Sunday, November 22, 2009
Housekeeping - Photos
Well, we've taken tons of pictures and wish very badly to share them. However, this is the second place in a row that has had a connection that won't allow us to upload photos for one reason or another. Hopefully, we will be able to remedy this quickly once we land in Australia tomorrow.
I'll be sure to add them in to the posts where they belong, so watch for those updates....
Mark
I'll be sure to add them in to the posts where they belong, so watch for those updates....
Mark
Tuesday, November 17 - Glacier Walking to Abel Tasman
Tuesday morning was beautiful and we were very optimistic that our glacier experience would happen, but we learned the day before that you can’t always judge the weather up on the glacier based on what it’s doing in town just a few kilometers away. We went to check in and were greeted with positive news and we began the briefings in preparation for our helicopter flight up on to the glacier. We proceeded across the main street and walked to the preparation area near the helipads. We got fully suited up with ice gear and waited our turn to board the aircraft.
Finally in the chopper, our pilot, Steve, ushered us up in to the glacial valley and ventured quite a distance up the glacier so that we could get a glimpse of the magnitude of its size. He then brought us back to the landing point in full roller coaster fashion with a couple of tight turns and swift descents that took our stomachs. It added a little excitement to the majestic sights of the ice field. After a smooth landing, we all piled out and joined the others in our group and began the final preparations before embarking on
our hike on the glacier.
Once the ice spikes (called crampons by our guides) were secure we ventured in to our first feature which was a 20 – 30 foot long tunnel that was naturally formed by the ice’s movement and shifting. It was an amazing time and spawned even more stunning views as the tunnel hosted many sections of blue ice which is caused by light refracting though extremely dense ice. After exiting the first tunnel, we continued through various valleys and features that the glacier had to offer. Along the way, the guide provided a var
iety of good information such as the section of the glacier that we were standing on was 400 meters deep and it was moving at about 5-7 meters per day down the valley. It was a unique experience to hear the occasional dull pop of the ice below us adjusting as it moves downward.
The weather turned out to be unusually sunny for the glacier and we found ourselves quite warm as the hike moved on. In fact, I took my jacket off at on
e point as we moved along. The bright sun magnified the blue colors and created an environment that we could have easily spent all day in traversing and exploring. Alas, it was time for our ice journey to come to an end, and helicopter arrived back on the ice helipad and whisked us back down to town. Upon removal of our ice gear, we jumped in the car and headed up the west coast for an extremely long journey to the northern shores of the south island and Abel Tasman National Park.
Finally in the chopper, our pilot, Steve, ushered us up in to the glacial valley and ventured quite a distance up the glacier so that we could get a glimpse of the magnitude of its size. He then brought us back to the landing point in full roller coaster fashion with a couple of tight turns and swift descents that took our stomachs. It added a little excitement to the majestic sights of the ice field. After a smooth landing, we all piled out and joined the others in our group and began the final preparations before embarking on
our hike on the glacier.Once the ice spikes (called crampons by our guides) were secure we ventured in to our first feature which was a 20 – 30 foot long tunnel that was naturally formed by the ice’s movement and shifting. It was an amazing time and spawned even more stunning views as the tunnel hosted many sections of blue ice which is caused by light refracting though extremely dense ice. After exiting the first tunnel, we continued through various valleys and features that the glacier had to offer. Along the way, the guide provided a var
iety of good information such as the section of the glacier that we were standing on was 400 meters deep and it was moving at about 5-7 meters per day down the valley. It was a unique experience to hear the occasional dull pop of the ice below us adjusting as it moves downward.The weather turned out to be unusually sunny for the glacier and we found ourselves quite warm as the hike moved on. In fact, I took my jacket off at on
e point as we moved along. The bright sun magnified the blue colors and created an environment that we could have easily spent all day in traversing and exploring. Alas, it was time for our ice journey to come to an end, and helicopter arrived back on the ice helipad and whisked us back down to town. Upon removal of our ice gear, we jumped in the car and headed up the west coast for an extremely long journey to the northern shores of the south island and Abel Tasman National Park.Monday, November 15 - Queenstown to Franz Josef Glacier
Monday was once again an early morning for we were looking at a 6 plus hour drive to the Franz Josef Glacier. The drive was beautiful, as many of them have been and the roads were often across mountain ranges involving multitudes of switchbacks. We arrived right on time and went to check in at the office down in the town for our heli-hike. We were nothing less than disappointed to find out that the weather up on the glacier was not conducive to helicopter flight. It was decision time and over a late lunch we determined that we wanted to stay the night here and take our chances on getting up on the glacier on Tuesday.
