It was drizzling at Jackson's Retreat when we left; guess that’s why it is a rain forest.

We were again treated to ferns and tree ferns all along our way as we returned to Greymouth. Hwy 6 took us to Hokitika, which was another gold mining town but is now known for its greenstone, which looks like jade.

NZ’s largest gold nugget was found 30 km farther south in Ross – a whopping 99 ounce!

Sandflies are plentiful here. Maori legend says they were created to protect NZ’s most beautiful places from over-population.

In Pukekura (population 2) at the Bushmen’s Center/Restaurant/Shop, there is a giant sand fly on display. This place is also known for its possum pies, and a sign inside said "Vegetarian is an old Indian word for Piss Poor Hunter." The whole town is for sale for $1.8 Million.

As we continued to travel over hills and through valleys, we noticed many dairy farms. NZ has excellent dairy products. NZ also has good roads, and we've encountered lots of road work in progress all around the South Island.

We stopped at a lakeside picnic area for lunch and then made our way to Franz Josef, a village named after its biggest attraction, Franz Josef Glacier. We drove to the parking area and then took a short but steep hike to an overlook of the glacier.  

Helicopter tours to the glacier are very popular. They were cancelled today due to high winds and clouds, as a pretty German hitchhiker who gave us directions in exchange for a ride to the glacier told us. She is here for six months, traveling and working odd jobs (her last one was picking cherries) and in a few weeks she will do the same in Australia for six months.

Then we drove about 25 km further south to the village of Fox Glacier. We checked into our campground and then drove to Fox Glacier, where we took another short hike to see our second glacier of the day.  

Poor Fox Glacier is not as attractive as Franz Josef, as it is covered with dirt. However, Fox Glacier, which is 13 km long, comes closer to sea level than any other temperate region glacier in the world.