On the Water Again

After the disappointment of not getting to go kayaking yesterday we are delighted with the breakfast update this morning saying the trip is on.  We have a hearty breakfast and prepare for another paddle.

This is the first kayaking trip we have done where it did not specify it was suitable for complete beginners and the first thing that Lubosh our guide does is make us demonstrate a number of different strokes to asses our ability.  Fortunately we pass but others we not so lucky and were told they couldn’t do the trip.

Then we all head off in the minibus down a gravel road to the Tasman lake at the front of the Tasman Glacier.  The Tasman glacier is the longest glacier in NZ and the lake has only recently been formed (in the last 40 years or so) due to the rapid retreat of the glacier.  This has left a massive frontal moraine which forms the dam, and also large pieces of ‘dead ice’ which have detached from the main glacier.

After getting kitted up and carrying the kayaks down to the water we head off onto the lake.  Charlie (the main guide) explains that there are normally lots of icebergs on the lake in spring but that they haven’t had any ice calve off for a few weeks and there are none at the moment.  

Tasman Glacier Lake - no icebergs

Front of Tasman Glacier

He also explains that there are some large cracks near the front face of the glacier and they are expecting some big ice falls soon.  These will shed a few thousand tons of ice into the lake and send a 4 or 5m wave down the whole lake, which is apparently fun to ride over.  Oh and Charlie also explains that as the lake is fed by glacial runoff the water temperature varies between 0.5 & 1.0 degC so it’s best not to fall in…

We paddle off for a little bit and come across a little baby iceberg which is the remnants of a previous big berg that has melted. 

Mrs M pushes an iceberg around...

We also go and look at some of the dead ice which has detached from the glacier and has a huge amount of moraine on top of it.  Here we see some Japanese tourists who have ignored the ‘Warning Danger of Death’ signs and are clambering over the moraine completely unaware of the danger they are in.  Alarmingly they choose to ignore our warnings and get very close to the edge which is constantly streaming big boulders into the water.  

Moraine on dead ice

Crazy tourists about 10m away from edge of photo above

Unfortunately as the main Tasman glacier face is too unstable we can’t go too close and the wind has also started picking up and blowing us across the lake.  We decide the only course of action left is to chip some ice off the mini-berg and go and crack open the Whisky…

It was a nice touch drinking whisky which was made where I grew up in Scotland with 1800 year old ice from a glacier in NZ.  Unfortunately as I need to drive again today I can only have a small one.

After a quick lunch we get on the road again as we have decided to make a big push for Christchurch today and try and stay for a few days in Akaroa on the Banks Peninsula.  This turns out to be a big drive and we don’t get to the motorcamp until 8pm.  Fortunately we have phoned ahead and booked our site as the camp is almost full, we have also ‘blown the budget’ and upgraded to a harbour view pitch for $4 (~£2) more a night…

Mr M