Leslie and David's Wanderings: 11 February 2024 Fox Glacier to Wãnaka, South Island NZ

Monday, February 12, 2024

11 February 2024 Fox Glacier to Wãnaka, South Island NZ

We woke this morning a little sore from our 5+ miles of hiking yesterday. So, we headed over to Lake Matheson and hiked the loop around the lake (2.6 miles) to warm up our muscles. It was a pretty path through more rainforest with occasional views of the lake with the mountains in the background. There was a bus load of Asian tourist which seemed to be constantly blocking the path as they congregated to get one picture or another. On the way back, there were two young women taking modeling pictures on the cable bridge and blocking anyone from getting by. They kept stopping and blocking the bridge while they took their modeling pose pictures and looking back at the people waiting to get by and giggling. David started stepping hard from one side of the bridge to the other. Leslie joined in and soon the bridge was swaying so much the girls could hardly stand much less get their get their model shots. Then everyone was able to get by them and continue on our way. As we headed into the parking area for the lake, we noticed a sign pointing further down the road to a “Glacier Overlook”. So, we headed that way and got a magnificent view of Fox Glacier. Much better than anything we had seen so far of the glacier. As we pulled into the parking area, it looked like the clouds were going to block the view and we commented that God just did not want us to see that glacier. As we turned around to leave, the clouds parted and we got a beautiful view of Fox Glacier and the surrounding peaks. We topped off with gas, since there would not be another gas station for a while, and headed for Wãnaka via Haast Pass. As we drove down Route 6, we stopped off at Bruce Bay to watch the waves roll in off the Tasman Sea. Further down route 6 we stop at Knights point and Ship Creek to get pictures of the rugged coast line. As we headed up Haast Pass, we made several stops along Haast River to enjoy the views of the Southern Alps. This part of the road runs in and out of Mount Aspiring National Park. We stopped for the short hike to Thunder Falls. We also stopped to hike the Blue Pool trail only to find out the trail was closed because the “bridges had reached the end of their life for operational use”. Finally, we cruised down to Lake Wãnaka and Lake Hãwea. We are staying at the Mt. Aspiring Holiday Park.