“In mid-March Steve Dowall and I took some time off work and headed up to Ruapehu. We climbed a rib of rock on the East (far) side of the Grand Pinnacle at Whakapapa. It turned out to be a couple of pitches of pleasant rock at about grade 11, before merging with the Pinnacle proper just before the summit. It makes a nice half day alpine scramble with a bit of exposure and good top-out. It could also make a fun start to a Pinnacle Traverse. Although not mentioned in the guide book, it seems unlikely that this feature hasn’t been climbed before.” Tom Wilson