THE SNOWY SOUTH

A short tour of New Zealand's South Island

Christchurch to Franz Josef Glacier

Tuesday 6th May, 2025

Snowy Alps

Snowy Southern Alps

Drop Cap oday was truly spectacular! O for Oarsome! We headed out of Christchurch towards the Alps and the view started getting very snowy! I felt as though we were in Switzerland. The Southern Alps, as we saw yesterday from the plane were snow topped and spectacular.

e stopped for a photostop before Arthur's Pass which was quite lovely, the sky was clear blue and the hills were white, and I felt quite comfy in my thermals. We all got out and were snapping furiously (or snapping as much as one gets with phones and i-pads) the occasional actual camera! The scenery was just lovely.

Snowy Alps

Photo Stop

Tour Coach

Our Luxury Coach

Drop Cap hen back on the coach and heading up Arthur's Pass. Mac kept dropping off to sleep, which is a pity, but the coach is so comfortable. The leather chairs have the ability to recline a little and raise the legs a little (not much) There is a table with space under for your day bags etc, headphones and music and complimentary water bottle. The seats were not that large, though, and I think Geoff would not be as comfortable as we were.

Drop Cap e stopped at Arthur's Pass for morning tea, actually passing the TranzAlpine train en route, which is not supposed to be running today. We received a refund because we would miss out on it and there it was. Craig, our driver, was rather bemused about it and later, at Queenstown, he had reported it to the company, and they shouted us a free drink in the hotel as a bit of consolation.

Track to Glacier

Walking Track to Franz Josef Glacier

Drop Cap hen on to Hokitika for lunch. This is greenstone central and, in one of the many shops, I bought myself a pair of earrings because my jade ones which I bought last time in NZ had broken (or one of them had, away from their mounting). After Hokitika we proceeded to Franz Josef Glacier through incredibly thick bush and wide stony (braided) rivers with trickles down the centre. We were lucky enough to get to the glacier in time to walk 1.5 kms to the viewpoint which was spectacular, although the glacier is receding at the moment and is sometimes tricky to spot.

Us at Glacier

Macs at Franz Josef Glacier

Drop Cap avid from the group offered to take our photo in front of the view and it has come out OK except I look so fat!!!Bugger!!

Bush from Hotel

Bush Outside our Hotel Room

Drop Cap hen back to Franz Josef village where we are ensconced in a lovely wilderness lodge style hotel, all wood and outside galleries. Our room is along an open gallery and will probably be cold walking to dinner tonight. The room, though the lights are very dingy, is very nice, large and full of lamps which don't give much light. We have sliding doors out on to the balcony with a view of ferny bush.

Lancewoods from Hotel

Endangered Lancewoods at Wilderness Hotel

Drop Cap his hotel has a large planting of endangered lancewood trees. These are prehistoric and quite strange. As they grow, their foliage changes radically. The first is ferny, then downward facing sharp spear-like leaves, then fluffy foliage in the third stage. Craig says they grew like that to deter the giant Moa from eating the leaves. The Moa has been extinct for five hundred years, but the tree still has not realised it!
Off soon to "Wine Time", 1830, we have generally eaten too much today and it will soon be dinner time again.

Oh well! Today has been a great day, nevertheless.
Jet Boating tomorrow!