Mount Menzies is the culminating
peak (3,355 m; 11,007 ft) on the large
massif
In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...
between
Mount Mather and
Mount Bayliss, standing on the south side of
Fisher Glacier,
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
. It was sighted by Flying Officer J. Seaton from an
ANARE
The Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE ) is the historical name for the Australian Antarctic Program (AAp) administered for Australia by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD).
History
Australia has had a long involv ...
Beaver aircraft in 1956, and mapped by an ANARE southern seismic party under
K.B. Mather in 1957–58. Mount Menzies was named by ANCA after the Rt. Hon.
Robert Menzies
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
,
Prime Minister of Australia
The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the princip ...
, 1939–41 and 1949–66.
First ascent
Mount Menzies was first reached and climbed by Dave Keyser, Jim Seavers and Dave Trail, in December 1961. With two teams of five dogs each, this three-man party left
Mawson Station
The Mawson Station, commonly called Mawson, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Mawson lies in Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica in the Austra ...
early in November, accompanying a five-man tractor party (G. Maslen, I. Todd, G. Wilkinson, R. Wyers and W. Young) to recover a D-4 Caterpillar tractor left for lack of fuel on the polar plateau at latitude 70°34' South. The three-man dog sledge party continued south to a small plywood caravan left at Binders Base at 72°36' South by the 1960 Mawson party, in order to re-provision and sledge on to the
Fisher Glacier. Crevasses slowed the party, but one day sufficed to cross the glacier, and after inspecting the formidable ice-falls on the south side on Mt. Menzies, the party climbed the mountain from the north, plodding through the night – mainly over moraine – to reach the summit at midnight on 19 December 1961.
From Mt Menzies, the party sledged further south and east in unsuccessful attempts (prevented by crevasses) to reach
Keyser Ridge and
Mount Ruker. The party then crossed the Fisher Glacier on better ground from the north-east end of the Menzies Massif directly to Seavers Nunataks and from there, returned to Binders Base on 31 December. The dog sledge party then reached Mawson on 27 January 1962.
[Geoscience Australia, Canberra](_blank)
from the Field Notebooks of D.S. Trail (also found in AGSO – Geoscience Australia Bulletin 247, ''The Geology of the Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica'').
See also
*
List of mountains of Mac. Robertson Land
The mountains of Mac. Robertson Land are located in the region Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica, between 60° E and 73° E. This region is claimed by Australia as part of the Australian Antarctic Territory. The area is highly glaciated. The a ...
References
{{coord, 73, 30, S, 61, 50, E, type:mountain, display=title
Menzies, Mount