Today started out gray and gloomy, then got worse as a downpour began. Our intrepid travelers girded themselves in rain gear and headed out … for breakfast. Breakfast at the café at Lake Matheson in Fox Glacier. Delicious omelette with gruyere and sauteed mushrooms for Mary, bagel with smoked salmon, cream cheese, and pesto for Rich.
The rain stopped while we were eating, so we decided to brave a short walk down to the lake to a viewpoint for the Fox Glacier. Still not raining, so we ended up walking around the whole lake – about 90 minutes. The woods around the lake were gorgeous – dense with ferns on the ground level and also tree ferns - but also wet as only a woods after a rain can be wet. It was very odd to get glimpses of a glacier through an opening between ferns! Here's a small waterfall we encountered on this walk.
Then a drive up a scary road to a couple of different view points for Fox Glacier, followed by a drive to the base of the glacier itself. Due to the danger of flooding and ice calving because of the rain, we couldn’t get too close to the base of the glacier but still had a good look at it.
Then on to Franz Josef Glacier – another 21 km of winding roads with beautiful scenery. Got rained on during our walk there, but it was worth it. After seeing the glacier, we made a stop in the town of Franz Josef Glacier to see Flowing West, 30 minutes of amazing film taken from helicopters over the Tasman Sea, the forest, the mountains, and the glaciers. Wow!
So another great day despite the rain.
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