The West Coast

For the next part of our journey we take the bus down the West coast, to Franz Josef, where we planned a glacier walk, and Fox Glacier where we can visit lake Matheson. Then we go back up to Greymouth and taking the train to Christchurch.

First, a day on the bus. Nelson to Franz Josef is a long distance, and on a bus this will take you all day. The bus takes a slight detour via Westport, before turning south along the coast, following the route of State Highway 6.

You can save some time by driving yourself, but on the bus you can relax and have a nap, or you can look around. You’ll see some impressive landscapes while the bus makes its way down the coast. At Pancake Rocks café the bus stops for lunch. Just long enough to do the Pancake Rocks walkway. This will take you via some rock formations which look a bit like a stack of—well, duuh—pancakes.

Pancake rocks

Over time the ocean has eroded the rocks, carving out its way under some rocks.

Natural rock bridge

The place is known for its blow holes too, but unfortunately there wasn’t much surf that day.

The bus makes another long stop in Hokitika, where we have an ice cream in the local movie theatre. By evening the bus arrives in Franz Josef. It has been sunny all day, and you can hear the choppers ferrying tourists from and to the glacier.

However, the next day, big clouds appear, not on the horizon but kind of everywhere…

The cloud. I don’t know what all those internet geeks like about that.

The weather wasn’t too bad, but the poor visibility means the choppers can’t fly to the glacier, and our trip got cancelled. By the late afternoon the weather cleared up, but all the helicopters remained grounded for the day.

Welcome to the west coast. If you ever wonder why New Zealand is called the land of the long white cloud, here you’ll find your answer.

This is definitely a place where, if the weather clears up, you should move fast and make the most of the moment. And there was worse weather coming the next day, so we decided to go to the lake tonight. And here the plan to travel by bus shows its weakness—changing plans is difficult. We have to wait until the bus picks us up in the late afternoon. But that’s still in time for an evening walk.

Lake Matheson

You may have heard lake Matheson is a mirror lake. On a calm morning, before the wind disturbs the water, you will see mount Cook reflected in the water.

Reflection in the lake

Although the walk is only one hour, it’s a good idea to allow another hour for taking pictures, or for the old school people among us, enjoying the view.

Coming back

By midnight the rain has arrived, and it continues during the next day. Definitely no weather for a morning walk. Or a glacier walk.

The next day it’s time to take the bus to Greymouth, where we will board the train to Christchurch. The sun is out again, and we board the bus under the sound of all the choppers once again buzzing over our heads. But for us, the glacier walk will be for a next time. You can’t always get what you want.

Underway

By noon we board the train in Greymouth. We will get off in Arthur’s pass, and spend a day there before continuing to Christchurch.