After nursing Barrytown hangovers in the morning we headed off to Franz Joseph. The drive there was brilliant as part of the journey was through the rainforest and we saw some of the most stunning scenery to date. We stopped off en route in Hokitika for a rather rushed visit to a jade factory and to get supplies for the next 3 days as we would be going through the most remote part of New Zealand where there are no shops!! So as we were doing the glacier walk the next day we duly stocked up on scroggin (this has become a staple food for us on hikes), however we ended up going slightly overboard and when it got weighed at the checkout it cost us 10 dollars!

That night Jonny (or should i say 'Sunday' as he has now become known on our bus) took part in a 'killer pool' tournament where after losing two lives almost straight away he pulled it back to come second place! Probably helped by Emma, Jen and Fran cheering him on with their 'Sunday's child is good and gay' chant!

Next morning we were up early to hit the glacier for our full day hike and got kitted out with all the gear (my particular favourite were the crampons that came in a stylish red bum bag). When we arrived in the glacier valley we were surprised that due to the sheer size of the landscape, the ice itself was actually 2K away even though it looked so close! Similarly when we reached the bottom of the glacier, the people walking on it looked tiny!

We spent the morning hiking up the glacier and learning how to walk in crampons, with our guide going ahead of us using an ice axe to carve out steps in the ice, which looked knackering! At lunchtime we perched in the ice and ate our cheese and salami sandwiches (again this has become staple for our treks). After lunch we headed into the body of the glacier to explore the caves and crevasses. This is when my troubles began. Our guide taught us the 'pin step' so we could squeeze along a narrow cravasse, which involved putting left foot first, turning sideways and shuffling through. Everyone seemed to manage it fine apart from me (quelle surprise) and my bum got stuck in the gap and I couldn't move! Jonny was behind me, and, unsympathetic as usual, alternated between laughing, staring at me incredulously and shouting at me to move my feet (easier said than done). (Jonny's entry: Hutch turns to me wide eyed and in all seriousness exclaimed "I'm actually stuck!!", at which point the backlog of around 20 people (the previous group had even caught up with us by this point!) were all watching the show!) Eventually the guide had to jump down into the crevasse and help me perfect the pin step that would enable me to get my ass through the small space! NOT my finest moment and I regretted making the joke I had made earlier that I had eaten too much lunch to get through!

Exploring the rest of the glacier was like being in another world and the sun shining on the ice makes it glow a pale blue colour which is amazing!

The day was incredible but it couldn't completely take our minds off the fact that afterwards we were due to be throwing ourselves out of a plane! Our skydive was over Fox Glacier which has been given the title of second best dive place in the world (first place goes to Everest) so promised to be amazing, especially as we were doing it at sunset! Didn't stop me from being really nervous and almost backing out... Jonny had to talk me round!

Next thing I know we were wearing jumpsuits and boarding a tiny plane to take us to 12 thousand feet! The views we got from the plane took your breath away, with Mount Cook, Mount Tasman and the rest of the Southern Alps, the Fox Glacier, ocean, lush rainforest and Lake Matheson all as a backdrop, and almost took my mind off what we were about to do! With the help of my tandem master's singing (crazy guy from Blackpool) I finally started to relax, although a almost freaked out when Jonny disappeared from the plane in front of my eyes!

My instructor rolled us backwards out of the plane so I could see it above us and then we were freefalling! The feeling was amazing even if I was trying to concentrate on breathing and I could feel my cheeks flapping around in the G Force! This was later confirmed by the pictures- seriously I didn't realise that my cheeks are THAT chubby!! I was sort of relieved when the chute opened, so much so I actually said 'yaaay- it opened!!' (think the instructor was somewhat taken aback by this) and then it was time to enjoy the view! Part of which was Jonny's little red parachute in the distance! I also got to steer which was such good fun!

6 minutes later we had landed safely on the ground and the only thing left to do was do a running jump on Jonny! It was one of the best things I've ever done and I was so glad he talked me into it! By the time we got back to Rainforest Retreat we were absolutely shattered but it had been an epic day!!

Next stop.... Everest!! Although it may take us a while to save up the £30k it costs to do it!