 | | NEW ZEALAND AND SOUTH PACIFIC |
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| | HAAST PASS TO THE GLACIERS |
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From Wanaka we headed for the West coast, taking Highway 6 along the shores of Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka. We left in the rain and it soon turned into a downpour by the time we reached the Haast Pass.
The Haast Pass is the lowest of the passes which cross the Southern Alps. This scenic route was an old trail used by Maori traders and war parties. High peaks surround the pass, which is rarely closed by snow in winter. |
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 | The weather can still be very unpleasant though as we were to discover, and it was a tough drive over the pass untill we reached the valley of the Haast river.
Along the way numerous waterfalls were created by the torrential rain, |
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When we reached the Fox Glacier the weather was still bad and you could not reach the glacier face as the footbridge had been washed away by all the rain.
The Fox Glacier descends from the Southern Alps right down to the temperate rainforest making the New Zealand West coast glaciers some of the most unusual in the world, |
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After spending the night at the township of Fox Glacier we drove the short distance to the Franz Josef Glacier. Here the weaher was once again wet though we braved the short walk to the lookout point,
Again it was impossible to reach the base of the glacier from here because of the rain causing massive flooding in front of the glacier |
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