Our next stop was the Franz Josef Glacier, a full day's drive away. Lucky for us the route was one of the top coastal drives in the world. Stunning scenery with plenty of things to do on the way, including Pancake Rocks (exactly what it says on the tin - rocks that look like stacks of pancakes). We arrived early evening, checked into the hostel quickly and then headed straight to the glacial hot pools for a sunset soak followed by some Thai food in preparation for our upcoming trip to South East Asia. Fed and watered we returned to the hostel and Greg began unloading the car while Claire started unpacking the as yet unopened bag that had spent 24 hours unattended on a beach in Abel Tasman National Park. The first thing Claire noticed was that one of our G&T cans had gone missing. Despite this tragedy she continued to unpack but was stopped in her tracks when she removed a half eaten/gnawed sandwich from the top pocket. She then lost all confidence in putting her hand back into the bag given the potential for whatever had been feasting on our packed lunch to still be inside. Greg returned and bravely shook the contents of the top pocket out into the corridor, but no rodent or otherwise to be found. Closer inspection revealed a small hole through the bag and the lining which some small animal with a taste for ham & cheese rolls must have made.

The following day we were choppered up to the glacier with our 'Ice Explorer' group, skimming the tops of trees and the walls of valleys as we went. On the ice we tied our crampons (not tampons as Claire's grandmother once confused them with) to our feet and set out on a three hour hike, exploring crevasses and caves as we went. Beautiful blue tinged ice and delicious fresh glacial water created a very cool experience (get it?).