Glaciers & Transition

Fox Glacier

Yesterday morning we woke up seeing snow on the top of the hills around us. It may be springtime here (like our middle of May) but it can still get cold on the South Island. On the west coast there are 2 readily accessible glaciers in Westland National Park [Franz Joseph Glacier & Fox Glacier). This is a big tourist area and you can take a tour to walk on the glacier and take a plane or helicopter ride to view them from the air. Since we had walked on a glacier in Canada, we decided just to hike to see each one of them. By the way, glacier is pronounced glah-see-ur here.

Then it was on down the western coastline thru lush dense green rainforest to Haast for the night (a small community just before the turn away from the coast and up over the Southern Alps). As in any rainforest, there is rain and this was no exception as it alternated between rain and sun as we traveled. At least we missed an 8 inch downpour that occurred just a couple of days before we got here. One of the characteristics of New Zealand is that there are ferns everywhere. There is even an unofficial silver fern flag that is probably recognized by more people than the official New Zealand one.

As we drove east up and over Haast Pass in the Mt. Aspiring National Park we stopped to take short hikes to see the numerous beautiful waterfalls and to take photos of the ‘Gates of Haast’ where the river flows over large boulders. After going over Haast Pass (almost a non event since this is the lowest pass over the Southern Alps) we left the lush rainforest and transitioned to a landscape that became much more open and with less plant life (due to the mountain range blocking much of the rain). After passing 2 lakes we are spending the night in Wanaka with a great view over one of them.

We might mention that campervaning is extremely popular here and we have passed what seems like thousands of them on our travels. One thing that makes it so popular is that there are numerous ‘Holiday’ or ‘Motor’ parks in which to stay. In each one, there is a large community kitchen where you can cook and eat your meals (some even provide pots & pans). Ovens are even provided in some of them so you can even bake a cake if you want to. Since campervans are relatively small, it does not take up as much real estate as the RV parks in the states (where we have the huge motorhomes and trailers).

Franz Joseph Glacier

Thunder Creek Falls

Pathway thru the rainforest to one of the waterfalls

View across Lake Hawea on the eastern side of the Southern Alps. Note the lack of trees on the mountains.