We headed out of Franz Josef towards Queenstown. We wanted to have a quick look at Fox Glacier, but a sign on the road said it was unsuitable for campervans so we decided to drive on. After a fairly long drive our first stop later that afternoon was Puzzling World, just outside Wanaka. We amused ourselves with the optical illusions which were on the walls. There were some very impressive holograms, which were different depending on which direction they were view...

Today we did our 3/4-day hike onto Franz Joseph glacier. After being suited and booted with hats, gloves, boots, ice talonz, over trousers and rain jacket, we headed off. Franz Joseph and Fox glaciers are fairly unique in the world as they descend to below 300 meters above sea level into temperate rainforest. This is due to the steep valley sides which enable the ice to come down lower than would otherwise be possible. We had a fair walk once we got out of the ...

We're currently in Franz Josef, a small town close to the southern alps on South Island, New Zealand. We're going walking on the Franz Josef glacier tomorrow (13th Dec). Hopefully we'll find time to fill in the gaps between now and our last entry soon...

Today we visited the World of Wearable Art and Collectable Cars Museum in Nelson. The museum holds examples of clothing from the Wearable Arts shows; the idea behind the clothing is to create a piece of art that can be worn. There are many fantastic outfits on show; we particularly like the Dragon Fish costume with it's big wings and long tail that did indeed look like a cross between a dragon and a fish. There are various categories for the show, including...

Caught the 1pm Blue Bridge ferry to South Island. The forecast had been for gales in the morning, but we had a lovely smooth crossing in the sunshine. The staff were very friendly and chatty on the boat; we got free hot chocolate as too much had been made and a free paper, which told us that the skin burn time was 9 minutes! It was only the day before that Andy had finished reading the guidebook on South Island and drawn everything out on the map, and it was onl...