·         TYPE OF ACTIVITY- Ice Climbing              

·         TRIP NAME/LOCATION- Franz Jozef Glacier                                               

·         DURATION- 3 days                                 

·         GRADES OF ACTIVITY- multiple grades              

·         NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS-  14  

·         ACCOMMODATION- Top 10 Holiday Park                    

·         VARIATION IN DAILY CONDITIONS- Clear

·         WEATHER CONDITIONS- Great            

·         INCIDENTS/ INJURIES - n/a                

Would have to be up there with my best experiences on course so far, I had an absolute ball. We left early on Wednesday morning bound for Franz Jozef Glacier, to spend the next two and half day exploring and climbing on the Glacier.

With the boots strapped with the foreign new feeling of crampons and our ice axe in our gloved hand we took our first tentative steps on the gargantuan ice mass. The tentative steps soon turned in to stomping and jumping when we the feeling of falling through the glacier vanished. Thus the exploring began, up the glacier we travelled following some of the steps cut for the tourists on a Glacier tour, through and over crevasses we travelled. The bright blue skies in stark contrast to the blaring white of the Glacier. The sun drew low and the temperature dropped it was time to head off.

Day two was a frigid morning but still clear skies to our delight. Day two was all about climbing, I learnt to use ice screws and v loops as an anchor which is super convenient unlike rock climbing as you can build your climb wherever you like if the ice is solid. Then came the crack crack thud thud of the hammers splitting into the ice and the boots getting kicked into the walls shower the belayer in ice, and then repeat, hot tip; look up as minimal as possible when belaying or receive countless shards of ice to the face.  Gloves or no gloves when belaying as the rope was so cold from laying on the ice, whilst wearing gloves you lost the dexterity needed for tying knots and to function as effectively, no gloves your hands were near on frozen by the time they arrived safely back to the ground. Phil and I completed numerous climbs, and built numerous more, with lunch on the ice, on we climbed until the sun drew low, and the long walk back to the vans until tomorrow when it started all over again.

Day three was a half day and was a continuation of day two, with climbing as much as possible. The ice was in the shade and thus much harder and it wasn’t uncommon for an ice hammer to bounce of the face. Phil and I did some more technical climbs that had a slight overhang.  Our time was coming to a close and it was time to dismantle our climbs and start making tracks, an awesome three days spent in a very special place in New Zealand.

bridging in a narrow crevase

more photos in random pics