For the logistics, we needed to find a place to stay in Franz Josef and cancel our lodging down in Greymouth where we had planned to be this evening. We ended up making a great find with the help of a very nice woman in the information center and had a great room at a very reasonable price for the evening.
Since we were staying here, we decided to get a little adventurous for the afternoon and took a couple of hikes. The first was in the Glacier Park and we hiked to two different locations that offered great views of the end of the glacier. We then headed 25 km up the coast to a little village that hosted a recommended trail that took us up to viewpoints of both the coast and the alpine/glacial terrain.
For our final chapter of the day, we decided to seek out our first glow worm experience. To do this, we had to wait until dark and head out on a trail, just at the edge of town. We took the one flashlight that we had and ventured down the 30 minute path in the pitch black. Upon reaching the trails end, we were somewhat disappointed that we hadn’t seen any of the creatures, but our stroll back the path came alive with bunches of small glowing worms along the sides of the trail. For some reason, they appear to reside on the sides of the plants and rocks that are only visible when venturing back along the path. At about our 3rd section of worms, I took notice of how bright, or I should say not bright, the flashlight was becoming. We then picked up the pace along the rocky track and made it to car park just as the flashlight completely faded to black. We were very excited to have seen the glow worms and just as thrilled about making it back out of the trail area.
For the logistics, we needed to find a place to stay in Franz Josef and cancel our lodging down in Greymouth where we had planned to be this evening. We ended up making a great find with the help of a very nice woman in the information center and had a great room at a very reasonable price for the evening.
Since we were staying here, we decided to get a little adventurous for the afternoon and took a couple of hikes. The first was in the Glacier Park and we hiked to two different locations that offered great views of the end of the glacier. We then headed 25 km up the coast to a little village that hosted a recommended trail that took us up to viewpoints of both the coast and the alpine/glacial terrain.
For our final chapter of the day, we decided to seek out our first glow worm experience. To do this, we had to wait until dark and head out on a trail, just at the edge of town. We took the one flashlight that we had and ventured down the 30 minute path in the pitch black. Upon reaching the trails end, we were somewhat disappointed that we hadn’t seen any of the creatures, but our stroll back the path came alive with bunches of small glowing worms along the sides of the trail. For some reason, they appear to reside on the sides of the plants and rocks that are only visible when venturing back along the path. At about our 3rd section of worms, I took notice of how bright, or I should say not bright, the flashlight was becoming. We then picked up the pace along the rocky track and made it to car park just as the flashlight completely faded to black. We were very excited to have seen the glow worms and just as thrilled about making it back out of the trail area.
Sunday, November 15 - Fiordlands back to Queenstown
Sunday began on a positive note with clear skies and views of the surrounding mountains that were previously unattainable due to the lingering layers of clouds. Unfortunately, the clouds and adverse weather began to roll back in as we got ready. As the rain again began to fall in large amounts, we made the decision to pass up on the day of hiking that was planned and just headed back to Queenstown. For the last bonus of the Fiordlands, we reached the first pass and snow began dumping from the skies and the temperature reached 1 degree Celsius. Luckily it never hit 0 and the temperature began to climb after reaching the other side of the tunnel.
Back in Queenstown, we took a walk down to the town center and grabbed a bite and did some shopping. While in the town, we found a quaint little wine bar that did tastings from a variety of the native vineyards. We then turned in for the evening since we had a long drive ahead of us on Monday as we were to head for the west coast of the south island.
Back in Queenstown, we took a walk down to the town center and grabbed a bite and did some shopping. While in the town, we found a quaint little wine bar that did tastings from a variety of the native vineyards. We then turned in for the evening since we had a long drive ahead of us on Monday as we were to head for the west coast of the south island.
Saturday, November 14 - Milford Sound
Saturday we wok
e quite early as we had a 4-5 hour drive ahead of us before catching an 11:45 sailing in Milford Sound down in Fiordlands National Park. The trip went fairly quick as the scenery was more and more stunning as we got closer to the Sound. However, as we came to the final pass before our descent to Milford, the rain began to fall. It was fairly light, but by the time we departed on the boat, it was raining heavily and did so for most of the 3 hour cruise. Regardless, the scenery was magnificent as the mountains that surround the Sound all had steady waterfalls throughout them. Most of these fell directly in to the water and different levels of the falls could be traced all of the way to the clouds which were settled about 2/3 the way up the mountains due to the rain.
