Days 36, 37 & 38

Day 36

After a good nights rest we left Franz Joseph and headed for Fox Glacier, just a little further south. Before leaving, we enjoyed a nice clear morning and a view of Franz Joseph Glacier from the town.

It was nice to see the glacier today, since yesterday it was rainy. When we got close to Fox Glacier we stopped off at Lake Matheson, which is said to be the most photographed lake in New Zealand, and below you can see why!

It provides amazing views of Mt. Cook (the highest peak in NZ on the right) and Mt. Tasman (the peak to the left of Mt. Cook). With the snow capped peaks against the green pasture and moutainside, it was incredible.

There is a nice walk around the lake and a few spots where if you are lucky, you can get clear reflections of the mountains in the lake. We were fortunate to have a beautiful sunny day with little wind, so the water was nice and calm.

There were some clouds coming in and out and at times they covered the peaks of the mountains. We could have sat there for hours just enjoying the view, however, our bus was going to leave so we had to keep moving around the lake.

It certainly made us both excited for ski season coming up. I know most of you are ready for more snow!

Even without the lake to provide the reflection, the view was breathtaking. After the 1 hour walk around the lake, we were dropped off at our backpacker in Fox Glacier town, where we would stay for 2 nights. We got checked in and relaxed for a bit before heading out for the happening place on a Saturday. They were having a speed sheep shearing contest at the local hotel tavern, we couldn't miss out on that! By the time we got there the place was packed, so we watched from outside the window, hence the less than desirable photograph.

Small town New Zealand on a Saturday night!

Day 37

This morning started off a bit slow since we weren't causing too much trouble today. We spent some time catching up on emails before heading out for a nice walk to Fox Glacier. We walked along the road for about 2 km before making our way up the road that provides access to the glacier and the surrounding hikes. It was another few kms to get to some trails, and we were enjoying the day. We went on the River Walk and crossed a swing bridge along the way. It was quite long, and certainly did sway in the wind. The maximum load on this bridge is 5 people and it was built in the 1920's. Both pieces of information were comforting!

The River Walk also provided nice views of the terminal face of the glacier. We could see a bit more of the glacier, but as you can tell there was some fog settling in around the mountain.

The rest of the day we just walked around Fox Glacier town (didn't take too long) and then cooked some dinner and watched a movie at our hostel.

Day 38

We started off the day by doing something we had already done, but we certainly didn't mind at all. Our last bus driver was kind enough to take us out to Lake Matheson prior to dropping us off at our hostel because it was a beautiful day. We were lucky to have another beautiful day and have the chance to go again! This time we enjoyed the view and had a flat white in the sunshine. Not a bad view!

The glacier guiding outfits also do a lot of helicopter guide trips. We saw quite a few helicopters flying around Mt. Cook while we were enjoying the view. There is one in the picture below just above Mt. Cook.

Another beautiful day and there weren't any clouds in the sky! After Lake Matheson (#2) we continued on our journey towards Makarora, where we would be staying the night. We stopped at many beautiful waterfalls along the way.

Roaring Billy falls were just on the other side of a river full of glacier run off water, and the color was a cloudy aqua. This is quite different than most of the water in New Zealand, which is amazingly clear.

Next we stopped at Thunder Creek Falls.

We were driving along the coast and it was neat to see all the places along the way. You could stop every hundred feet and have an amazing view. This is one of the places we stopped, called Knights Point. The ocean is always amazing and provides you with a sense of awe.

We finally arrived in Makarora where we stayed for the night. There isn't really a town there, just an all inclusive hostel/bar/restaurant/cafe in the middle of Mount Aspiring National Park. It was quite cute and we stayed in 1/2 of an A-framed building. The stars were amazing and it was an enjoyable evening. John proceeded to beat Andrea in a game of pool and then 2 games of cricket darts! Re-matches are in order!