This photo shows half of the group (4 choppers full of people) walking ahead of us. It gives you some sense of the scale of this thing. You really can’t imagine it until you get on it. I kept feeling happy that the weather had cleared for us…while there were lots of clouds on the mountains, it was mostly a clear shot up and down the glacier itself and the sky above kept getting bluer and bluer the few hours we were up there. Once we started walking, it got warm pretty quickly and the first layer of clothing came off…I had on the jacket, fleece and another turtleneck tank underlayer. Had two pairs of pants…lightweight black ones underneath the rain pants. Elegantly tucked into the tops of wool socks so they wouldn’t get grabbed by the crampons.
We were up there with the Fox Glacier Guides. There were about 20 people at a time, split into two groups. Our guide was Gerard (more on him later). These guys were great … our tour was the Flying Fox – Fox Glacier Heli Hike. Cheaper than a helicopter tour in Hawaii, BTW…and not just the exchange rate makes the difference. Of course, you’re on the glacier more than in the chopper, which is probably the difference. Anyway – can highly recommend the experience here…not to be missed if you come to NZ.