Day 13 ( May 26th) - More glacial activity

So I wake up today to thunder, lightning and heavy, heavy rain. I was going to get on the road again but being soaking wet for hours in a car wasn't appealing. I decided to stay in the hostel another night so I could re-group and figure out my next steps. But I hate wasting days so I decide I must brave the rain and at least leave the hostel for an hour. I ended up taking a walk to the glacier. It started in the rainforest which is so nice to walk through in the lashing rain - it seems to come alive - the smells become stronger and the colours become brighter. I then come across 'Historic Bridge' which is your typical, rickety New Zealand bridge that allows a walkway over a rapidly running river. I walk onto the bridge to get some pictures and feel like I'm about to be blown over the side. It's scary but fun! I continue to walk and the wind is absolutely howling. I consider turning back but I've walked about an hour and a half at this stage - might as well power through. I finally reach the walk to the glacier. Physically, the walk there is very similar to Franz Josef. Fox Glacier is also a little more exciting, however, as when you make your way to the top of the stony hill and finally reach the top - you are a lot closer to the glacier than what you would be at Franz Josef. You can also see ice caves which are pretty awesome looking. By the time I get back, the wind is blowing even harder and the rain is pelting down. I am drenched and can barely walk against the strength of the wind. Luckily - two Irish guys who happen to be glacier guides stop and tell me to get in. I wish I met them on the way and maybe they could have brought me onto the glacier. Ah well! They drop me all the way back to town, I apologise for ruining the back seat with rain and muck and I head back for a long hot shower. I spent the rest of the day chilling and trying to plan what happens next. Check out the last picture of the glacier below with the people walking on it to get an idea of the size of it.

 Historic Bridge

 On my lonesome

 Historic Bridge

 Glacial Ice Cave

 People walking on the glacier

Clear waters on the way to the glacier

I decided before I started my hitchhiking travels that I wanted to go to all the places I've already been, but also to Milford Sound, Mt. Cook, Lake Tekapo and Dunedin. I didn't actually do any research on getting to these places, and figured that it was probably very do-able in two or three weeks. I didn't look at the road situation. Nope! And as the first few days carried on and I actually began to look at a map I realised what I was dealing with it. Mount Cook is really close the the glaciers, but you have to drive South for a few hours, then East for a little bit, and back up North again to get there. Google maps can't even figure out the route. But you have to drive at least 1000 kilometers in what should only be about 100 kilometers. I wont even get started on getting to Milford Sound. Have a look at the map below - Fox Glacier is a little more than half way down the West Coast, slightly inland. The routes you see are the only roads to take from town to town. So going to these places isn't really going to happen in the few weeks as hitchhiking could go horribly wrong when I need to hitch so far in one day. The road the Milford Sound is closed at the moment anyway so I decide I'll head to Wanaka next, then Queenstown. And I'll do weekend or day trips from there with friends!