Dec. 9, 2008
Fox Glacier
Gotta say, "Fox Glacier" is a pretty badass sounding name for a town...
There are two glaciers here: Fox, and Franz Josef. While they are both absolutely incredible, I don't know how this jackass Franz got his full name attached to a glacier.
Anyway, I was kinda skeptical....have seen many glaciers, and they are basically snow, right? wrong. *These* glaciers are like massive ice rivers racing down from the Mt. Cook massif almost down to the sea...there is no question when you see them that they are "alive" (tho they are, of course, in retreat). they come down from above the clouds, and push down into these fertile green valleys like a massive, luminiscent white wave crashing into the jungle. These are super-fast moving glaciers that are "fed" by the constant rain/snow above, and they are rare in that they extend all the way down to sea level...it's like a winter wave invading from the high country. the juxtaposition of the white ice against the deep green rain forest is really something special to see. There is an "awe" that surrounds these things that is like when you first see Mt. Shasta. I got a serious tingle...
Esoteria:
Fucking sandflies -- I was attacked one night in Moteuca 2 weeks ago, when I slept sans-tent on the beach...but those fuckers are still with me in the form of dozens of bite/scabs around my feet and ankles. I had a scratching attack in Nelson that had me begging the pharmacist to help me with the itch; i was crumpled on the floor right in the store rubbing the creme into my feet to put the fire out.
road system -- is like the internet. there isn't a straight road in this country...it's like a complex latticework, with multiple ways to get from A to B. NZ has what I call "egg carton" topography....the mountains and hills aren't oriented around faults, and lack the linearity of mountain ranges in the US...it's topsy-turvy.
DOC -- the ubiquitous Dept of Conservation offices are the "keys to the outdoors" in NZ (that's my jingle, not theirs.) Every single natural area, route, and hut is endlessly catalogued, photographed and described in pamphlets, murals, dioramas, photos, maps, multimedia stations, and the super-chipper DOC staff. for example, the $1NZ (60cents US) pamplet for the Routeburn Track includes a slick graduated color scale topo map of the area, beautiful photos, a blow-by-blow description of every foot of the trail and description and photos of all the huts, plus a specific list of every single item that you need to bring, a discussion of the geology and natural history, flora, fauna, weather, how to get there, etc. etc...So, again, you are very much entering into the "known" realm when you head to the backcountry here.
Tourons - yep, there are dozens of Euro-jackai at every turn. What are you going to do? It's like Xander said, "You're not going to have a good time at Disneyland until you just accept that churros are ten fucking dollars." Word. The crowd levels here (e.g., at the glacier) might bother me in the US, but here I don't trip. I'm eezy-freezy.
Chicks -- Three times now I have seen a vanagon full of super-fit, presumably Eastern European supermodels, each time in passing. Next time I will throw a road spike under their tire or something. Otherwise, it has not been cracking. I meet all sorts of cool people of all nationalities and ages, but rarely a single lady in the 20-40 age range that would pique my interest. I think the hot chicks go to mazatlan or something . you know you've got it bad when you're optimistic about the gaming opportunities in the backcountry huts......
Fox Glacier
Gotta say, "Fox Glacier" is a pretty badass sounding name for a town...
There are two glaciers here: Fox, and Franz Josef. While they are both absolutely incredible, I don't know how this jackass Franz got his full name attached to a glacier.
Anyway, I was kinda skeptical....have seen many glaciers, and they are basically snow, right? wrong. *These* glaciers are like massive ice rivers racing down from the Mt. Cook massif almost down to the sea...there is no question when you see them that they are "alive" (tho they are, of course, in retreat). they come down from above the clouds, and push down into these fertile green valleys like a massive, luminiscent white wave crashing into the jungle. These are super-fast moving glaciers that are "fed" by the constant rain/snow above, and they are rare in that they extend all the way down to sea level...it's like a winter wave invading from the high country. the juxtaposition of the white ice against the deep green rain forest is really something special to see. There is an "awe" that surrounds these things that is like when you first see Mt. Shasta. I got a serious tingle...
Esoteria:
Fucking sandflies -- I was attacked one night in Moteuca 2 weeks ago, when I slept sans-tent on the beach...but those fuckers are still with me in the form of dozens of bite/scabs around my feet and ankles. I had a scratching attack in Nelson that had me begging the pharmacist to help me with the itch; i was crumpled on the floor right in the store rubbing the creme into my feet to put the fire out.
road system -- is like the internet. there isn't a straight road in this country...it's like a complex latticework, with multiple ways to get from A to B. NZ has what I call "egg carton" topography....the mountains and hills aren't oriented around faults, and lack the linearity of mountain ranges in the US...it's topsy-turvy.
DOC -- the ubiquitous Dept of Conservation offices are the "keys to the outdoors" in NZ (that's my jingle, not theirs.) Every single natural area, route, and hut is endlessly catalogued, photographed and described in pamphlets, murals, dioramas, photos, maps, multimedia stations, and the super-chipper DOC staff. for example, the $1NZ (60cents US) pamplet for the Routeburn Track includes a slick graduated color scale topo map of the area, beautiful photos, a blow-by-blow description of every foot of the trail and description and photos of all the huts, plus a specific list of every single item that you need to bring, a discussion of the geology and natural history, flora, fauna, weather, how to get there, etc. etc...So, again, you are very much entering into the "known" realm when you head to the backcountry here.
Tourons - yep, there are dozens of Euro-jackai at every turn. What are you going to do? It's like Xander said, "You're not going to have a good time at Disneyland until you just accept that churros are ten fucking dollars." Word. The crowd levels here (e.g., at the glacier) might bother me in the US, but here I don't trip. I'm eezy-freezy.
Chicks -- Three times now I have seen a vanagon full of super-fit, presumably Eastern European supermodels, each time in passing. Next time I will throw a road spike under their tire or something. Otherwise, it has not been cracking. I meet all sorts of cool people of all nationalities and ages, but rarely a single lady in the 20-40 age range that would pique my interest. I think the hot chicks go to mazatlan or something . you know you've got it bad when you're optimistic about the gaming opportunities in the backcountry huts......
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