Ice, Ice Baby

I could not pass up such a perfect title for this post, since it only seems appropriate after you spend a day climbing on an 11 km long piece of ice, also known as the Franz Josef Glacier. Driving into town, I would have never thought there would be a glacier there. the land is tropical, lush, and considered a rainforest. I got off the bus expecting mist and cold, and was greeted with an awkward humid rain. The scenery however is breathtakingly beautiful. The Franz Josef glacier is one of three glaciers located in a rainforest setting. The other two are nearby Fox glacier, and one in Patagonia.

I took a full day guided trip, since to get remotely close to the ice and just even the terminal face of the glacier, you have to be with an experienced guide. We got suited up with overtrousers, raincoats, boots, thick socks, and the most important cramp-ons and took the short ride to the river bed to get up to the glacier. After a short trek through the rainforest canopy, we arrived in the river bed, faced with a giant hunk of ice.



The guides asked us how far we believed we were from the glacier. Guesses ranged, but no one guessed how far-2.2 km, basically a mile away. The ice is so deceiving in not only it's size, but it's distance. It looked as it was a least half as close as it was. The walk along the river bed was just the first test in the day-see how to not roll your ankle on the rolling pebbles below your feet.




The second test was making your way up a what looks like a giant mountain of rocks, but what really is a piece of what they call "dead ice". Dead ice is ice that has become detached from the glacier, becoming it's own entity. Our guide explained that this was almost detached, but had become the safest way up the mountain after a piece had fallen out into the river before, making the previous path unusable.







When we reached the end of the dead ice, we were instructed on how to use our cramp-ons.



These spikes are a life-saver, and without them, maneuvering on the ice would be next to impossible, as I unfortunately learned when one of mine broke just as we were making an ascent up. A quick fix with a replacement piece from the guide and I was on my way again, but it was potentially the most unnerving event of the day. Climbing on the glacier is such an experience. In a group of about 10, we made our way around the towering pieces of ice. Our guide picked away to make steps along the way, as we patiently waited just taking in the view.




The steps











The ice in winter months gets this awesome blue color, which really stood out under the misty grey sky.





Constantly throughout the day, I was preciously reminded that in the end, the ice controls life while you're on it. Even though chilly in the days persistent drizzle, it was challenging and rewarding, down to every last drop.