Heli-hiking in Franz Josef

The glacier from the air
see all photos »

It’s impossible to sit still for long in New Zealand – even for us – so today we got up early (again) and headed for a rendezvous point in town for a half day trip to the world famous (in New Zealand) Franz Josef glacier. There are various options available ranging from a very quiet stroll at the foot of the ice for an hour or so through to spending the whole day on a strenuous hike. The heli-hiking option we picked meant that we could be transported in minutes to where the real action is high up on the glacier and then spend a couple of hours on a guided walk oohing and aahing at the sights. Nice and easy. Or so we thought.

We're not stuck really
see all photos »

Having been kitted out with our big boots, waterproof jackets, crampons and pick axes (!), we were divided in to 4 groups of 6 for the helicopter flights up the glacier. It is getting increasingly embarrassing having to tell various tour guides our weights as this big trip has gone on and, needless to say, the 4 other people in our helicopter were minute to compensate for our newly found girth. Anyway, the flights took less than 10 minutes and was waaaaay better than any simulator. If anyone’s been on the Wild Arctic ride at Seaworld, you’ll know what we mean! The pilot had a job to do and his brief was to get us to the top asap via one or two points of interest. And this he did in the most economical way he knew, which involved a series of gravity defying swoops and turns. Fantastic!

Mike, this is NOT the time for a pho...
see all photos »

Quick geography lesson

I didn’t really excel at Geography at school (I did Latin), but I do know that Franz Josef glacier is almost unique due to its very narrow steep valley. This funnel shape means that the ice moves at an incredible speed of upwards of 2.5 metres per day and this flow allows ice to descend to as low as 240 metres above sea level. (Glaciers at similar latitudes in America and Europe stop at around 2,000 metres). It also means of course that it’s constantly changing and, although there have been thousands of people tramping on the same area before us, it really does feel as if you are the first.

Is there anywhere I can get a latte?
see all photos »

The walk

We opted to go with the slightly slower group because in theory there would be more stopping points to catch your breath and take pics etc. All I can say is that, if we were in the slower group, thank heavens we didn’t go with the other lot! Nice and easy? Er, no way. Hiking on a glacier is actually really hard work. For a start, it’s not smooth. It’s very very steep and rugged. Second, you have to learn to walk with spikes on your feet. And third, truth be known, our guide Jason, was fun and enthusiastic, but a bit of a task master. When various members of the group (oh ok, me) stopped to take a pic or two, we were given a mild but definite rebuke because we had to get on. I’m not being sensitive, but even the German fellow behind me looked a bit surprised - “Hmm. No talking in class, I zink!” Very well put!

The intrepid explorers
see all photos »

As luck would have it, we had the sunniest and clearest day in several weeks, and enjoyed the most spectacular walk you could imagine including the cleanest, purest ice streams, caves and formations, often tinged with that almost unnatural blue-violet hue that ice adopts before the sun has dried it out. And we also managed to defy the authorities and take some pics, as you can see, for the record.

The timing was quite good for us. We made it back to the helicopter landing pad after two hours of relatively strenuous activity and it was about the right length of time. The pilot seemed to descend the mountain even quicker than he had gone up it and, minutes later, we were back on dry land handing our kit back. Knackered and ready for a big lunch!