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Published: August 12th 2005
Well WE ARE ALIVE,
will explain in a moment!
Okay
hokitika yesterday, seeing some of the local craftmen at work on jade, known here as pounamu. Also seen a kiwi close up at the eco world there, well worth the visit even if it is just for the kiwi enclosure, the rest was a bit naff and shabby looking. A drive to Franz josef yesterday afternoon, stopping off to get lost around lake kaniere. We are currently staying at athe rainforest retreat camp site which is awesome and we are parked in the middle of rainforest. Facitlities amazing, outdorr spa and fab bar.
Today we did soemthing of my choosing and climbed the fran josef glacier, with the franz josef glacier guides. This is the stupidest idea I have ever had considering my fear of heights. We climbed/hiked up the face of the glacier with if we were lucky a guide rope but most of the time had to rely on our talonz (crampons). The guide was fab, Richard, and helped me across some of the more trickier cravasses when my brain was telluing me it wasn't going any further (hello big gaping cravass and your leaping over it, HELLO!).
gem in glacier
forced smile
!!Okay the scenery was something you would never see anywhere else and was just breathtaking, but I have never been as Petrified in my whole life and never want to be again, I felt like writting my obituary at the top. But somehow with our trusty guide we got up and down with no injuries, concussions and deaths. Please i have to sign something to make sure that I am stopped from doing something that scares me that much again, challenging as it was to my fears. Dave was put off at the start when a huge rock slide happened near where we were to start and then a huge ice fall, his face was a picture.
So after that we are alive. Not many pictures as we wetre too busy concentrating on not falling off the ice. We have certificaes to prove we did it. I cried at the end and gave Dave the biggest hug, I was just so relieved we both made it. I haver to thank our guide in this report, he was so relaxed and was there to help whenever without question. So after that a short ride back to the base and some
well deserved hot chocolate. They provided all the equipment and it was soaked so handed all that in and made it back to camp with very wobbly legs, they are going to hurt so much tomorrow.
Off to Wanaka where there is a huge puzzle world to get lost in.
Dave hee (suprisingly after today) yes an experience i will never forget - did Gem mention our guide and how relaxed he was, yes relaxed, CONSIDERING HALF THE ?@#$in MOUNTAIN JUST FELL AWAY WITH ONE BOULDER THE SIZE OF A SMALL SEMI-DETACHED TOWNHOUSE! HE TOLD US TO STEP BACK- I WAS THINKING , MORE LIKE RUN FOR YOU LIVES AND WHO EVERS LAST IS A LOSER!
any that was fine until seconds later a huge block of ice came tumbling down and smashed in front of us. I had to be the only one to pose a question after these 2 natural occurences happene........errrrr is that normal???????????? (thinking cos ive done glacier climbing before and i aint seen that!
Gem did amazing i still cant believe how brave she was as im not really afraid of heights infact i kind of like them but there were a number of times i felt like stopping and just saying cccmmmonn your kidding right wheres the stairs infact wheres the ropes infact wheres my mum?
anyway we both had a rush when we got down and will be for some time ! Extreme!
ps please remind me to get some adequate insurance ?
right will go now and leave you too your simple flat little land thats isnt moving at 2 metres per day.
Write again soon.
Dave and Gem
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Mike
non-member comment
Wow sounds like a fab day - hope you manage to get your pants clean! - Tricky - it looks like you're holding a penguin in that photo!?