Franz Josef Glacier.

Today I turned 24. Happy Birthday to me... etc.

The alarm went off at stupid o'clock yet again but that was alright because the day had finally arrived. Unzipping the tent we were treated to a blast of cool refreshing air and a spectacular view of the glacier and surrounding mountains. It was breathtaking. As I sat staring at the beautiful scenery Niki nipped down to the car and returned with a chocolate muffin complete with candles. Every birthday should be like this.

After consuming said birthday muffin we promptly packed up the tent (complete with Saltire flag) and headed into the township of Franz Josef. We had booked onto the Ice Explorer trip with Franz Josef Glacier Guides as a birthday treat (thanks mum and dad!).

We received a safety briefing before heading to the helicopter. After a 5 minute helicopter journey up into the glacier we landed on the ice. Kitted up we went off exploring the glacier with our guide Shan for several hours although it felt like hardly any time at all. It was a beautiful day and the blue ice was spectacular.

Upon completing the hike we waited for the helicopter to come take us back down into the township. To fill the time we all took copious amounts of photos including us looking heroic with Shan's pick axe. Glorious.