Previous day's heli-hike had been cancelled due to weather and today's was iffy right up until the last minute, but we caught an opening and off we went!

As the helicopter lifts away from the town (to the left), you can see the river and bridge that was washed away just recently (March 26) by torrential rains.

First sight of Franz Josef glacier.

Landing on the glacier and disembarking... The most nerve wracking part is not so much the blades spinning above your head ... it's the icy steps you need to negotiate!

First on-the-glacier look about and a hint of blue sky? (Yes, those little dots on the glacier are other hikers.)

Once we've unloaded and fitted our crampons, we're off to explore the glacier ...

Following a trail formed in shallow crevaces on the glacier and steps carved by the guides ...

Every so often, there was an ice cave to scramble through ...

This was the typical path about the glacier ... Unfortunately, you end up stopping ... a lot ... to wait ... for the group ahead ...

During these frequent stops, our guide dutifully chiseled away at the steps with his ice ax. At first, I thought it was the reason we stopped so frequently -- so he could create a safe path for us, but it soon became apparent that he was just finding something to do during these stops...

These frequent pauses led to many photo opps for fellow hikers ... Not sure what the theme/thought was for the hiker in the far right photo ...

Every so often you would hear the rumble as ice would give way and tumble down this steep area of the glacier...

Icebergs ... sorta. The hikers in the lower right give you a sense of the scale.

Last bit of sunlight catching the top of the glacier as the clouds start closing in ...

Uh oh ... skies were closing in. Concern about spending the night on the glacier went from theoretical to a real possibility ... I was on one of the last helicopters out before they had to stop and wait the clouds to clear!

As I headed back to Christchurch for my flight out of New Zealand, thought I should give you a heads-up about driving in NZ. Aside from driving on the left, the other "biggy" is the sheer number of single lane bridges throughout the country! They take a bit of getting used to ...

At each bridge, one side is the "give way" side and that establishes who has right of way... Remarkably efficient, but a bit nerve wrecking if you're not paying attention! (Was mine the "give way" or the "right of way" side ... what did that sign I just passed say?!") FYI - in this image, we're on the "give way side" (small arrow) ...