Franz Josef Glacier

We started the morning off with a jaunt around Okarito Trig Walk.






We drove towards Franz Josef, and after a wrong turn that brought us to someone's private home, we had lunch at Alice May with the view of the mountains. While we sat on the patio, I was suddenly overcome with the feeling of newness; the scenery around me was so unlike that of home, a feeling of your senses being hit with a pleasant unfamiliarity.




After lunch, we embarked on another hike to the Franz Josef Glacier. The oddest thing about New Zealand is that they are home to tropical rain forests, but glaciers are often just a stone's throw away.


 

After walking through lush green rain forest on a dusty path, we finally reached the glacier. It felt odd to see a glacier surrounded by rocky cliffs, and even odder to realize just how close we were to it. It was a kilometre away from the viewing point, and we could see helicopters hovering over the glacier for those who opted for a birds-eye view, something we had done in the splendour of the Hubbard Glacier.











While we watched the glacier, we suddenly heard a huge rumbling, and the grey skies had us all thinking a thunderstorm was coming... until we saw a cloud of black rising from the side of the glacier. Moments later, a second landslide, much louder than the first, sent an enormous cloud of black dust into the air. It was interesting to see, but soon, we realized the dust was quickly coming towards us, and we decided to take our leave.





Slightly terrifying but infinitely amazing to witness. The dust ended up covering all our clothes, phones, and faces.



We stopped by SnakeBite Brewery for dinner, and I made the mistake of ordering two full meals. I was under the impression that the duck noodle soup was an appetizer, and also ordered a monstrous kiwi burger. I ate a quarter of the burger, and did my best with the noodles.