Sunday, February 21, 2010
top of the rock pile
photos before getting on the ice. we had a few clouds hanging in the
middle of the valley over us for the day, but big blue sky lit up the
mountain tops and the glacier.
heather going up up and away!
by our guide Sally.
...and up we go!
we split off into three groups of 10 people, got in line, and
started to climb. the crampons took a minute to get used to, but were
quite amazing how well they kept you hiking on the hard ice.
the ascent up this ice and rock hill was incredibly a lot steeper than
i anticipated!
our glacier lessons in action
info along the way! it wax really great to be in the first group out
in the morning. we didn't have anyone in front of us heading to the
glacier, and we saw some of the most spectacular blue skies of the day
unfolding over the mountains.
getting closer
mouth of the cave was massive, and looked so sketchy! house sized
hunks of ice looking like they were ready to fall at any moment. the
guides said that the cave actually does collapse in varying degrees
every few years, stopping up the river, creating water dams inside the
glacier that explode, changing the landscape of the glacier itself.
the dirt covered ice to the right side wasn't there 5 years ago when
heather came to the glacier last. it was formed from a massive river
explosion a few years ago. so crazy to think about how rapidly the big
ice flow can change! the franz Josef glacier is generally in a
retreating mode (in different places of the glacier, it can be up to
10 meters a day)... but based on the snow pack at the top, and the
melt at the bottom, it varies quite significantly year to year. at the
turn of the century, it filled half the valley we hiked across, and in
the 70's it retreated half way up the valley you are looking at.
heather was quite amazed at how different it was in a mere 5 years.
waterfalls everywhere
hike out our guide gave us a good chat about the geology and climate
of the area that created the conditions for the franz Josef and fox
glaciers. I can't even pretend to reiterate the info... it was an
overwhelming day of info and experience!
first stunning views!
place thus pic was taken, it was still a 40min hike to the base. the
sun was shining on the top of the mountains, and the frist views of
the glacier and valley were stunning! none of the pictures really do
any justice to the scale of the glacier. just massive!
off to the glacier - bright and early start
decision to put off the tour for a day! at the glacier office, we
collected our gear for the day (waterproof jacket / pants, boots,
crampons, hat / gloves), and jumped on the bus to the glacier.
rainy day
prepare for our big glacier hike. it was still POURING rAin out, so I
awoke rethinking my gear, and preparing for a wet day. heather awoke
with no inclination to do the glacier hike in the rain. this was her
second time to the glacier, and she really wanted to be able to get
some good photos. we worked out the day before that we could shuffle
our plans a bit, and do it the following day if necessary... so we put
plan b in motion. a quick (and very wet!) walk over to the main
office, and we were rebooked for the first group out the next morning.
back to the hostel, we both jumped back in bed... and slept till noon.
guess we were due for a much needed day of rest!
heather read her tour books and came up with several rainy day
plans... but we only managed to walk around town a bit, and found a
couch by a fire at the bar, and were planted for the rest of the
afternoon. caught up on some postcards, and really enjoyed the time to
relax, and absorb.
by late afternoon, the sky cleared, and we had some sunshine for our
kiwi ice cream tower of delight! :)
Friday, February 19, 2010
wild dinner
were quite excited to try the local fare. I got the venison sausage
and mash, and heather had the hare toasted sandwhich. both meals were
huge, artfully prepared and presented... and delicious! yum. good
hearty base for heading to the glacier in franz Josef.
the pouring rain continued for the rest of our drive, we arrived in
franz Josef late. the town was overflowing with travelers (not a
single vacancy in town), and we were quite lucky to have gotten a 4-
share room booked at one of the hostels the week before. we had been
scoping for a private room, but none were to be found anywhere. got
settled, unpacked and repacked for our glacier hike the following
morning. rain predicted for the whole day.... and everyone we talked
to that was out that day said conditions were wet, wet, wet. lots of
layers!
the puké pub
covered in interesting artifacts, great little diversion from our
rainy drive.
next stop - punakaiki pancake rocks
visitors center and nature walk. our luck was finally up and the rain
was a good constant by now.
the path wound along the coast to great views of the pancake rocks,
limestone towers eroding away with time. the little plaques along the
way described the geological history of the area, however mentioned
that it was still a but of a mystery how the rocks developed with such
distinct pancake layers.
little hike in the rain
coastline. little plaques along the way with descriptions of the
native trees. rain phased in and out...
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