Mount Sefton

Mountain in New Zealand

Mount Sefton is located in New Zealand
Mount Sefton
Mount Sefton
South Island, New Zealand
Parent rangeSouthern AlpsClimbingFirst ascent1894 by Edward FitzGerald

Mount Sefton (Māori: Maukatua) is a mountain in the Aroarokaehe Range[2] of the Southern Alps of New Zealand, just 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of Aoraki / Mount Cook. To the south lies Mount Brunner, and to the north The Footstool, both more than 400 metres (1,300 ft) shorter.[1]

The mountain is prominently visible from Mount Cook Village in the Hooker Valley, with Tuckett Glacier flowing down the south-eastern side of the mountain and Mueller Glacier in the valley below it.[3][4] With a height of 3,151 metres (10,338 ft), Mount Sefton is the 13th-highest peak in the Southern Alps, and the 4th-highest mountain in New Zealand when excluding peaks of little prominence that are closer than a kilometre to a higher peak.

The Douglas River (formerly known as the Twain River) begins on Mount Sefton.[3]

An early resident, Charles French Pemberton, named the area, whilst the geologist Julius von Haast named the mountain after William Sefton Moorhouse, the second Superintendent of Canterbury Province.[4] The Māori name of the mountain is Maukatua, which translates as 'mountain of the gods'.[4]

Edward FitzGerald, with Matthias Zurbriggen as his guide, completed the first recorded climb to the summit shortly after Christmas 1894.[5][6]

Mueller Hut with Mt Sefton (in the middle) and Aoraki / Mt Cook (on the right) during the sunrise

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mount Sefton.
  1. ^ a b "Mount Sefton, Canterbury – NZ Topo Map". NZ Topo Map. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
  2. ^ Matthew Littlewood (3 Apr 2013). "Dual names accepted in Aoraki-Mt Cook". The Timaru Herald. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
  3. ^ a b Harper, Arthur Paul (1896). Pioneer Work in the Alps of New Zealand: A Record of the First Exploration of the Chief Glaciers and Ranges of the Southern Alps. T. F. Unwin. pp. 16ff. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  4. ^ a b c Reed, A. W. (2010). Peter Dowling (ed.). Place Names of New Zealand. Rosedale, North Shore: Raupo. p. 362. ISBN 9780143204107.
  5. ^ Rose, John Holland (1929). The Cambridge History of the British Empire. CUP Archive. pp. 43ff. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  6. ^ Wilson, John. "Mountaineering - Aoraki/Mt Cook". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  • v
  • t
  • e
Mountains
Mountain ranges
Glaciers
Lakes
Rivers
Other geographic features
Settlements and buildings
Walking and cycling tracks
Reserves and World Heritage Sites
  • v
  • t
  • e
Landforms of Westland District, New Zealand
Alpine passes
Bays
Canyons, gorges
and waterfalls
Glaciers
Headlands
Islands
Lakes and lagoons
Mountain ranges
Mountains
River flats
Rivers
Authority control databases Edit this at Wikidata
  • VIAF