Today we leave Queenstown to go to
Franz Josef Glazier. In hind-site it would have been nice to stay in
Queenstown for Christmas but Mazz wanted to be somewhere different
and special for Christmas.
We had a little sleep-in (8am!) and
then packed the car and headed North towards Wanaka. The GPS took us
a short cut through the area where the winter ski fields are. The
roads were a bit windy and of course it rained and rained and rained,
so the views were not spectacular at all, but it did create
waterfalls along the side of the ride. We stopped in Wanaka for a
last food shop, just in case there wasn't a supermarket in Fanz
Josef Glacier. The shops (there not that big) were crazy.....last
minute Christmas shopping! Wanaka is like a miniature Queenstown but
because of the continuous rain, we couldn't enjoy the views.
Driving in these areas when it rains
can cause some major problems for the roads, with land slides and
rock falls. We weren't sure if the road through the Haast Pass
would even be open. We came to some road works and had to stop. We
wound down the window to see what the lady had to say and she told us
we could go but to not stop and go as fast as we could. We guessed
that the road wasn't too safe and saw lots of rocks and water over
the road. Also along this road, there are a lot of bridges buy they
are only one way. You have to see if the sign gives you right of way
or the cars on the other side have right of way. You would think if
they make the bridges they would make them a doubled lane bridge,
but not here! There were again a lot of waterfalls cascading down the
sides of the mountains, some of them even flowing onto the road. The
whole way the rain was just continuous heavy rain. If it rained like
that in Adelaide, the roads would be flooded.
It took us 5 hours to drive 350kms. We
arrived at our accommodation for the next 2 days- Glacier Cottages.
There are only 3 cottages and they are on the owners property. They
breed American Miniature Horses/ponies. They use them for showing,
Pony Club and pleasure riding. One of he ponies is a very playful
foal. Just the size for a Hobbit!
We don’t have a lot planned for the
rest of the day (Christmas Eve), just chilling and watching TV.
Depending on the weather tomorrow, we may go for a walk to the base
of the Franz Josef Glacier. It really doesn't feel like Christmas
here at all.
We wish everybody a safe and Merry
Christmas and we hope you all have a great Year in 2014. To Marilyn's
Family- who ever gets the grandpas jocks- sucked-in cause we know we
wont be getting them.
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