Glacier trekking

Our big adventure on the glacier. It started out with a shuttle picking us up from our campsite and taking us to their headquarters where they outfitted Heather and I with all the appropriate ice climbing gear. We had large ice boots and woolen socks. Wool mittens and optional snow jackets and pants. Along with crampons or ice spikes for our boots.

Everyone on our trek then boarded a large bus that drove us to the carpark (parking lot in American) at the base of the glacier. Actually we were still quite a ways away from the glacier and had to hike for about an hour with all our gear including lunch, water, extra layers of clothing, ice spikes for our boots etc. And this was no ordinary walk. We had to scramble over boulders, cross streams and climb up and down 4 aluminum ladders. One of the ladders was directly under a small waterfall. Needless to say by the time we got to the actual ice to begin our trek we were slightly wet and a little tired.

The base of the glacier was amazing. It is huge and slowly pushing forward. SO as we sat down to put our spikes on our boots you could see chunks of ice, rock and dirt ocasionally falling off the glacier. The glacier moves almost 6" per day.

After we were all geared up they split us into 2 groups. Our group had 7 people plus our guide. We started up the glacier on steps cut into the face with ropes anchored into the ice via ice screws. They have to recut the steps every morning due the melt, movement etc. We worked our way up for about 1 hour or so following an existing rout thru what is called the "terminal face" of the glacier. It is where the glacier cracks and breaks apart due to it running into the dirt at the base.

When we were about 3/4 way through the terminal face our guide dug into a large barell left on the glacier and pulled out extra ice screws rope etc. and we began veering off the main path and cut a new one. At this point what was a clear beautiful day turned into light rain. Too warm to snow but still very cold. So as we slowly worked our way up we got colder and colder.

We cut our way into some awesome deep revenes that were an incredible blue color. We had to jump over crevases that seemed to hundereds of feet deep. You couldnt even see the bottom. We had to be on the lookout for falling ice chunks and be cautious where you steped.

All of a sudden we emerged from the craked terminal face portion of the glacier and were on top of the main glacier itself. Just a giant ice flow coming from above. Flat and pitched uphill. Not as cut up as the face area but still ridden with deep crevases that you would never be able to get out of if you fell into.

We were also joined by a Kea bird. Its a alpine parrot. It has the colors of a parot, but the body of an eagle with huge tallons and beak. If flew right up to us and we were able to get some great pics of this amazing animal. It also continuted to rain as we continued up the glacier. We eventually stopped and had lunch in the rain. When you stop moving on a giant sheet of ice in the rain it gets very cold quickly. Our hands were wet from grabbing the ice and ropes and it didnt take long for us to eat and get moving again.

I guess I should mention that all the guides are wearing the same sort of ice boots as us with the spikes, the woolen socks and short pants! Thats right.. as we freeze our asses off with multiple layers of clothing they are wearing shorts. I guess they are tougher then us.

After lunch we turned around and headed back. We retraced our steps all the way back to the base of the ice and hiked back to the carpark. We got back to our campsite at 6:00. We left at 10:30. It was a full day and we were both very sore the next day. It was like being on the stairmaster for 6 hours plus doing upper body workout the entire time as well. 2 days later and we are still recovering. And the guides do it every day. Amazing.