New Zealand Above Glacierland Day 28Dec22

We brought breakfast in by stopping at 4 Square yesterday on the way back. The berries, kiwis, and bananas are very good but expensive ~ the restaurants & hotels don't serve that stuff. Today was a killer day opening with a helicopter ride to and around the glaciers. We took off from the flats outside Fox Glacier (the town) and zoomed up Franz Joseph Glacier (the biggest) then around Mt Cook (the highest) and landed atop Fox Glacier (the longest) in the shadow of Mt Tasman (the 2nd highest) for a brief walk and some pics. It was awesome. There were some goats (no pics) and a tiny radical cabin on a cliff high up Fox Glacier.

 

After the walk on Fox Glacier and some pics we hopped back on the "bus" for a rip down mountain with some rad helo moves to spot goats, and more great views. We landed and on the flats and donned tougher boots, Kala liked my brook trout socks choice, and topped the AM with a long black at Cafe Neve in town.

We've been hiking quite a bit and today is no different. We suited up for the Lake Matheson Hike in that Natl Pk plus did extra credit to Lake Gault (Who is John Gault?). This is a hike nearish to Fox Glacier (the town) as we'd not be back; it's a big glacier-fed fresh water lake up from which on the ridge lies another lake... the hike was 7.6mi & 1300ft of vert and included more keen Kiwi trail engineering. There might've browns in Matheson, but we didn't stop or try ~ stillwater: meh. Gualt was devoid and quite red from iron we sensed... we hiked up there first. We met a German couple with whom I traded greetings and thanks for a shorter than marked track uphill, and a French-speaking couple from Corsica who Kala engaged. This track featured alternatives to mosses in this area and very cool fern grottoes. It is known for perfect reflections of Mt Cook and such but wind broke the mirror and clouds dimmed the peaks... the reflection I captured was of our heads at our feet.

We earned the nice dinner & pops back in FJ at Monsoon. Stuff opens at 5pm here and we were the 2nd patrons this day. Monsoon killed it on pizza day with a garlic seared prawn, chorizo, and peppers pizza and a few tasty cold ones. The beers in Westland are not as good as in Nelson by any means but whatev...

New Zealand Turner Track & Hokitika Day While Bound For Glacierland 27Dec22

We grabbed the keen Turner Track before leaving the Punakeiki area. It yielded an awesome hidden beach after a decent tramp through the coastal jungle. Tide was approaching so we could not stay long on the beach that would soon disappear. The trail led us through some more sub-tropical forest area that included the native red pine prized for logging in NZ. It is very tall and of decent girth and very straight... the farming of NZ for red pine is a big industry but I just don't understand why they export logs rather than lumber, or furniture, or other finished finery with greater added value.

We headed to Hokitika to check out the greenstone (jade) and another Natl Pk ~ the Hokitika Gorge NP. NZ greenstone/jade recovery is protected and licenses only to the Maori people ~ no one else can get a license or take raw jade from the area. Maori then sell the raw material to Maori and other "jewlers" who cut/form/polish the stone into finished items. All the greenstone from NZ comes from within 40KM of Hokitika; it comes tumbling down the beautiful Southern Alps catchments (yeah that's river shed or river basin or river drainage in my parlance) inaccessible mostly through steep mountains and dense forests, and much finds its way into the shops in this town. Kala & I visited several to see the pieces and discuss the capture and processes. The finished pieces often mimic the Maori symbols, borrowed from nature, of spirals of new life, waves, mountains, rivers, etc. It is a very cool place.

We moved up toward the mountains following the Hokitika RIver, on a great tip from Gill Hudson, whose mom hailed from Hokitika, to hike the Hokitika Gorge NP. We did and it was totally amazing. First the hike was laid out with stellar Kiwi engineering... solid, flat granite trails, perfectly designed and built walkways over brief gorges, and spectacular suspension bridges over the river. It was flat out amazing work. Second, the glacier-fed aquamarine waters of the river were stunning ~ dunno if there are fish down there but it was very cool. Third, I was with Kala.

We moved on down the coast 3 hours to glacier country in the Westlands. We booked a room for several day in Franz Joseph, a small town near-ish the terminus of the biggest glacier in the Southern Alps. After checking in at Oasis we headed to town to their #1 restaurant, Alice May. It was OK but not great, we may have ordered poorly as the fettuccine carbonara here was too heavy (Kala thought maybe an homage to the Greymouth dairy industry as every spot served it); our other dish was pasta too with prawns & chilis & tomatoes, pretty good. It was a mob scene without any rezs taken.

The Oasis has a free laundry but it should because while you can get nicer, you can't pay more.