Aboard Dignity (Lagoon 420) Blog

For our first day by the glaciers we hiked the trail to Robert’s Point. The trail was listed as taking 5 hours and 20 mins round trip which turned out to be almost exactly right. The trail took us down river a way past Peter’s Pool and then over the first of 3 or 4 swing bridges. Then the long climb along a mixture of made paths, rock scrambles and slippery, wet stream beds. At one point the trail had followed planks suspended from a vertical cliff face.

Our destination was Robert’s Point where we had an excellent view of the top of Franz Josef Glacier. We ate our lunch here and rested before the arduous descent. Going down the slippery rocks was hard work as it was too easy to lose grip and fall. Our knees took a bit of a beating on these sections and we ended up quite tired by the time we reached the car.

Despite the effort this was a great hike and one to remember. Hopefully the pictures will give some idea of the trail and the majestic scenery around us. The glacier, naturally, sits in a carved valley with hanging waterfalls aplenty.

Today the skies are again blue but we’re going to take it easy after the exertions of yesterday. We’ll take the easy hike to the base of the glacier. We’ll also visit the information center to find the best way to visit the ice tomorrow, either here or at nearby Fox Glacier.

The rain didn’t let up until mid afternoon and the day stayed cold enough to allow our breath to mist. Quite a surprise after the blisteringly hot previous day. We never left the campsite. Just read and solved problems. I managed to nail an Euler Problem that had been evading success from some time but it required learning a little more math. I was pleased with the new knowledge and putting that one (number 66) behind me.

During the day we met a Canadian touring the country who shared some of his west coast experiences with us. We have a few things now we know we want to do.

The weather gods continue to point to the west coast so we’ll be on our way later this morning. We may go all the way to Franz Josef in one go – five and a half hours of driving. That’s back through Arthur’s Pass so we know we’re in for some stunning scenery.

In a way we feel like we’re sailing again. It’s not due to the ground moving beneath us, although it does. It’s the weather. We were on the west coast but are now on the east coast due to the weather. Our decision to come to Akaroa was influenced by the weather too. The forecasts are beginning to show some fine weather on the west coast towards the end of next week. If we head south from Christchurch we’ll be as far as we can be from any passes and will miss the opportunity to catch this possible weather window. So we headed east to Akaroa to hold onto the possibility of returning through Arthur’s Pass to the west coast should the forecast maintain itself.

Akaroa is a holiday town nestled in what feels like (and no doubt probably is) a crater with a sea reaching lagoon/inlet. There are plenty of sailboats moored in the harbour and the town has a seaside feel to it. Being the weekend the campsite is back full of kids something we’ve been largely without for the last week since the school holidays ended.

Thge campsite is perched on a hill with flat terraces for the tents and campervans. From our site we can see down into the bay – a beautiful view tempered by the screams of babies.

In the afternoon we walked down to town to look around, get some information on local hikes and take pics. On the way back we stopped at a beachside bar for a beer and live music. The short hike back up to the campsite was unusually wearisome perhaps due to the heat and maybe the beer.

In the evening we both had stomach upsets so that probably was the reason for our lethargy. That has affected our plans for today. We had planned on an 800 meter ascent from the town to one of the surrounding peaks. It is again hot and with our condition dehydration would be a danger so we’re going to take it easy and drive to a car park near the top where the climb will be much less and certainly cooler.