Sunday March 18th
Our day in Glacier Country on the West Coast of the South Island started off with a 30 minute helicopter ride over Franz Joseph Glacier and then a short landing on Fox Glacier.
This was our first time in a helicopter and it was lovely. We went on the 9am flight because the people in the booking office were saying the weather was going to get bad in the afternoon. I wondered about that since the weather forecast said the opposite. Luckily it was sunny up on the glacier and perfect for flying.
By noon the skies had cleared up to be a perfectly clear sunny day. I think they were saying bad weather was coming to fill up the morning flights.
We took off from a heli pad in Fox Glacier Township. Flew over the road towards Franz Joseph town and glacier, then over to Fox Glacier where we landed on a flat wide surface and took pictures.
And a quick flight back, total trip was 30 minutes.
View of Fox Glacier from the ground. Still overcast down here but clear up there.
Home to chill and do laundry before our afternoon activity … a hike up the Franz Joseph Glacier Valley. About a two hour round trip fairly easy hike with many viewing points of the glacier.
These two little towns seem focused on the outdoor activities associated with the glaciers. There are lots of hotels and inns, a few restaurants in each place and lots of kiosks to book flights, tours and skydiving.
The drone of helicopters goes all day from nine till six. Most white people here in NZ appear to be independent travelers and many of the younger ones in camper vans. We briefly discussed the campervan idea but quickly decided it wasn’t our thing.
There are many Asians who appear to be traveling with groups.
Our Airbnb is in a quiet neighborhood.
So we had to do one more not to miss activity at Fox Glacier – hike Lake Matheson to see the famous reflection view of Mt. Cook in the lake on a still clear day. We went about 6:30pm (sunset is between 7:30 and 8:00 in March) and started the 30 minute hike through lush woods to the first viewpoint. Our timing was perfect!
It was quiet and peaceful with maybe 15 others enjoying the view. And then we heard them hollering in the woods. A tour group of loud middle aged Chinese arrived. One French lady even tried “shushing” them to no avail. Bill and I just laughed at the show.
