Franz Josep

Talking of cloudy, it is overly so the next day, hence Karen and Ruby cannot do the hang-gliding they were looking forward to. Instead we go on another long drive that they were not looking forward to. The 5 hours to the Franz Josep Glacier is made even longer by Muggins managing to track down the only police car on the West Coast. I’m clocked at 125kmh in a 100 limit and the policewoman kindly calls it 115 reducing the fine to a reasonable NZ$80 (cf Townsville where it was an extortionate AUS$250). I think it was the fact we were a family rather than my charming smile but anyway it was a fair cop in more ways than one and I feel obliged to keep to the speed
limit for the rest of the journey. The scenery is fantastic again with green hills, deep ravines and rugged coastlines – a bit like the UK but more beautiful and with less people.

We ask about glacier trips on arrival at our motel and are whisked straight onto a helicopter on the promise of a kids go free special deal. It’s still a lot of money but we justify it in the form of an early birthday present for Ruby and it’s well worth it. This is only one of 2 temperate glaciers left in the world and also one of the three that is actually advancing rather than retreating. Harley is unsure about the helicopter as the roar of the engine starts up but as we swing off the ground at take-off he starts to enjoy himself. We fly low over the rutted surface of this slowly moving icy behemoth that is 300m deep in places. We are allowed out at the summit but only for a couple of minutes as it’s minus 12 degrees (a true test for the RM Williams as well as for Karen’s new purple Ugg boots). The panorama of green mountains, white glacier, deep blue sea and pale blue sky is truly memorable and one of the top five sights of the trip (just behind a bronzed Karen in her new skimpy gold bikini).