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Okay okay okay, here it is. I´ll always eventually catch up to the present! (it´ll be at the end of the trip of course!)

The kiwi search continues...

Coffeecat
2005-12-24 18:09:35

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didn't experienc any fear, but I certainly turned my stomach around a few times. Feeling my entire body being pulled up and down as the clouds and lake swapped places, was the adrenalin required. Bungy that.

Hitting the road again, I made my way towards the coast. It was a nice change of scenery, even though the scenery has been fabulous everywhere I go in New Zealand. Beaches and lakes, forrests and glaciers. Glaciers? Can they really fit into this picture? Yes. I hit Fox Glacier within an hour of loosing all light. This meant I had the place to myself which was just fine with me. So what can I say about the glacier? It wasn't a chilling blue solidity that made me think of the Arctic or Titanic. It was a huge wall of ice. It had collected a lot of sediment over it's travels resulting in a very grey front. Don't get me wrong, it was interesting, but the sign told me not to
The recent rains created these waterfalls, but the winds kept picking up the water as soon as it got over the edge!
get too close or I could be killed by breaking chunks and being on my own I opted for the roped off tourist route. Booooooring I know, but I'm actually climbing the Franz Joseph glacier tomorrow! As I left the Fox Glacier I found a dirt road leading to higher view. It was nice to peak through the trees and see the different angle of the frozen monster. The remnants of sunshine did pick up some amazing colours. And then knowing there wasn't anybody else around it was kind of fun to drive back as if it was a racecourse. All with extreme caution.

The skies were too heavy the next morning for any climbing so I drank coffee and wished for an afternoon clearing. Bless the coffee as always, as my chance to climb into the glacier to feel and see the blue stuff for myself became a reality. I strapped on the gear and followed the leader. It was an afternoon of many emotions as people wobbled over ladders clinging to ice edges, and clung to the vertical staircases. A refreshing eye opener to some of mother nature's harsh characteristics.

So there you have it, half of the south island.
It´s kind of clear where the glacier came from...
And I still havn't found a kiwi.

I'm going for a turbo time catch up to Argentina...where I am now!