The Totem Pole is a

sea stack A stack or sea stack is a geological landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock in the sea near a coast, formed by wave erosion. Stacks are formed over time by wind and water, processes of coastal geomorphology. ...

popular amongst

rockclimbers Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

in the

Tasman National Park The Tasman National Park is a national park in eastern Tasmania, Australia, approximately east of Hobart. The park is situated on part of both the Forestier and Tasman peninsulas and encompasses all of Tasman Island. History Whaling acti ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Australia. It contains a number of climbing routes, and is famous for being the site of the 1998 accident which caused climber Paul Pritchard's

hemiplegia Hemiparesis, or unilateral paresis, is weakness of one entire side of the body ('' hemi-'' means "half"). Hemiplegia is, in its most severe form, complete paralysis of half of the body. Hemiparesis and hemiplegia can be caused by different medic ...

First ascent

The Totem Pole was first climbed in 1968 by

John Ewbank John Ewbank may refer to: *John Ewbank (composer), British-born Dutch composer, lyricist and record producer * John Ewbank (climber), Australian rock climber *John Wilson Ewbank John W. Ewbank (4 May 1799 – 28 November 1847), was an English-bo ...

and Allan Keller and freed by Doug McConnel and Dean Rollins.

Lynn Hill Carolynn Marie Hill (born January 3, 1961) is an American rock climber. Widely regarded as one of the leading competitive climbers, traditional climbers (and particularly big wall traditional climbers), sport climbers, and boulderers in the ...

attempted the first

onsight __NOTOC__ This glossary of climbing terms is a list of definitions of terms and jargon related to rock climbing and mountaineering. The specific terms used can vary considerably between different English-speaking countries; many of the phrases d ...

, but fell after breaking a hold, leaving Monique Forestier to onsight it a few years later.

Paul Pritchard's accident

Paul planned on climbing the Totem Pole in 1998 with his partner Celia when, after abseiling down, his rope caught a large rock which fell onto his head. Celia ran back to

Fortescue Bay Fortescue Bay or Baje Dolomien is a bay in southeast Tasmania, Australia. It is located east of Port Arthur, Tasmania, and makes up part of Tasman National Park. Within the bay are two smaller nested bays, Canoe Bay and Bivouac Bay. History T ...

to call for help. He survived on the ledge for eight hours before he was rescued and was left paralysed on his left side and with speech and memory difficulties. He later wrote a book about the experience and returned in 2016 to complete the climb.

Rock type

Tasmania is known for its igneous

dolerite Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...

pillars, which are popular amongst climbers. These pillars were formed by volcanic activity extruding magma from the ground, which when cooled at a constant rate creates rare hexagonal pillars. These form via a slightly different mechanism to usual sea-stacks, and can be found at other rock-climbing sites around the state including Mount Wellington's Organ Pipes.

Gallery

Image:01ElCaballo copy.jpg, Paul Pritchard climbing Image:The Totem Pole, Cape Huay.jpg, Dolerite rock columns in Cape Hauy, Tasmania Image:The Candlestick (35280331625).jpg, Sea stacks as seen from the water in Tasmania

References

Tourist attractions in Tasmania Stacks of Australia Coastline of Tasmania Tasman National Park Climbing routes {{Tasmania-geo-stub