Totem Pole (Tasmania)
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The Totem Pole ( English totem pole ), also called The Tote , is a very distinctive surf pillar on the southeast coast of Tasmania . The approximately 65 meter high dolerite rock is located on Cape Hauy in the Tasman National Park and gained international fame as a photo motif and climbing tower three decades after the first ascent in 1968.
Location and surroundings
 
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Location in Tasmania |
The Totem Pole juts out of the Tasman Sea at Cape Hauy, one of the easternmost points of the Tasman Peninsula . It is located at the southern entrance of a natural canal that separates the 130-meter-high cliffs of the mainland ( cape ) from the no less imposing Miter Rock and another, much larger pillar called "Candlestick". The popular pebble beach Fortescue Bay extends three to four kilometers west of the rocky backdrop.
The closest inhabited locality is Port Arthur another eight kilometers west of the bay. The Tasmanian capital Hobart is 62 kilometers northwest of the Cape.
geology
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The Totem Pole is made of dolerite , a sub-volcanic solidification rock that is formed at a shallow depth in the earth's crust . When it exits the surface, cooling occurs and vertical symmetrical cracks appear. The resulting boulders ultimately form five- to six-sided pillars with diameters from a few centimeters to several meters, see lava column . The characteristic coastline at Cape Hauy was probably formed 150 million years ago in the Jurassic at a time of high volcanic activity. It is part of a geological formation that extends from Australia across Tasmania towards Antarctica .
Geologists suspect that the totem Pole in its present form has only stood since the beginning of the 20th century. Wind and water eroded the rock to such an extent that the pillar with a diameter of four meters was isolated from the mainland. Since the foundation is continuously exposed to the surf , the "natural wonder" can collapse at any time. This is precisely where the attraction lies for many climbers.
Alpinism
Access and difficulties
The parking lot at the end of road C344 on the uninhabited Fortescue Bay serves as a starting point for an expedition. From there, a path takes about an hour and a half to a natural viewing platform at Cape Hauy.
The attraction of climbing Totem Pole lies less in the technical difficulty than in its extreme location. The approach to the foot of the pillar is particularly difficult and dangerous, as it is constantly being washed by sea water and is damp and slippery. In addition to the surf, loose rock is a criterion. "The Tote" is conquered over two pitches of 25 or 40 meters. The extremely short distance to the mainland is not infrequently used by adventurous people for tensioning a highline .
history
“Imagine a matchstick - scale it up hundreds of times until it is 70 meters high and four meters square. Stand it alone in the sea - a single, free-standing square dolerite column, so fragile to the eye one dares hardly to breathe. "
“Imagine a match - enlarge it hundreds of times until it is 70 meters high and four meters thick. Place it alone in the sea - a single, free-standing dolerite pillar, so fragile to the eye that you hardly dare breathe. "
The first ascent of the breakwater was made in 1968 by the Australian rope team John Ewbank and Alan Keller. Due to a thunderstorm, the two had to spend the night on top of the pole. It was only 41 years later that the Ewbank route ( difficulty 5.13b or X− according to UIAA ) was freely committed for the first time by the locals Doug McConnel and Dean Rollins . The second ascent was made in 1993 by two Spanish big wall climbers . In 1995 Steve Monks, Simon Mentz, Jane Wilkinson and Simon Carter opened the "Free Route", rated 5.12b (IX–), for the first time in free style.
In 1998, British mountaineer and author Paul Pritchard was seriously injured while attempting to climb the pillar. After a falling rock hit him in the head, he had to undergo emergency surgery for several hours and suffered hemiplegia . The physical impairment did not prevent him from returning to the scene of the accident in 2016 and catching up on the ascent. He also processed the misfortune in a book which, along with photos of Simon Carter, contributed to the increasing popularity of the Totem Pole. Pritchard's planned route was completed in 1999 by Steve Monks and was named "Deep Play". After Lynn Hill failed in the attempt, Monique Forestier managed the first on-sight ascent in 2003.
In autumn 2002 two Greenpeace activists used the totem pole as a display area for a banner with the inscription “Pirate fishing trades away ocean life!”. They demonstrated against the illegal overfishing of the giant Antarctic cod protected by the CCAMLR .
Literature and films
- Paul Pritchard : The Totem Pole and a Whole New Adventure. Mountaineers Books 1999, ISBN 978-0-89-886696-4 , 208 pp.
- Adventure Photographer . Breaking the Day , Season 1, Episode 6, Documentary with Krystle Wright, Red Bull TV / Karga Seven Pictures 2017.
- Doing It Scared . Short film with Paul Pritchard and Steve Monks, Rummin Productions 2016. Teaser .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Sonnie Trotter Makes FFA of Tasmania Totem Pole Route. Climbing, June 17, 2016, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ^ The Dolerite Columns of Coastal Tasmania. Amusing Planet, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ↑ Tasmania's Totem Pole - A Climber's Best Challenge. Unusual Places, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ↑ a b c d Ben Rueck & Mayan Smith-Gobat: Two Towers: The Wild Sea Stacks of Tasmania. Climbing, February 9, 2017, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ↑ a b The Totem Pole Rock Climbing. Mountain Project, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ↑ Hans Hornberger: Totem Pole Highline. bergstieg.com, March 10, 2008, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ^ Obituary: John Ewbank, 1948–2013. Vertical Life, March 3, 2014, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ↑ Carol Rääbus: Paul Pritchard climbs Tasmania's Totem Pole 18 years after it nearly killed him. ABC , April 13, 2016, accessed March 18, 2018 .
- ^ Climbing the Tasmanian Totem Pole for the toothfish. Greenpeace , November 1, 2002, accessed March 18, 2018 .
Coordinates: 43 ° 8 ′ 21.8 ″ S , 148 ° 0 ′ 20.8 ″ E