Totem Pole (Tasmania)
Sea stack in Tasmania
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The Totem Pole is a sea stack popular amongst rockclimbers in the Tasman National Park, Tasmania, Australia. It contains a number of climbing routes, all of which require a Tyrolean traverse to return to the mainland, and is famous for being the site of the 1998 accident which caused British climber Paul Pritchard's hemiplegia.[1][2]
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| The Totem Pole | |
|---|---|
The Totem Pole and The Candlestick | |
  | |
| Location | Cape Hauy |
| Coordinates | 43.13938°S 148.00579°E |
| Route type | Trad climb |
| Vertical gain | 65 metres (213 ft) |
| Pitches | 2 |
| Rating | 24 (The Free Route) |
| First ascent | John Ewbank and Allan Keller, 1968 |
| First free ascent | Doug McConnel and Dean Rollins |
First ascent
Paul Pritchard's accident
Paul planned on climbing the Totem Pole in 1998 with his partner Celia when, after abseiling down, his rope caught a large rock which fell 9 metres (30 ft) onto his head. Celia ran 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) back to Fortescue Bay to call for help. He survived on the ledge for eight hours before he was rescued and was left paralysed on his left side and with speech and memory difficulties. He later wrote a book about the experience and returned in 2016 to complete the climb.[6][7]
Rock type
Tasmania is known for its igneous dolerite pillars, which are popular amongst climbers.[8] These pillars were formed by volcanic activity extruding magma from the ground, which when cooled at a constant rate creates rare hexagonal pillars.[9] These form via a slightly different mechanism to usual sea-stacks, and can be found at other rock-climbing sites around the state including Mount Wellington's Organ Pipes.
Gallery
Paul Pritchard climbing
Dolerite rock columns in Cape Hauy, Tasmania
Sea stacks as seen from the water in Tasmania
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