with us to lend legitimacy to our lastness and near lateness. Many, many thanks to Murray and BJ for their leadership, from us all. We all had a great time. The Punters: Murray Arthur-Worsop, Brian Johnston, Rob Fox, Richard Dykes, Stephan Schulz, Nula Carney, John Ringwood, Prakash Jeran, Craig Stenhouse and Rodney Harris (scribe).