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Kiwi adventurers bed down in Hermitage Hotel 120 years on

Steve Gurney (left)
and Steve Moffatt in the Aoraki Mount Cook National
Park
Steve Gurney (Left) and Steve Moffatt in the Aoraki Mount Cook National Park

Press release from Hermitage Hotel
19 November 10

Kiwi adventurers bed down in Hermitage Hotel 120 years on

Hermitage Hotel has welcomed adventure duo, Steve Gurney and Steve Moffat, as they take on a remarkable journey following in the footsteps of two Aoraki Mount Cook mountaineers, Marmaduke Dixon (1862-1918) and George Mannering (1862-1947).

The former coast-to-coast champion (Gurney) and triathlon and endurance athlete (Moffatt) are reenacting the North Canterbury adventure pioneers’ 1890 determined, but ultimately unsuccessful, expedition to be the first to reach the12, 316ft (3754m) summit of Aoraki Mt Cook. As part of the historical expedition the pair bedded down at the 126-year-old hotel last night, just as their predecessors did.

The Gurney-Moffatt challenge got underway yesterday (18 November) and should be complete by November 27. It shadows the very route taken by Dixon and Mannering from Christchurch to near the summit of Aoraki Mount Cook then east to Oamaru.

Adding a twist to adventure, Gurney is using modern technology and equipment throughout the journey, while Moffatt employs only that which as available in 1890 – the hob-nail boots and hemp rope of 120 years ago. Gurney began his travels by train while Moffatt set off on horseback.

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The aim of the Gurney-Moffatt 2010 expedition is to explore, examine and debate the difference between the adventurers of early New Zealand and today. During the mission the duo’s comparison of lifestyles, exercise, nutrition, values, attitudes and society’s expectations will be captured on a video-documentary, entitled ‘Aoraki Mount Cook to the Sea: The Movie’.

To help reenact the feast that Dixon and Mannering may have tucked in to during their stay at the Hermitage Hotel, staff unearthed a menu from the time, which included Tripe, Pilchards, Broth, which was served up to Moffat at the hotel’s Panorama Restaurant as Gurney chose from the current menu. The pair were joined for dinner by Hermitage Hotel General Manager Andrew Cleverley and Aoraki Mt Cook Alpine Village Ltd General Manager Tourism Denis Callesen.

Steve Gurney, a retired New Zealand multisport and triathlon athlete worked with Denis Callesen to research the journey and ensure historical accuracy.

“The Hermitage has housed mountaineers and adventurers since it was first built on its original site in 1884. The hotel has been through many incarnations since then and is of course now on a new site, but its cultural heritage remains unchanged,” said Mr Gurney.

“We were fortunate to work with the Hermitage and to be able to access their huge archive of resource information for this project. The Hermitage has such a rich heritage and is very familiar which proved useful to us.”

Gurney and Moffatt both prepared for the summit climb at the Hermitage Hotel and will return for one night following their descent before kayaking (as Mannering and Dixon had done) down the Pukaki and Waitaki rivers to the Oamaru coast.

Mr Cleverley said he was “delighted” to welcome the two modern day adventure heroes to the Hermitage and help them on their inspirational journey.

“I think Gurney and Moffat will help us all learn a thing or two from two of New Zealand’s unsung pioneering heroes,” he said.

Aoraki Mt Cook was eventually conquered on Christmas Day 1894 by Hermitage guides Tom Fyfe, Jack Clarke and George Graham winning a race for the summit against a team of elite European climbers who planned to scale the mountain around the same time.

ENDS


About the Dixon and Mannering (1890) adventure
Marmaduke Dixon and George Mannering were notorious mountaineers and also keen Rob-Roy kayakers. In 1890 they made an attempt to be the first to climb Mt Cook. The bid was unsuccessful as they were forced to turn around just 200ft from the summit. On their descent they immediately alighted their wooden kayaks and paddled the Pukaki river into the Waitaki river and then to Oamaru on the East Coast. Over two days they paddled hard to arrive in time to catch the evening express train back to Christchurch.

About Gurney and Moffatt (2010):
Gurney and Moffatt’s ‘Aoraki Mount Cook to the Sea’ adventure is the second in a five part series which showcases New Zealand’s (often unsung) pioneering heroes. Part one was re-enacting the Park brothers’ trip from Coast to Coast over Harper pass with wooden kayaks. The trip, entitled “A Most Ambitious Journey,” raised some interesting questions about the differences between Kiwi adventurers of 120 years ago and now. The success and fantastic reaction to the pair’s expedition gave Gurney and Moffatt great inspiration and encouraged them to make a professional movie of this second, remarkable adventure reenacting Dixon and Mannering’s journey.

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