The drive from Hokitika (Blog: ) to the small township of Franz Josef became more and more spectacularly scenic the closer we got, passing more blue glacial ice melt rivers and increasingly high mountains. Sadly, however, the cloud was also closing in. We arrived at Franz Josef mid-afternoon to find it submerged in a grey, drizzly haze. Not much chance of seeing the snow-capped mountains today. Nonetheless, after checking in, we headed out to see what we could see, driving past the entry road to Franz Josef glacier to Fox and seeing nowt! We were on our way to Lake Matheson, where you are supposed to get great views of Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman. Of course, they were also veiled by cloud. No matter, we had a few days more chances to catch a glimpse.
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