Mount Wilhelm
| Mount Wilhelm | |
|---|---|
| Enduwa Kombuglu' / Kombugl'o Dimbin | |
 The granite peak of Mount Wilhelm | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 4,509 m (14,793 ft) |
| Prominence | 2,969 m (9,741 ft)[1] Ranked 97th |
| Listing | Country high point Ultra Seven Summits |
| Coordinates | 05°48′S145°02′E/ 5.800°S 145.033°E |
| Geography | |
  Mount Wilhelm Location of Mount Wilhelm in Papua New Guinea | |
| Location | Intersection ofChimbu,JiwakaandMadangprovinces inPapua New Guinea |
| Parent range | Bismarck Range |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 15 August 1938 byLeigh Vial |
| Easiest route | Rock scramble |
Mount Wilhelm(German:Wilhelmsberg) is the highestmountaininPapua New Guineaat 4,509 metres (14,793 ft). It is part of theBismarck Rangeand the peak is the point where three provinces,Chimbu,JiwakaandMadang,meet. The peak is also known asEnduwa Kombuglu,orKombugl'o Dimbin,in the localKuman language.[2]
The mountain is on the island ofNew Guinea,which incorporatesPapua New Guineaand theIndonesianprovinces ofPapua.It is surpassed byPuncak Jaya,4,884 m (16,024 ft), and several other peaks in Indonesian Papua.
Mount Wilhelm may be considered the highest mountain inOceania(includingAustraliaandNew Zealand) according to present political boundaries of nation states, whilePuncak Jayacontends for the same title based on physical geography.[3]ASeven Summitslist thus sometimes includes Mount Wilhelm.
History[edit]
Discovery[edit]
Mount Wilhelm received its name in 1888 when a German newspaper correspondent,Hugo Zöller,climbed theFinisterre Range,south-east ofMadang,and named the Bismarck Range after the German Chancellor,Otto von Bismarck,and the four highest peaks of the range after him and his children: Ottoberg, Herbertberg, Marienberg and Wilhelmberg.[4]Ottoberg seemed to Zöller to be the highest of the range, but it was later discovered to be only 3,540 metres (11,600 ft) and the distant Wilhelmberg was much taller.[5]
It was not until August 1938 whenLeigh Vial,a government patrol officer, and two Niu Ginians, his "Mangi mastas", "Namba Wan Bare Kuakawa" (Kugl'kane) and "Gend" ( "Mondia Nigle" ), made the first recorded ascent.[4]It was noted by Vial that even though the mountain was close to theequator,snow existed on top of the mountain during his ascent.[6]
Second World War bomber crash[edit]
During theSecond World Warin the early hours of May 22, 1944, anAmericanF-7A (a convertedB-24 Liberator) named "Under Exposed" crashed into the mountain while it was flying too low. The aircraft left from Nadzab airbase, close toLae,and had been assigned for a reconnaissance mission to photograph Padaidori Island inDutch New Guinea.Around 0400 the plane crashed into Wilhelm at about 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) above the twin lakes.[7] All of the crew were killed, and most of the wreckage landed in the highest lake although some can still be seen. The only remains at the site are from the plane, as all of the bodies have been recovered.
Climbing deaths[edit]
A number of people have died trying to climb the mountain. An Australian Army Sergeant, Christopher Donnan, died in December 1971 when he fell down a steep slope. There is a plaque at the point where he was last seen. In August 1995 an Israeli backpacker died after he sprained his ankle and stayed behind while his group continued. He subsequently wandered off the track and fell into a ravine in the pre-dawn darkness. His body was found about a week later.[8]On July 30, 2005, 58-year-old Bob Martin, a marketing manager atAir Niugini,suffered a heart attack and died near the summit.[9][10] In 2001, a student from Muaina High School (Muaina High school Mt Wilhelm Expedition) died at Piunde-foot of Mount Wilhelm. He was later found to be an asthmatic patient. Another, local Papua New Guinean, from Tari in the Southern Highlands Province, died in 2007 a few meters south of the Christopher Donnan plaque. Local sources revealed that the deceased was unaware of the warning and was wearing only his sporting suit, T-shirt and Dunlop shoes. He was covered by debris and fallen rock fragments, forming a talus at the base of the southern tip of the Christopher Donnan section.
Ascending[edit]
Mount Wilhelm is the most accessible mountain to climb in Papua New Guinea. Climbers have a choice of two different routes to the top. The most common route starts from the village of Keglsugl at the end of the road fromKundiawainSimbu province.A harder hike and climb starts from the village of Ambullua inWestern Highlandsprovince.
The Keglsugl route involves climbing up and through a mountain rain forest and then along an alpine grassland glacial valley to the twin lakes of Piunde and Aunde. At Piunde there are two huts, one being an oldAustralian National Universitymonitoring station and the other an 'A-Frame' hut. Though not a technical climb, various sections can be treacherous in wet weather. The climb is usually started during the night; the ascent and subsequent descent can take anywhere from nine to 24 hours. Reaching the peak at dawn allows a better chance of clear weather.
The other route from Ambullua is a much more challenging four-day hike.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^This prominence is fromPapua New Guinea ultra-prominent peakson peaklist.org. The prominence is sometimes given as 2,949 metres (9,675 ft) or 2,922 m (9,587 ft).
- ^Nolan, Riall W.(1983).Bushwalking in Papua New Guinea(1 ed.).Lonely Planet.ISBN0-908086-41-5.
- ^"Statistical Yearbook of Croatia, 2007"(PDF).dzs.hr.Retrieved23 October2017.
- ^abPérusse, Yvon (July 1993).Bushwalking in Papua New Guinea(2 ed.).Lonely Planet.p. 156.ISBN0-86442-052-8.
- ^Souter, Gavin (1963).New Guinea: The Last Unknown.Angus & Robertson. p. 76.ISBN0-207-94627-2.
- ^Vial, L.G. (May 1939). "The Kamans".Walkabout.
- ^"F7-A" Under Exposed "Serial Number 42-73052".Pacific Wreck Database.Retrieved2007-01-16.
- ^Adrian Lipscomb; Rowan McKinnon; Jon Murray.Papua New Guinea(6 ed.). Lonely Planet. p. 231.ISBN0-86442-402-7.
- ^"PNG Loses Great Tourism Ambassador".Papua New Guinea Business and Tourism Forum.Retrieved2007-01-15.
- ^TPA Monthly Newsletter Update ISSUE 17 - July - August 2005
External links[edit]
- "Mount Wilhelm".Peakware.com.Archived fromthe originalon 2016-03-04.
Highest Mountains ofPapua New Guinea | ||
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