Walk up Franz Josef Glacier....Nice....or should I say Ice?!!!

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5th March 2009 - ICE ICE BABY!!!!
Woke up at around 6am very excited. I managed to contain myself and stay in bed until 6.30 but then I got up showered and ready for an icy adventure. We set off to the Glacier tour shop at around 8am with our packed lunch in hand and a couple of spare layers in case it got icy cold! Nat was excited too and we were really lucky as we had dropped on a good day for it as the weather was fine. Had it been raining or really windy the trip may have been cancelled. When we got to the desk we handed over our voucher in exchange for some tokens, each one worth a different piece of kit. It was then time to hand in those tokens and get kitted out for the day!!

We were given some oh so fetching waterproof trousers first…good job too as we only had shorts on. We then got given some boots and socks to put on and a fannypack (I hate this word but this was the name used for them) complete with a set of crampons to put on later when we got nearer to the ice. My boots were not the comfiest…one seemed too small and one seemed too big but they were the same size….I must have odd feet. The boots were ok but a fanny pack…come on!! I tried to put it to the side….you know so it was cooler but at the end of the day it is what it is and nothing would have made it cooler…other than filling it with ice! (Bad joke Debs)!! The boots and crampons were followed by a waterproof jacket…not so bad and a hat and mittens. Loving the hat and mittens though I definitely looked like some sort of convict in mine. Still…it would keep the ears warm!! Now we had all our kit we were ready to kick some ice!!

Just a little joke for you all about the kit.....What did the big furry hat say to the warm wooly scarf? "You hang around whilst I go on ahead!!" Love it!

There were around 50 people going on the full day walk and so once we were all ready we were taken on the bus as close to the glacier as possible. It was then an hours walk through a rain forest to the foot of the glacier. My boots were already rubbing the back of my ankle at this point and I was really worried that I was going to struggle. I gritted my teeth and walked through the pain as the boots ripped the skin from my foot….nice!! Along the way we passed triplet falls and stopped a couple of times whilst the guide told us about the Glacier and how it was changing over time. It looked awesome from a distance and I was eager to get on it and explore.

Once we got to the foot of the Glacier we split off into 5 groups depending upon how quickly you wanted to walk around it and how many stops you may want. Nat and I chose to go in a middle group as we wanted more time to take photos along the way and both of our knees were stills ore from biking. Our guide was called Thai and he seemed cool! It was then time to strap our crampons on to the bottom of the boots (I felt like cliffhanger with all the spikes sticking out) and get onto the ice.

In the first section we seemed to be walking more over gravel but there was ice underneath it. The crampons worked well and I didn’t feel like I was going to slip at all though I did feel like I was walking like John Wayne a little…still what’s new there at the moment! Our guide led us single file up onto the Glacier. Along the way there were steps cut in the ice to make it easier for us to get up. Some of the guides had been out cutting steps since 7am and Thai also had an axe to cut more if required along the way.

Once we got onto the ice it was so cool. We stopped a few times to take photos and have a look at our surroundings. It really was amazing especially when we walked down through natural crevices and craters in the ice. Some of the crevices were so deep they came above our heads. Others were really thin and the icy walls touched you on either side. I was thankful for the mittens. The ice at the top was often white like ice in everyday life but the stuff underneath was blue in colour as the ice was so tightly compressed. It was very surreal to be walking through ice tunnels and on ice that was 30 metres thick. We could have had an awesome game of hide and seek with all the crevices but unfortunatley it was a little too dnagerous for such games. Still, I was loving it!!

At one point we walked through an icy cave and had to climb out the other side. Thank goodness for the crampons as they gave a really good grip on what would otherwise have been a very slippery encounter. As we got up higher the steps that had been cut became fewer and Thai had to cut quite a few more as we went along. The steps, where needed because the climb was too steep, became narrower and we had to be really careful when going up and down them. It was awesome and the view right to the top of the Glacier was very impressive.

At around 12.30, we sat on a flat patch of ice for lunch. There were no warm rocks to sit on or chairs. It was bum on ice time and after a few minutes mine went numb. It was cool though and surprisingly everything in my lunch had stayed nice and cold….even my yoghurt which is an essential item in every packed lunch of course! Thai had finished his water too and I watched as he filled it back up again with some icy cold water that was running down off the glacier. I questioned whether it was safe to drink and he assured me it was so I re-filled my bottle too. So tasty and probably the coldest freshest water I would ever get! Refreshing! Once we had all eaten and were rather cold (only really got cold once we stopped moving) we set off again climbing higher up the Glacier.

Despite it all being pretty much the same…ice, ice and more ice, I found it amazing. When we arrived at our highest point for the day I wanted to jump and shout it was so exhilarating! We stayed at our highest point for several minutes taking everything in whilst Thai did some walking about to find us the best and safest route down. The route down was different to the one we walked up. Even tighter crevices and walkways had been cut and you really had to push yourself through them. I like heights and don’t mind confined spaces but there were some in the group who where non too happy and a little scared!

One of my favourite parts was at a really steep part where the steps cut were vertical. The guides had to put a rope line in and one at a time we kind of had to abseil down….only steps were cut out and we weren’t harnessed in. I was too busy waving at Nat as she took my photo that I missed a step and only realised when Thai said “Oh my god…can you make it” as my leg tried to scramble for the step below. It was all good though and just added to the adventure!

At the bottom of the steps we continued on, passed a big ice wall that looked like a big wave, passed through another ice cave and made our way through all the crevices back down the Glacier. One of my legs got really heavy at one point and I wondered what was going on as I began to walk like Jake the Peg. My crampon had picked up a stone…or should I say boulder and had got it lodged firmly beneath my boot. Nat just laughed as I tried to shake it out…took a few attempts and I looked like I was doing the uncle dance at family parties! Funny!

Once we reached the bottom again we removed our crampons and made our way back through the rainforest and on to the bus. Forget walking on air…we had been walking on ice for 6 out of 8 hours and it had been amazing. It really was an experience I will never forget….such a good day!!

Back at the Glacier centre in Franz Josef I was glad to get out of the boots. The backs of my ankles had been rubbed raw from the bloody boots and it was such a relief to take them off, as it was to remove the trousers as well! Other than that I was quite sad to see the hat and mittens go back. They did a wonderful job in keeping my ears and hands warm and I could have done with them for future biking days when the weather is poor.

It was around 5pm when we left the Glacier centre and hobbled back to the hostel. It was nice to sit down and I spent a couple of hours reading and updating my blog on the internet. I then went out and did a spot of postcard shopping before returning to the hostel to cook tea and chill out before bed. I would rate the Glacier walk as a 10 out of 10. Another success for New Zealand!

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