RSSFox Glacier
June 30th, 2004 Posted in Activities, TravelFox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier are the two most accessible glaciers in New Zealand, and a vibrant tourist industry has grown up around the two towns of the same name. I booked three nights at the Ivory Tower. The ambience in the dining room was cool, between the music and motivational posters, though the kitchen wasn’t too great. As I arrived in the evening, I ended up joining the rest of the crowd and watched most of The Two Towers and The Return of the King. The next day I started hiking toward the terminal of the glacier (it’s lowest point). Ended up being a longer hike that I expected. Met an Irishman on the way up and we hiked to the glacier, and back, for a long 10k in total. Ate lunch and then headed to Lake Matheson. The lake is nicknamed “The Mirror Lake” because at sunrise and sunset it is very still, and reflects Mt Cook and Mt Tasman perfectly. The walk was 6k each way, and I didn’t know what to expect after a mostly cloudy day. I walked, reached the lake, then walked around the lake, and then…. The clouds parted, the sun set, and I got the shot! As a photographer, that’s what you live for, so it was very thrilling. The walk back was dark, but I was excited enough to really enjoy it.
I planned to hike the glacier the next day, but it was pouring, really really pouring rain, and quite a bit of wind. They cancelled the trips, not that I would have gone if they didn’t. I could have stayed another day and tried again, but I opted to just move on.
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