Historic HB: The battle to climb Mount Ruapehu

Lydia Birch, the first European woman to ascend Mount Ruapehu on March 9, 1881. Credit: Patricia Keiller

The past week marked International Women's Day on March 8 and the next day the first ascent of the 2797m Mount Ruapehu by a European woman – Lydia Birch, 140 years ago on March 9, 1881.

Lydia Etheldreda Larden was born in England in 1853, and married in England her cousin, William John Birch in 1874.

William brought his new bride to New Zealand to Hawke's Bay to the remote Erewhon Station, a 115,100 acre (46,579ha) property in the Inland Patea (then part of Hawke's Bay province) he farmed with his brother Azim.

Visible from parts of Erewhon Station was the imposing Mount Ruapehu.

While some Europeans looked at the mountains on the central plateau with curiosity and a desire to climb it, Māori had an opposing view.

These mountains had had tapu placed upon them by the Ngāti Tūwharetoa chiefs of the central North Island, especially Mount Tongariro.

Hawke's Bay educationalist (and future mayor Napier) Henry Hill in an address to the Hawke's Bay Philosophical Institute in 1891 mentioned that Māori believed Ruapehu was haunted by a spirit, Te Riro.

The spirit was said to entice men from their homes and cause them to wander over the mountain until they became insane and then lead them into one of the mountain caves to die – unless rescued by one of the relations.

Hill stated, "It shows what a dread the natives had of the Rangipo desert [east side of Tongariro National Park] and its trackless and ever moving sands, towards which many of their people passed never to return."

According to Hill, Māori did not know much about Ruapehu:

"As far as I can learn, these Māori possess no knowledge whatever of there being an eruption on Ruapehu; but this may arise from the dread among them as to the dangers to be met in the vicinity of the mountain, and to the absolute sterility of the country thereabouts."

George Beetham, Member of Parliament for Wairarapa, decided in 1878 to climb Mount Ruapehu.

His friend, William Birch of Erewhon Station, said he would climb it with him.

Therefore George set out in March 1878 from the Wairarapa for William Birch's summerhouse Stoneycroft in Omahu Rd (now the home of the Hawke's Bay Knowledge Bank) in Hastings to collect his friend.

Upon arriving at Stoneycroft ‒ after being delayed by a meeting in Masterton, George was told that he had just missed William who had left for Erewhon that morning.

George then went to Napier (Hastings was only five years old then) to secure a waterproof climbing outfit, plus a blanket and other supplies.

Staying the night at Stoneycroft, he left on March 17 for Erewhon, arriving there at nightfall on March 19.

William Birch, however, would not accompany his friend up Mount Ruapehu – and George was disappointed when instead a farm hand, Michael Ruddy, was his replacement.

After a day's journey and camping out overnight in an outstation on Erewhon, William pointed out the road across the "desert" to George to reach Mount Ruapehu.

Taking the horses as high as they could go up Ruapehu, the men tried to reach the summit but could not navigate the ice field after the tomahawk they used to cut steps was lost.

Next year, in March 1879, being better prepared, George would take with him a civil engineer, J P Maxwell, and they were the first Europeans to climb the south peak of Ruapehu (Tahurangi) to see the crater lake.

The climb took 13 hours, up and down.

Another ascent would be made on Mount Ruapehu on March 9, 1881, but this time with George Beetham was Arthur and Herbert Russell, his friend William Birch – and his wife, Lydia.

Michael Fowler

Using ropes and alpenstocks (walking sticks), they ascended from the northeast, the highest peaks Te Heu Heu and Tahurangi, passing the crater lake on the way.

In doing so Lydia became the first European woman to climb Mount Ruapehu.

This was some achievement by 27-year-old Lydia considering the period clothing of the time she would have worn.

According to climbing companion Arthur Russell, the climb was instigated by Lydia who wanted to get to the top of Mount Ruapehu.

It was on this trip they discovered the crater lake was warm – at that point (apart from R T Batley believing he saw steam arising from Ruapehu while driving sheep in the area in 1869) apparently this was not known.

Henry Hill produced topographical illustrations of Mount Ruapehu – including the crater lake area.

Interestingly he lists names on the illustrations for locations surrounding the crater lake.

It appears the first European to the top of Mount Ruapehu, George Beetham and J P Maxwell, named two peaks after themselves, and after the 1881 climb, William and Lydia Birch and the Russell Brothers had glaciers named for them.

The Caccia Snowfield was named for a family name on William Birch's side and the Studholme Snowfield for John Studholme, who owned land near Mount Ruapehu.

Mount Ruapehu came under some attention after Mount Tarawera erupted on June 10, 1886 with loss of life (and destroying the famous Pink and White Terraces in Rotorua). Mount Tarawera was thought to be an extinct volcano.

The New Zealand Herald published a telegram from a Colonel Macdonald stating there had been a volcanic eruption on Mount Ruapehu, witnessed when staying at William and Lydia Birch's at Erewhon.

William Birch replied that during his stay Colonel Macdonald had made no mention of this to him – as a resident in the area on Erewhon Station he would have known if it had been a volcanic outbreak and it would have been seen by two of his shepherds within view of the volcano.

Directly underneath William's letter was a longer letter from his wife signed L E Birch – not Mrs W J Birch – as was the custom (and it was doubtful a letter from a woman would have been allowed to be published in 1886).

Lydia in her letter mentions she climbed Mount Ruapehu in May 1886 and witnessed steam coming from the crater.

Watching the crater for almost two hours, she observed just to the south of the crater lake a small upright jet of steam from the crater.

Lydia at first thought the clouds above were from the steam.

She concluded although the jet steam was connected to the cloud above the crater "for a long time", the cloud would suddenly be "streamed out northward" to be replaced by "another little "finger" of cloud arrived in its stead" which came from the south.

Lydia believed this phenomenon where small clouds are quickly attracted to a hilltop, and "then cling on to its surface and curl around it", was asked if this was responsible for the "apparent proof of new life in our so-called extinct volcano?"

Lydia Birch was a determined lady and described by one family member as "a bit of bossy boots, who liked her own way" (possibly even dragging her husband – who seemed reluctant in 1878 to climb with George Beetham – up Mount Ruapehu in 1881).

However, Lydia was "very popular throughout the district [Inland Patea] for her many acts of kindness, especially in attention to the sick, which is a specialty with her, and she will be long remembered by the men who were employed on the road works last autumn during the time that typhoid was so prevalent here".

Michael Fowler and Wendy Campbell will be releasing a book in October with a working title The Road to Erewhon: Its Places and People of Inland Patea.

Michael Fowler (mfhistory@gmail.com) is a contract researcher and commercial business writer of Hawke's Bay history. Follow him on facebook.com/michaelfowlerhistory