Ice Trekking!

Hi again everyone, we've actually managed to get to the internet quite soon, so that for once our blog shouldn't be too much like an essay! We've also managed to have some time away from the KiwiExperience bus as well, which has been wonderfully refreshing! So we'd best just get on and let you know what we've been doing over the past few days.

MONDAY 2nd July

It was a late start this morning, as we didn't have to be on the bus until 09.30. Our first stop on the bus was to Cape Foulwind, where we were going to do a short walk to the seal colony nearby, however, as it was drizzling ever so slightly and the bus driver was feeling too lazy (as well as most of the people on the bus), we didn't get to do the walk, but instead got driven straight to the seal colony. We were a bit annoyed about that, but it was cool to see the colony and we hopefully got a few nice photos. We then went about 2 minutes down the road so that people could have breakfast and if you so wanted to also walk down to the Pancake Rocks. The driver decided that he would only wait for half an hour - which is how long it took to get to the rocks and back and as I needed a loo stop - Steve ended up walking over on his own to get some photos. As usual the journey was broken up by annoyingly over-long stops for lunch and we also stopped for an hour and a half at a supermarket! So it was incredibly annoying that what should have been a 3 hour drive, instead took us around 7.5 hours! It was even more annoying, as we went for a walk to Lake Mahinapua across the road from the hotel and by the time we got there, the light was fading fast and so we couldn't see very much, apart from the fact it was stunningly beautiful and we wish that we had arrived earlier so that we would have had the chance to look around. We had wanted to go to the beach on the other side of the hostel, but by the time we left the lake and got to the track to the beach the light wasn't good enough to make out the path, so we had to leave it and just go back! Once back we popped into the bar to have a couple of drinks before dinner. After dinner we bought ourselves a green stone (jade) necklace each, which are really cool! We then went and hid in our room, as everyone else was taking part in a stupid tin-foil and clingfilm fancy dress party (basically an excuse for them all to get blind drunk)!

TUESDAY 3rd July

Today we got to make our way to Franz Josef at last (possibly the part of New Zealand I've most been looking forward to going to), although we had another late start (for all those poor people suffering hangovers). After 45 minutes, we as usual had a breakfast stop, although this one was merged with a trip to the Bushman's Museum - where we got to learn about the introduction of deer to New Zealand for hunting purposes, it's mass culling and eventually it's capture to create deer farms in order to provide meat. It was quite cool seeing the helicopter techniques they used to kill and eventually catch them! We also saw a huge wild pig, possums and a selection of guns for hunting deer, oh and a couple of enormous eels! Once everyone had finished eating we made our way straight to Franz Josef, where we were taken to a trail, which went to a viewpoint. We were then dropped off at the hostel, by which time it was too late to be able to do any of the short walks, so we ended up just sitting around for ages and then having to fight to use the 1 and only microwave in the kitchen to cook our jacket potatoes (they don't have an oven either)!

WEDNESDAY 4th July

Completely awesome day today - the best day we've had in New Zealand so far! We got up this morning and got layered up in preparation for spending the day hiking on Franz Josef! So first thing we walked over to the Franz Josef Glacier Guide Centre, where we were able to borrow boots, crampons ('spikes' that you strap to your shoes for walking on the ice), waterproof jackets, warm socks, woolly hats, gloves, and waterproof trousers! So we got all kitted up and then hopped on the bus which took us to the car park near to the glacier. We then had a 45 minute walk to get to the snout of the glacier, tramping over the outwash plain as we went (it was all very exciting). Finally we got to the glacier and strapped on our crampons and then split into 4 groups depending on your ability and confidence, so we went into group 3, as I was feeling a bit nervous about my physical ability to cope with the hiking uphill and so Steve would have more opportunities to take photos. It was a nice group of people, as all the idiot lads were trying to show off by being in groups 1 and 2 and all the tarty girls were in group 4 as they are too unfit! Anyway we spent the next 6 hours or so hiking up on the glacier, going through huge crevasses, as well as some pretty tight ones too (there was one poor woman who actually got stuck in one and had to get rescued by 3 guides), we saw the most amazing blue ice too and the views were just breath taking! It's so hard to describe what it was like, it was as though we were in an alien landscape! We got pretty high up the glacier too, going up and over the first icefall, around 3km we travelled onto the ice. But, all too soon it was time to head back down and off of the ice. I was amazed that I only had a couple of slips (unfortunately the same woman who got stuck in a crevasse also took a nasty tumble, although she seemed to have a more bruised ego than anything else). So all too soon, after our 6 hours of trekking, we were back at the bus and eventually at the hostel having nice warm showers! It was just incredible and we don't think the photos will do it justice, but hopefully you'll get an idea of what it was like when you see them!

THURSDAY 5th July

We ended up having a bit of a lay-in today, as we were so tired from yesterday! But eventually we were up and making our way back towards Franz Josef. We decided to do a walk which would take us back to the snout of the glacier so that we could get some more photos and also walk through the rainforest on our way there. It was a really nice walk and it was cool to get a couple of extra photos and see all the tiny blobs that were other groups of people trekking on the glacier! After having a spot of lunch we started to make our way back, and went on a different route to see some more of the rainforest etc. We ended up stopping at a kettle-lake, which had a great view of Franz Josef in the background so that Steve could take a photo. He then told me he wanted to find his gloves (as it was raining), so we stopped a bit longer whilst he was rummaging around, however, he began to tell me that there was something he had been meaning to ask me for a while and he PROPOSED to me - so we are now ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How exciting! I couldn't believe it when he said it, I cried a bit and just kept saying "yes" - it was so amazing! We've not stopped smiling since and we're going to pop to the bar later to have a celebratory drink together!

Well, that's about all for now - we have 1 more day in Franz Josef and are then going to have to get back onto the stupid KiwiExperience bus! Oh well, hopefully this driver won't be so lazy and we'll actually get to do some more things and see more as well!

Mum - we thought you would be jealous of the whales and I bet you're getting a huge list of stuff you want to do on your travels! We didn't think it would quite be cold enough for thermals, but so glad we invested in them! We're going to try and hop on and off the bus a bit more now, mainly to save our sanity and also to make sure we actually see New Zealand before we leave! Franz Josef exceeded my expectations dramatically (and not just because Steve proposed), the day we did the hike I was on cloud nine! Glad you finally got your blind, and hope that the wardrobe demolition is going well at Liz's. Shame about the weather preventing any development in the garden. Hope the physio goes well and that your arm continues to get better.

Liz - Hope the pygmy puffer fish has settled in OK and no, I'm not sure it's quite in the same league as sperm whales, but it's close! Nice to hear that Belle is a complete nutter - I would hate for you to ever have a sane pet and pets always take after their owners anyway, so not much chance of that happening! Hope she starts behaving a bit more though! Looking forward to coming home and seeing you all, as we're missing you loads too!

Bill - We find it hard to believe that we've been away for 3 months too! Glad that progress has begun on the conversion, it should be smashing when it's all finished - we certainly can't wait to see it all! We hope the rain doesn't hold up progress too much. We'll have to send our congratulations to Andy and Mark - we had no idea they were planning marriage, so it was a bit of a surprise when you told us!