Top of the world! Mount Tasman (behind us) is New Zealand’s second-highest mountain, rising to a height of 3,497 meters (11,473 ft).

When we left off from the last post, we’d taken the train from Christchurch to Greymouth and began exploring the really cool little beach town of Hokitika. We needed to head south as our plan is to go walkabout on top of a mountain. More specifically, a walk on a glacier.

Heading southward, we drove to a small tourist-trap of a town called Franz Josef. This is in the glacial area and we both were excited to see a glacier. This will be a first for both of us. Not only did we want to see one but when we found we could actually walk on one we jumped at the chance. How cool is that!

Rain, rain, and more rain

So far on our trip, the weather has been really nice. The day we headed south to Franz Josef, we awoke to rain.  We had a reservation for a helicopter at 2:45 pm. Cindy checked the weather. The forecast was for the clouds to clear by mid-day. We kept our figures crossed and hoped for the best.

Hmm, the positive attitude and being optimistic about the weather doesn’t seem to be helping

Being in a lifestyle that is so weather dependent, we’re skeptical of forecasts. Usually, a short-term forecast is close but to think we need clear skies by a specific time is a tall wish. Still, we are optimistic.

We take a pit stop at a public toilet and camping spot. Hmm. Is it clearing?

At the same campground, I spot a Weka bird (one of NZ’s flightless birds). The campers think I am nuts chasing it about with a camera in the rain.

A little further down the road we get a glimpse of blue skies. Yay!

The clouds start to break and we can see the Southern Alps

I had called the helicopter company ahead of our booking to ensure we’d not be charged if the weather prevented flights. It was fully refundable if this proved to be the case. However, we both really wanted to go up the mountain. As we drove south, we both constantly and optimistically watched the clouds. At any patch of blue sky, the anticipation grew.

We arrived in Franz Josef about noonish and decided to grab some lunch. At a restaurant, we sat outside and noticed we didn’t hear any helicopters. Hmm.  We met the most awesome server, Racheal, with streaky pink hair. She was from the UK and has traveled extensively working as she goes. People like her and us who have the travel bug instantly bond. We chatted about adventures between her work.

The Landing is where we had a long leisurely lunch – the clouds have lifted behind the restaurant but the valley we need to fly through still has a low cloud cover.

After lunch, we went to the check-in office of the helicopter tour company. They were not flying yet but remained optimistic they could in a couple of hours. They pointed to the valley they flew through on the way to the glacier and the cloud cover still blocking the path they would take. The expectation was that we could still go and told us to come back about 30 minutes prior to our reservation. We kept an eye on the valley they pointed to and noted the clouds were slowly moving away.

We dumped our car at the hotel we’d planned to stay at that night and decided to eat dessert and get a coffee. The restaurant was based on a recommendation of the hotel clerk. Halfway through our sweet treats, we heard an awesome sound. It was the sound of a helicopter going up. Yahoo! The flights have resumed as the clouds have lifted. We are going to be walking on a glacier very soon.

I can’t begin to tell you how cool this experience was (get it – cool). As soon as we stepped onto the snow, I hit Cindy with a snowball. She has yet to pay me back and I am dreading the surprise that awaits at some point in my future.

We get our first ever look at a glacier (in the distance). Note the still low clouds.

The glacier becomes more prevalent. Believe it or not, there is a hole in the clouds to the left side of the glacier we can get up through to reach the top.

The bottom of the glacier, the ice melts and the river begins

We sneak through a small hole in the clouds and turn around – WOW!

A closer look at the glacier shows the crevasses and massive hunks of ice (the pic really doesn’t show the true scale)

At the top, there is a smooth spot where the pilot can land without fear of losing us down a crevasse and we can walk about on the glacier. By standing still, we are moving down the mountain at a rate of approximately 10 meters per year.

We decided to take the train back to Christchurch. The main reason for this was the huge drop off fees for a rental car on a one-way rental. There is a bus but it is a pretty long ride. Some people will take the train over and bus back the same day. That would make for a very long day.

We had such a nice time in the Scenic Plus section on the way over, we decided to upgrade our return ride. The valve is so worth it. This is something we both agreed upon. We originally booked the regular ticket but realize on this trip we could drink the wine since we just needed to make our way to the AirBnB that evening in Christchurch by Uber. Also, we made sure to sit on the opposite side of the train and caught views of stuff we missed on the way there. Seats are assigned but when checking in, the staff are very accommodating.

The wine and the food flows freely on the train. Eva, our host on this leg makes the mistake of putting a bottle on our table and leaving it while she attended something else. It was a little bit lighter when she came to retrieve it. Eva is from the Canary Islands and has a great sense of humor.

On the return, this gave me an opportunity to listen to some of the commentary I missed on the way over due to taking pictures. A particularly interesting piece was about the plates and the movement of the mountains we were viewing out the window. The commentary talks about earthquakes caused by the sifting plates.

