Queenstown to Fox Glacier

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We left Queenstown for Fox Glacier not by the main state road but by the more picturesque Crown Range road which took us along the mountain range. The road wound it's way upwards around many spine tingling hairpin bends and past ominous signs that read "chain stop here" !!!!! However the views and scenery made the journey well worth it, a must do if you come here. We carried on along the Cardrona Valley road until we came to a lovely town and lake at Wanaka. You could see the snowy tops of Mount Aspiring in the distance surrounded by a range of huge mountains. From here we went through the extremely narrow and winding Gates of Haast to get to the west coast. The vegetation changed from a mainly grassy or rocky terrain to one of thick wooded forest areas with large trees and an abundance of tree ferns and ordinary ferns lining the road. We arrived in Fox, checked in and went for what we thought was going to be a quick visit to a local lake called Lake Matheson famous for its " mirror reflections". We ended up walking around the whole lake which took over an hour with some steep sections that necessitated several stops to regain oxygen and strength to carry on !!!



Friday morning , the sky was clear and we set off after breakfast for what turned out to be something special---our helicopter ride over the glaciers and Mount Cook. Words can not describe the views across these mountain ranges from a helicopter. They are so enormous and flow from one range to another with snow and ice across the highest points. The helicopter landed on Fox Glacier and we all got out onto thick crystal white snow and we sank into it by about 6 to 12 inches with each footstep. Penny managed to fall over as her feet got stuck and had to be rescued by the pilot who just happened to be young, good looking and very fit!!!!!! I took an instant dislike to him!!!! However as she is well padded at the back, no lasting damage was done.

We journeyed on to Greymouth for our next stop which is a small lodge in the middle of a working sheep farm. On the way we stopped at a place called Shanty Town which is a bit like a New Zealand version of The Black Country Museum. It is a recreated gold rush village and we tried our hand at panning for gold. Despite our high hopes we managed to get a minute amount of gold which has been preserved in a bottle for us to show how poor we are at this activity. ah well back to filling in lottery instead.

Tomorrow we will tackle the Arthur Pass and drive to Kaikoura.

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Photos

Mount Aspiring from Lake Wanaka

On top of the Fox Glacier

Mount Cook peak

Franz Joseph Glacier showing the deep crevices

Across the top of the Mount Cook range

Franz Joseph Glacier from the helicopter

Sandy Beach with driftwood ---West Coast

Lake Matheson

Comments

[Joyce]

Best so far
Wow these are the best pics.... what a sight from the helicopter...love the pic of you both of the glacier thanks for that..where's one of the pilot Pen???? Love Joycexxxxx

[Anthony Jevons]

Queenstown to Fox Glacier.
I remember this part of my trip, but I ended up at the Franz Joseph Glacier,spectacular is quite an inadequate word to describe the scenery here! We're still being blown to pieces and rained upon here in the UK! I'm not sure how much more we can take,you are definitely in the best part of the world! Tony.

[Ken Bruce]

More Happy Holidays
What a mixture of landscapes, from beaches to snowy peaks, was it the wine the night before or the fit pilot that made Penny fall, enjoy love Ken & Di

[Linda &john]

All I can say is your holiday is looking more appealing to me (never thought i would be saying it ) the photo,s and wonderfully story telling (not sure that sounded right ) but you know what I am trying to say . Any way keep the blog coming and most of all keep enjoying every minute . Love Linda x x

[Jackie & Brian]

Wow!!
We're loving the pictures, particularly the latest batch with you deep in snow with the helicopter in the background. A combination of Vegas and the Columbian ice field, it brought back such good memories. Whilst on the subject of deja vu our darling daughters were out on the town last night until 3am this morning. By all accounts they had a good night but are a little fragile today - there's a surprise and us thinking they had grown up!! Spoke to Joan today, they are both fine but missing you and counting the days 'til you're back; we had a lovely chat. Mr Glum is building himself up for the match this afternoon, methinks the red wine may take a battering tonight if they don't get a result!! Take care and enjoy every day xx

[Kathy]

Padding !!!!
Chad is Penny still talking to you after the padding remark !! Photos are awesome from the chopper.How many miles have you covered so far...is the driving easy ? Looking forward to our afternoon tea when you get back Penny where Ill be bombarding you with questions about your trip !!!

[Ruth]

Mount Cook
The photos are amazing! The views from the helicopter look incredible! Poppy says that she thinks Grandad is cheeky and Nanny hasn't got a big bottom!! She's wagging her finger at you Grandad!!