Greymouth – Queenstown

It was a dreary morning when we departed Greymouth. It had rained much of the evening and the rain followed us as we drove towards Glacier country. Our destination for the day was Fox Glacier; selected for its convenient location between Greymouth and Queenstown. On the way, we planned to stop at Hokitika, a town known for its local shopping. ;) We found a few items including what ended up being our anniversary gift to each other, a glass blown vase! (We shipped it home so heads up mom! :)
The rainfall did not spoil the views along the way. After Hokitika, the road took us through Franz-Josef Glacier first. The small town looked very much like a ski resort town with the main street lined with outdoor shops and cafes. We detoured off the highway to check out the glacier via a hike on a well maintained tramping trail. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate. We walked away from the hike drenched and without decent pictures. It was a short drive to Fox Glacier which was slightly less developed than Franz-Josef. We hooked ourselves up with a room and a warm meal and then settled in for a lazy afternoon including wine, loungewear, a good book, and a comfortable couch.
The rain was relentless. When we emerged from our room the next morning, it was still going…We stopped in a café for a decent breakfast and then left the poor weather behind as we crossed the mountains on our way to Queenstown. The drive reminded us of Scotland. We immediately found suitable accommodation, raided the local supermarket, and considered our plans for the upcoming days. This would serve as our base until we departed for Australia.