We awoke to see the mountain view looking all moody and gorgeous with the white fluffy clouds rolling across. It was a cold morning. After brekky we hit the road twisting our way south through some rainforest, lots of farm land and sometimes very close to the Tasman Sea. We stopped along the way at Ship Creek Beach. By now the sun was beating down and it was lovely and warm. The sand here was white and strewn with pebbles and a most beautiful collection of washed...

We awoke to a gorgeous view of the mountains. Jay was feeling much better today. After brekky we drove a few kilometres down the road to Lake Matheson which is famous for it's mirror views of Mount Cook and Mount Tasman. We set off on the walking trial around the lake which is nestled amongst ancient forest. The lake was formed about 14,000 years ago when the Fox Glacier retreated from it's last major advance towards the sea and left a depression that later fille...

We awoke to a gorgeous sunny day. The snow capped mountains that had been taken from us by cloud cover yesterday were back and looking quite stunning under the morning glow of sunlight. Franz Josef is in a really beautiful location. After brekky we hit the road for the twenty kilometre journey south to the Fox Glacier. The access road was through rainforest until the road went over a manmade rock causeway to the parking area. Unfortunately Jay was feeling very po...

We had another peaceful night in the rainforest but we awoke to the sound of rain blasting the camper van. It was very wet outside and unfortunately the forecast wasn't very good. We decided to stay put and have a relaxing day. We just lazed about in the camper van listening to music, reading and having a laugh. By mid afternoon the rain had eased and we ventured out for a walk into the village. The mountains had disappeared under a cloak of mist that was shroudi...

We had a lovely peaceful night in the rainforest. Despite the ravaging sand flies this is a great camp site. After brekky we drove the short distance to the glacier car park. The access road took us alongside the Waiho River with it's wide dramatic bed full of rocks, huge boulders and strewn timber. The weather today was bright and warm. The sky was blue except for some big billowing clouds that were clinging to the hills and mountains. The trail to the glacier t...