The reader will be unsurprised to hear that the day's ride to Franz Josef presented stunning views of rainclouds. Nor will it be a surprise that we were unwilling to let this ruin the atmosphere (although it is getting a teensie bit irritating). We looked into a bushman's centre early on, to see why deer were almost as bad a pest as the possum (until Germans started eating them). Possum pie is very nice, too.

Killer pool competition in the evening was the highlight, with one of the people from our bus winning a 2-for-1 skydive voucher.

First whole day in FJ - all glacier walks cancelled. Darn. So, to break up the day's reading and card playing we took advantage of a relative lapse in the downpour to take a walk up to the town bridge to see how all this rain was effecting the river - the answer is, it was very high and turbulent, so a lot of fun just to sit and stare (and fish the occassional ice lump out of it, so we did kind of get to see the glacier today).

Second whole day - finally the rain has stopped and, after some uncertainty, the day's hikes were confirmed as going ahead. tIt then took an hour to get everyone 'checked in' (for what?) and geared up with rain coats, socks, boots, crampons, hats and gloves.

The first part of the hike was actually though bushland, just getting to the glacier face, as the usual path through the river was too deep. Pretty fun though, lots of steep bits and rivers to cross (not my boots, not my problem!). Then came the test of intelligence - putting on the crampons. Evnidently, this was too hard for some, even though it seems easier than lacing the boots up in the first place.

Then the hike began in earnest, clambering over rock-covered ice until we reached clear glacier. After all the rain, the guides were having to cut fresh tracks all day, so it was nice to know we were on a brand new course! Alas, the problem with new courses is that they don't always go to plan - as proved by muggins here putting his foot into a pool of water up to his thighs. On the bright side the choice of shorts for the day was vindicated as the right option, even if my foot was steadily freezing.

There are plenty of sheer drops and icy crevasses to negotiate, with the resident kea birds watching on from their icy perches (where is their sense of adventure? do it on foot!). Then there is the climbing, whcih involves cutting out steps in the ice. Great fun!

To soon the adventure was over, and tomorrow it is time to move on.