A family shot in front of Franz Josef Glacier. We didn't let the miserable damp and dreary weather stop us from appreciating the sites. We marched on through the rain to get a glimpse of the famed glaciers. Katie and I did not stop at this wimpy yellow fence.
We continued past the fence across a field of rocks in an attempt to get closer to the bottom of the glacier. Despite a foot-soaking water dunk in one of the creeks (for Katie), we only made it part way to the glacier. This wide creek stopped us in our tracks.
All this way and the worsened visibility yielded a worse view. Oh well, it was fun.
Here we go, headed back across the rocks to join the rest of the family.
Here's the creek that jumped up and grabbed Katie on her first passage. She managed to return without incident.
A close up shot of Franz Josef Glacier.
The Bohemian, gypsy travelers. Do we look homeless or what?
Dad and Mom at Franz Josef Glacier.
After a very wet walk through the woods back to the car, we all had soaked wool coats, and mom had a drenched rain jacket. A lot of good that did her.
Our cute parents after 34 years of marriage.
The sisters!
We stopped at Lake Matheson in an attempt to see Mt Cook's reflection in the water but we were out of luck with the overcast and rainy day we got.
This may or may not be Mt Cook.
Mom, me, Lisa, and Katie in front of Mt Cook (we think).
Lisa is loving the rain, yes loving it!
We crossed this fun suspension bridge during our walk to Lake Matheson.
It was a 2 minute walk from the parking lot to the Fox Glacier lookout. This time, Katie and I did not traverse the rocks to get closer.
Perhaps this sign had something to do with that...
Fox Glacier.
More Bohemian misbehavior.
Fox Glacier looked quite a bit bluer than Franz Josef Glacier, at least from what we could see at the base.
The drive consistently looked like this, with beautiful snow capped mountains on every side.
We logged a lot of miles Friday as we drove all the way from Franz Josef through Queenstown and onto Te Anau. We stopped to take a few pictures along the way.
The mountains reflected beautifully in all the still lakes.
We stopped for a coffee break in this town and stopped not 5 minutes later to take this picture. A few passengers were really excited to be stopping so soon after we were back on the road.
We went to The Moose in Te Anau for dinner, the most happening spot in town, and you can see how many people are there. We went in the off-peak season and a lot of places were simply shut down. We stayed the night at the Anchorage Motel, a creepy looking but completely comfortable and clean place. The family gave me a sitting ovation when I returned to the car with the keys as they could sense my uncertainty and angst about booking into a place like this. All was okay.