After reading more about the area, we realized that it might keep raining for quite some time as the Milford area is a rainforest and gets about 276 inches of rain per year. Even with the rain, we still saw rare penguins and seals that are only found in this area of the world
. At one point, the captain even steered the vessel underneath one of the falls. Given that the temperature was below 60 degrees, only one person from the entire boat stayed out to experience this. The last highlight was a stop at an underwater observatory that allows you to see some of the unique underwater life that resides in the Sounds of the Fiordlands.
Once we arrived back at the docks, we decided to go ahead and check in to the river side chalet that we had rented for the evening to wait out some of the rain. The lodge that hosts these chalets specializes in serving backpackers. It came complete with a few wings of dorm rooms that have communal bathroom facilities and a main guest kitchen where many groups from many nations gather in the evening to prepare their meals. We were very pleasantly surprised to find the chalets very comfortable with amazing views of the river. As we waited out the weather, it ended up raining so hard for such a long period that we actually watched the river in front of us rise about 2 feet.
The rain never stopped, but we made the most of it watching the river run and catching a movie in the room. Then it was time to cook the steaks that we had purchased from the super market in Te Anau. To our surprise, there was no cooktop in the chalet, so I was off to the main buildings in the rain to cook the meal in the community kitchen. This was quite an experience and I enjoyed my time in there with a group of Spaniards and they helped me with a couple of the nuances and tricks that it took to make the gas burners work.
e quite early as we had a 4-5 hour drive ahead of us before catching an 11:45 sailing in Milford Sound down in Fiordlands National Park. The trip went fairly quick as the scenery was more and more stunning as we got closer to the Sound. However, as we came to the final pass before our descent to Milford, the rain began to fall. It was fairly light, but by the time we departed on the boat, it was raining heavily and did so for most of the 3 hour cruise. Regardless, the scenery was magnificent as the mountains that surround the Sound all had steady waterfalls throughout them. Most of these fell directly in to the water and different levels of the falls could be traced all of the way to the clouds which were settled about 2/3 the way up the mountains due to the rain.
After reading more about the area, we realized that it might keep raining for quite some time as the Milford area is a rainforest and gets about 276 inches of rain per year. Even with the rain, we still saw rare penguins and seals that are only found in this area of the world
. At one point, the captain even steered the vessel underneath one of the falls. Given that the temperature was below 60 degrees, only one person from the entire boat stayed out to experience this. The last highlight was a stop at an underwater observatory that allows you to see some of the unique underwater life that resides in the Sounds of the Fiordlands.Once we arrived back at the docks, we decided to go ahead and check in to the river side chalet that we had rented for the evening to wait out some of the rain. The lodge that hosts these chalets specializes in serving backpackers. It came complete with a few wings of dorm rooms that have communal bathroom facilities and a main guest kitchen where many groups from many nations gather in the evening to prepare their meals. We were very pleasantly surprised to find the chalets very comfortable with amazing views of the river. As we waited out the weather, it ended up raining so hard for such a long period that we actually watched the river in front of us rise about 2 feet.
The rain never stopped, but we made the most of it watching the river run and catching a movie in the room. Then it was time to cook the steaks that we had purchased from the super market in Te Anau. To our surprise, there was no cooktop in the chalet, so I was off to the main buildings in the rain to cook the meal in the community kitchen. This was quite an experience and I enjoyed my time in there with a group of Spaniards and they helped me with a couple of the nuances and tricks that it took to make the gas burners work.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Friday, Nov. 13 - Queenstown High Adventure
Our second day in Queenstown was centered around the cities claim as “The Adventure Capital of the World”. Kristi and I started out the day with our first bungee jumps ever. They have multiple options for locations to jump, but we decided the bridge over the Karawu River since it is the location of the first recorded bungee jump in the world. If you haven’t done this, I’m not sure that any written description can do it justice. Standing on the edge of a platform with a series of cables tied around your ankles as the operator starts his countdown is an unsettling feeling at best. The thought that ran through my head was simply “It sure seems like a nice bridge, should I really be jumping off of it?”
