Hiking then Biking

We awoke early to begin a morning hike to the stunning Hooker Glacier. Although many people had warned about the cold and wet weather of the South Island, we were relieved that so far we had seen nothing but blue skies and sunshine.

As we walked to the glacier, the horizon was dominated by the towering, snow capped peak of Mt Cook. Although not huge by world standards, it can be a treacherous peak to climb, with over 80 climbers having lost their lives attempting to reach the summit.

We stopped at a small lake, liberally filled with large floating lumps of ice. I grabbed a crystal clear block of ice to examine it at close range. It resembled a block of clear glass.

After returning to the car park, it was finally time to get on the bikes and start pedalling. Ahead of us was a 75 km ride to Twizel, which was to be our base for the night.

Fortunately the weather stayed clear and the kilometres quickly ticked by. It was a perfect start to our New Zealand riding.Read more