A 26-year-old climber has fallen to his death on Mt Ruapehu.
The man was climbing with a group of three others on Saturday morning, when he slipped on Pinnacle Ridge, falling 400 metres.
A Mt Ruapehu company spokesman, Mike Smith, says the man's companions raised the alarm and a ski patrol was quickly on the scene but despite best efforts they couldn't revive him.
He is unsure of the man's capabilities but says that section is for advanced climbers only.