Glaciers

The most popular and oft photographed by anyone visiting the South Island are, of course, Franz Josef and Fox glaciers. Aside from the three stark climbs on the road between them, there isn't much altitude gained from the coast to get to these long and beautiful rivers of ice. Sitting at a mere 300m above sea level, I would guess that they are probably the world's lowest glaciers.

The Franz Josef:

The Fox:

Further inland within Mount Aspiring National Park there are another 100 glaciers, most of which are too inaccessible for the ordinary person to ever to see. There is one, however, that is gorgeous and imposing and just far enough off the beaten tourist path to make it worth the trip: The Rob Roy glacier. 

The trailhead is located about 50km from Wanaka over a rough gravel road. We spared ourselves the pain and took the easy way in by van. After a 2 hour walk we were face-to-face with the glacier and witnessed a dramatic avalanche from high above.

Water: A flowing river, a massive layer of blue ice, and thick clouds in the sky. 

It's incredible to see how over millions of years and still to this day, everything on earth is formed and affected by the power of water.