Arthur's Pass, Mischievous Parrots & Glaciers

Greetings from the South Island!

If you've been reading our blogs all along, you've come to realize this country is filled with some fabulous wilderness.  We've been gobsmacked by the broad diversity of ecosystems we've found throughout this country.  Once again we've found some new gorgeous places.  As we cross Arthur's Pass and head to the West Coast of the South Island, we are reminded daily as to why NZ is so gloriously green.  We have seen rain, so much rain for the past few weeks that we're starting to get web feet!  But as the Kiwi's say, "you just better get on with it" which means, regardless of the weather, one should work, tramp or do whatever needs to be done!

Arthur's Pass at elevation of 3000 ft. is a place pioneers rested and resupplied themselves after a long journey up the mountains and in preparation for an equally long descent to the west.  Like many mountain villages, finding gold in the rivers turned Arthur's Pass into a veritable crazy place in just a few short months.  After the gold rush was over, Arthur's Pass next big break was when it served as the home base for hundreds of construction workers who built a road tunnel through a mountain in the early 1900's.  Amazingly, some of the original worker's homes still exist and are used today as vacation "batches".  A "batche" is a Kiwi version of a cabin........ some of which can be very rustic.  Originally batches were constructed of anything one could find for free and generally on land that you did not own.  Today, many batches are new, modern and rented out as holiday homes but we've run across a fair number of rustic ones still in use.

A mountain getaway!?!

The upside of rainy days is magnificent waterfalls!

The infamous Kea parrot

Kea are NZ's only alpine parrot and are seriously endangered.  They are wicked smart and known to unzip purses and backpacks to search for food.  They can be quite destructive pulling at windshield wipers or anything that seems interesting to play with on cars or buildings.  We are lucky to have spotted several of these rare birds while at Arthur's Pass.

Incredible hwy construction completed in this pass

One way to deal with 167 inches of rain annually

Undeterred by the wet weather, we went to see the famous glaciers in the area.  Franz Josef and Fox glaciers are found in the Southern Alps and are the only NZ glaciers to touch temperate rainforest.  Here it rains an average of 20 days every month and normal rainfall amounts to 13 feet of rain each year.  Catching a sunny cloud free day to view the glaciers is pretty rare.

Fox Glacier is 8 miles long moving downhill at an annual rate of 3 ft. 

Franz Josef Glacier has retreated nearly a mile in the past 10 yrs

Staying dry (sort of) requires looking goofy in poncho rain gear. 

Lake Matheson, a kettle lake formed by the retreat of Fox glacier,  is NZ's most famous reflection lake

Nice view of the Southern Alps from our patio

We're heading north to check out some more fabulous places on the West Coast.  The weather forecast shows rain, rain & more rain.  Perseverance is a virtue........they say?!?

We are glad the elections are over and hope that you are each staying healthy.  

Sending you all our best!

Cheryl & Dan