Rob Roy Peak is a mountain in

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

, New Zealand.

Description

Rob Roy Peak is located in the

Southern Alps The Southern Alps (; officially Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana) are a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand, New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The n ...

of the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

. It is also within

Mount Aspiring National Park Mount Aspiring National Park is in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand, north of Fiordland National Park, situated in Otago and Westland regions. The park forms part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage Site. History Moun ...

which is part of the Te Wahipounamu

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. Precipitation runoff from the mountain's slopes drains to the

Matukituki River The Matukituki River is a short braided river in the Southern Alps of New Zealand's South Island. Both its West Branch and East Branch originate from the Main Divide mountain ranges near Mount Aspiring / Tititea. Their largely glacier-fed wate ...

Topographic relief Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...

is significant as the summit rises above the west branch of this river in four kilometres, and above Rob Roy Stream in two kilometres. The nearest higher neighbour is

Mount Aspiring / Tititea Mount Aspiring / Tititea is New Zealand's 23rd-highest mountain. The peak's altitude of makes it the country's highest outside the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park region. Names Māori named it ''Tititea'', after a chief of the Waitaha iwi, ...

, seven kilometres to the north. Rob Roy Peak was named after Scottish

folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythology, mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in Folk music, folk songs, folk tales ...

Rob Roy MacGregor Robert Roy MacGregor (; 7 March 1671 – 28 December 1734) was a Jacobite Scottish outlaw, who later became a Scottish and Jacobite folk hero. Early life He was born in the Kingdom of Scotland at Glengyle, at the head of Loch Katrine, as r ...

(1671–1734). This mountain's toponym has been officially approved by the

New Zealand Geographic Board The New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB) is the authority over geographical and hydrographic names within New Zealand and its territorial waters. This includes the naming of small urban settlements, localities, mounta ...

.''Rob Roy Peak''
New Zealand Gazetteer, Retrieved 29 December 2024. The

first ascent In mountaineering and climbing, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in climbing guidebook, guide books), is the first successful documented climb to the top of a mountain or the top of a particular climbing route. Early 20th-century mountaineers a ...

of the summit was made on 2 March 1935.

Climate

Based on the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, Rob Roy Peak is located in a

marine west coast An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring co ...

climate zone, with a

subpolar oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring co ...

(Cfc) at the summit. Prevailing westerly winds blow moist air from the Tasman Sea onto the mountain, where the air is forced upwards by the mountains (

orographic lift Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...

), causing moisture to drop in the form of rain and snow. This climate supports the Maud Francis Glacier and Rob Roy Glacier on the mountain's slopes. The months of December through February offer the most favourable weather for viewing or climbing this peak.''The Best Time to Visit the South Island''
nzpocketguide.com, Retrieved 29 December 2024.

Climbing

Climbing routes with first ascents:''Rob Roy Pk''
New Zealand Alpine Club, Climbnz.org, Retrieved 29 December 2024. * South Ridge / Rob Roy Glacier – Ernie Smith, Monty McClymont, Cedric Benzoni, Bob Fullerton, George Palmer, Don Divers, Russell Edwards, George Edwards, and Gordon Edwards – (1935) * North Ridge – Paul Powell, Frank Cooper – (1954) * East Ridge – Tony Bowden, Graham Bishop – (1963) * ''From Aspiring Hut'' (West Face) – Don Morrison, Peter Child – (1964) * South Face Original Line – Bob Cunninghame, Limbo Thompson, Pete Glasson – (1972) * ''South East Corner'' (South Face) – Pete Moore – (1972) * North Face – Bruce Robertson, Laurie Kennedy – (1975) * ''A Couple of Days'' (South Face) – Dave Vass, Allan Uren – (1997) * South West Ridge – Phil Penney, Simon Harris – (1998) * ''The Zone'' (South Face) – Craig Jefferies, Steve Moffat, Gareth Sharp – (1999) * North West Ridge – FA unknown * North East Face – FA unknown

Gallery

File:New Zealand- Hiking the Rees-Dart Track.jpg, West aspect centred. ( Mount Avalanche to left) File:Rob Roy Glacier from far below in valley.jpg, Rob Roy Peak and Rob Roy Glacier from south

References

External links