Weather - Overcast & Raining in Franz Josef Glacier
Well we awoke to the sound of thunder & heavy rain. Not surprising as it was predicted as well as this area having the highest average rainfall in NZ with rain on 280 - 340 days of the year! At least we managed to visit a glacier yesterday when it was fine. There was a plan for the walking enthusiasts to be taken to another glacier at 8am for a 90 minute walk. Not sure how many took up this offer, but not us.
Today was another leisurely start, breakfast at 8am and departure not until 10am. Hopefully the rain will clear so we can go for a walk before we leave. No luck there as the rain just kept getting heavier so we had to remain at the hotel until departure.
Once on the road the rain continued to pour down so no photo opportunities which was a shame, as the countryside is just amazing with waterfalls everywhere. At around 12 we stopped at Kirakora for a lunch break. This town is also well known for its Jade factory. Once again it rained the entire time, so by the time we found somewhere for lunch we were almost soaked. Such a pity our last day is so wet.
We are now driving at Arthur's Pass & then taking the early afternoon Transalpine train to Christchurch, whilst our driver continues on the coach with our luggage. It continues to rain, & I mean torrential rain. We had a walk of around 100metres from the coach to station & I had a waterproof jacket on but no hood, so drenched hair & legs are the order of the day! We keep getting told it will be fine & warm on the run over the Canterbury Plain into Christchurch, however I am yet to be convinced. No sign of anything resembling sunshine as yet.
We finally boarded the train just after 4pm (it was 20 minutes late). It has been updated since I was last on it about 8 yrs ago. All new carriages with nice seats & tables looking out large windows. A ice wing deck outside & a drinks/snacks carriage. Sure enough, just 10 minutes into our 2 1/2 hr journey it stopped raining and the sun came out. It was just amazing how the weather changed totally in a period of 10 minutes, however that is normal for the area. You could feel the temperature rising as well. The trip was very enjoyable with breathtaking scenery from both sides of the train. I snapped lots of photos and will include a sample.
Arrived in Christchurch at 6.30pm and we were met by our coach & driver, then taken to our hotel. Our luggage had been delivered to our hotel so it was a quick trip to our rooms & change for our farewell dinner at 7.45pm.
Dinner was nice but it was a little sad saying goodbye to all the nice people we had spent the last 17 days with. Some had only joined the group a week ago and some back in Auckland 14 days ago. As with most tours like this there are people you get to know & like really well, some you say hello to & others you don't really want to see again. The latter were a small minority fortunately, but I certainly have some funny stories to tell which can't be published here :) Most people had an early night as many have flights out early Monday morning.
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