We stop at Otira in preparation for the Otira tunnel. If you recall from the last blog, this is where extra engines are attached to the train. This time we are going uphill as we transit the tunnel. The transit takes about 15 minutes. During this time, I can’t help but think about the information I have just learned in regard to earthquakes. I’ve come to realize that perhaps telling the passengers about earthquakes and then sending them through a long tunnel is not the best idea.

All is well and we make it to Arthur’s Pass where the extra locomotives are removed and the train picks up more passengers. Eva makes her way through the car with wine. We really like Eva at this point. I mentioned to her how the commentary talks about the quakes and then we disappear into a tunnel. She immediately picks up that I am joking with her.

She says, this is why the extra engine is added to the train at the back. It isn’t to push the train up the hill. It is so if the train is cut in half with the collapse of the tunnel, both halves of the train can get out. She says this as she tops off my glass with an exceptional Pior Noir from the Marlborough region of New Zealand.

We peek into the catering car where the meals are prepared for the Scenic Plus passengers. Eva is hard at work getting us more wine

Arriving back in Christchurch, we are tired, a little tipsy and eager to spend some time exploring the city over the next few days. Our AirBnB was located in the heart of town allowing us to walk to most things. One of the highlights of Christchurch was Hagley Park. This is a massive park located on the western side of downtown. And, it is beautiful.

There is a tourist tram that makes a 2.5 km loop through downtown with 18 stops at many of the area attractions. People buy an all-day ticket and hop-on or hop-off at will. We decided not to do the tram. Instead, we walked and followed the tram tracks to see where it went. I figured why pay the NZ$35 each expense of the tram when we could just walk the circuit? I’m glad we went this route.

The tram we opted not to take but walked the tracks instead

Christchurch is pedestrian-friendly. But, note the lack of people. This was taken in the heart of town at about 10:00 am. Very little traffic and very few people. I still am amazed by this in New Zealand. It does make crossing streets that much easier.

One of the things we really liked in Christchurch was the huge amount of artwork. There are murals everywhere and some are incredible.

Take a close look at this picture. It is entirely a mural painted on the side of a wall that is NOT 3D. It is all an illusion. Look at the parking spots and you will see they all are the same size even when the build appears to go away from the lot.

This small indentation to house an electrical transformer is so creative

The paint cans are there to encourage graffiti on the cans

Very cool

Speaking of cool

Queen Victoria stands proudly at Victoria Square. Located at the corner of Armagh and Colombo Sts.

This next mural we have seen before. But, not in New Zealand. I am assuming it is by the same artist. Here is a link to the first time we saw it in Tahiti.

Eerily familiar

From the loop of the tram tracks we found some pretty cool stuff. One of which was the Riverside Market. I really hope when we settle down back into land-life, we have a market this cool near us. We ate breakfast there a couple of days. The eggs-bene was perfect but the breakfast bun was the best and most popular item on the menu.

Besides awesome breakfast buns, I also found eccles (a British puff pastry filled with mince jam or spiced currants and golden raisins. Named after the town)

We also found Cornish pasties and meat pies – so good!

It’s hard to describe the breakfast roll. It has bacon, fried egg, hash brown, cheese, and chutney all on a big buttered and toasted sourdough bun. The lady who cooked it was from Singapore and jokingly said it had enough calories to give us energy for the day to walk about the city and take in the sights. She was the person who recommended we walk though Hagle Park.

Anyone who has traveled in the UK especially London knows the Brits love their parks. It is nice to see the influence of the British in this regard. There is a positive to the fact that the UK once ruled the world [smile]. New Zealand has some fabulous gardens and parks. You’ve already seen some incredible pictures of Hamilton Gardens. The Hagle Park was another wonderful stop.

Hagle Park – Cindy stops to smell the roses, literally.

Hagle Park – Check out this massive tree

Hagle Park – The color on this dahlia is awesome

Hagle Park – The rose garden with one of the massive greenhouses in the background

Hagle Park – The Peace Bell – And yes, I did give it a ding

Hagle Park – Peacock Fountain. There are no peacocks. It was donated by a man named Peacock

Another item on the tram route was the Christchurch Cathedral. This is still undergoing a massive salvage restoration after being severely damaged in a big earthquake in February 2011.

Christchurch is one of the first places we’ve visited in New Zealand which I feel would be a great place to live. The city has an artistic influence with tons of murals located throughout. There is an area called the SALT district which encourages downtown living, dining, arts, and entertainment. The area is trying to get away from glass buildings that now dominate most modern cities. In addition, we’ve found the people on the south island much friendlier. They jokingly refer to the south island as ‘the mainland’.

Before leaving Christchurch we picked up another rental car for the next 10 days. We are heading further south. Our next stop is Dunedin. For the first couple of hours leaving Christchurch the drive is somewhat boring. The land is flat and over the farmland, the Southern Alps are barely visible on the horizon. We were both looking forward to the adventures to come.

More to come soon…