Ubekendt Ejland, West Greenland. A University of St. Andrews party revisited the mountains of Akuliaruseq peninsula and of Upernivik Island in the Umanak district of West Greenland at 71°N, (A.A.J., 1968, p. 182; A.A.J., 1970, p 153). We were on the Drever Memorial Project to the Greenlanders in Igdlorssuit on Ubekendt Island. Our party consisted of Adam Arnott, Sandy Briggs, Colin Matheson, David Meldrum, John Thurman, my son Peter, and me. Both Meldrum and I had known the villagers from our earlier visits. Since 1937 the late Professor Harald Drever had studied the island’s geology; some of its rocks were terrestrial lunar replicas. He had become the villagers’ friend and hoped that they would maintain their skill in the construction and use of their kayaks for hunting seals so he started and provided the prizes for a long-distance kayak race. After his death the race was taken over by the Umanak Kommune. I started a memorial fund and got nearly $3000 for the race. We went to live in the village, to hand over Drever’s research hut and boats, to see the race, and to conclude our long University link with the village. We were based on the hut for eight weeks. We did some climbing. In late June we travelled 30 miles by boat through the melting pack ice to the entrance of the Nerderlit valley on Akuliaruseq. We camped five miles up the barren valley where we reclimbed the beautiful Snepyramiden with its tragic past (A.A.J., 1962, p 250), made three first ascents by mixed snow-rubble routes, and failed on a precarious fiakey pinnacle below the summit of a “huge tottering scree heap.” In late July we were on the popular Upernivik Island. We reached eight summits: our best new route was a 2300-foot difficile rib on the southwest face of “Scorpio” (1850 meters or 6070 feet). Our main objective was to reclimb P 2105 (6907 feet), “Great White Tower” and the highest mountain on the island, and to rename it in Green-landic as Harald’s Peak. We camped in the heart of the island ten miles from the sea. Three tiny tents perched on a moraine overlooking a broad snowfield and surrounded by jagged rock peaks. Our hill was a slender pale rock spire at the apex of two long ridges. We followed the south ridge, traversing difficult pinnacles on good rock, crossing steep slopes of loose glassy ice marbles, mounting rock stairways to the final summit block. I stood alone on the top of Aaraliup qâqâ (Harald’s Peak). I had a strong sense of ultimate fulfilment.

Philip Gribbon, Scottish Mountaineering Club