Saturday 11 April 2009

We had a long drive today, across the Southern Alps of South Island. We drove through Arthur’s Pass and on to see both Franz Joseph Glacier and Fox Glacier. We had planned to take a helicopter ride up to both glaciers so that we could walk on them but the weather drew in and the flights were cancelled. Our hotel for the evening was the Glacier Country Hotel in Fox, a very small but busy little village nestled in the valley. The highlight of the day turned out to be a walk through the native bush near to the hotel, called the Minnehaha Walk. It was like walking through the forests of Narnia, with tall trees and palms, all covered in thick damp mosses and lichens. The forest was dense and a vivid shade of green throughout, it had streams and bridges and was truly magical. Interestingly, the Chronicles of Narnia were filmed here in New Zealand and we can see why. After supper at the hotel we returned to the bush to see the glow worms. It was beautiful.