Wanaka to Fox Glacier (via Haast Pass)

We woke up to a very overcast sky, and after checking the forecast, we realized we were heading straight into rain! After Bart worked his Tetris magic on the Suzuki with our luggage, we set off toward Haast Pass, stopping at Lake Hawea first for breakfast. The sky ahead was absolutely incredible, and we could see that we were driving right into a whiteout.

The rain hit just as we reached the end of Lake Wanaka, so there was no point stopping at the Haast Pass lookout—visibility was zero! Bart did stop for me at both Fantail Falls and Thunder Creek Falls, though, and I ran down the walkway to snap a quick photo before dashing back to the car. At Thunder Creek Falls, two busloads of tourists were just getting back on their buses as we arrived, but I managed to be so fast that we slipped out in front of them! Score!

I'm sure Haast Pass would be breathtaking if the mountains were visible, but I had to settle for Bart describing how stunning it looked and how lucky they were to have perfect weather when they passed through last week 🙄😂

Before leaving, we had checked that the road was open, so I was surprised when we saw signs halfway through saying the road between Haast and Fox Glacier would be closed from 12:30 to 4:00 PM (due to a landslide). Apparently, they’ve been closing the road on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Luckily, we had left Wanaka early and arrived in Fox by 12:30 PM.

With the rain coming down hard, there wasn’t much we could do except get some work done this afternoon. I’d hoped for a walk if the weather cleared, but that wasn’t happening!

The forecast says it will be clear tomorrow, so here's hoping. We’ll find out if our heli-hike is on at 8:20 AM tomorrow 🤞Read more