The countdown begins…“Three, two, one…” and the operator’s instructions take over and we jump off of the platform in to a 140 foot (about half of a football field) freefall. As one approaches the river below, very quickly I might add, the bungee starts to kick in and slow the descent. Not sure what to expect, we were very surprised at how smooth the cables were at halting our descent. Kristi went first and truly enjoyed the experience. I know this from the wide grin that was on her face for an hour or so after she took her plunge.
For my (Mark) jump, I got the added bonus of being christened up to my waist in the river. That’s r
ight, I asked to get very close to the water and ended waist deep in the water before the bungee pulled me back out. If only I wasn’t dressed in a long sleeve shirt with a sweater over it. I weighed an extra 5 pounds and looked like a wet dog by the time they released me from the cords. I spent the next 30 minutes warming up from the dip in the frigid waters.
The pictures are of Kristi just as she jumped off and Mark at his deepest point in the water at the bottom of the plunge.
We got back in to town and grabbed a bite before all of us headed back out for the next adventure. For the afternoon, white water rafting was on the menu. We chose the more high adventure route and had a great time on the rapids. This route had class 3 and 4 rapids and wove through some amazing canyons, some of which were used in the filming of The Lord of the Rings. Since the temperature was pretty cold, we had to wear full wet suits on the trip. It started with a drive to the starting location on a crazy dirt road that wove down along the sides of a canyon. Most of the road was a single lane and there were multiple points at which we were driving along cliffs that were over half of a mile straight down to the canyon floor. Once we got down to the river, we got paired with a group from Canada and a great guide.
From the get go, we knew that this group was going to be a lot of fun. We had the extra rescue gear onboard so we had to pull up the rear for the trip down t
he river. We made the best of it by occasionally chanting our teams cheer and even catching some of the lagging boats and splashing them profusely before backing off. The rapids were great and one of them even resulted in our boat filling with water as a good part of our raft propelled underwater as we plunged from a roaring rock formation! The one major fear was that the cold would be overbearing and unpleasant, but luckily the sun was out and kept us warm for a majority of the trip.
At the end of the rafting, we were treated to warm showers and a sauna before loading in to the vans and heading back in to town. We closed the evening with some casual shopping and then a bite to eat before turning in.
The countdown begins…“Three, two, one…” and the operator’s instructions take over and we jump off of the platform in to a 140 foot (about half of a football field) freefall. As one approaches the river below, very quickly I might add, the bungee starts to kick in and slow the descent. Not sure what to expect, we were very surprised at how smooth the cables were at halting our descent. Kristi went first and truly enjoyed the experience. I know this from the wide grin that was on her face for an hour or so after she took her plunge.
For my (Mark) jump, I got the added bonus of being christened up to my waist in the river. That’s r
ight, I asked to get very close to the water and ended waist deep in the water before the bungee pulled me back out. If only I wasn’t dressed in a long sleeve shirt with a sweater over it. I weighed an extra 5 pounds and looked like a wet dog by the time they released me from the cords. I spent the next 30 minutes warming up from the dip in the frigid waters.The pictures are of Kristi just as she jumped off and Mark at his deepest point in the water at the bottom of the plunge.
We got back in to town and grabbed a bite before all of us headed back out for the next adventure. For the afternoon, white water rafting was on the menu. We chose the more high adventure route and had a great time on the rapids. This route had class 3 and 4 rapids and wove through some amazing canyons, some of which were used in the filming of The Lord of the Rings. Since the temperature was pretty cold, we had to wear full wet suits on the trip. It started with a drive to the starting location on a crazy dirt road that wove down along the sides of a canyon. Most of the road was a single lane and there were multiple points at which we were driving along cliffs that were over half of a mile straight down to the canyon floor. Once we got down to the river, we got paired with a group from Canada and a great guide.
From the get go, we knew that this group was going to be a lot of fun. We had the extra rescue gear onboard so we had to pull up the rear for the trip down t
he river. We made the best of it by occasionally chanting our teams cheer and even catching some of the lagging boats and splashing them profusely before backing off. The rapids were great and one of them even resulted in our boat filling with water as a good part of our raft propelled underwater as we plunged from a roaring rock formation! The one major fear was that the cold would be overbearing and unpleasant, but luckily the sun was out and kept us warm for a majority of the trip.At the end of the rafting, we were treated to warm showers and a sauna before loading in to the vans and heading back in to town. We closed the evening with some casual shopping and then a bite to eat before turning in.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)