We successfully made it up and over Arthur’s Pass and out to the wild west cost of New Zealand’s South Island. Our first stop was the small seaside town of Hokitika, which was the heart of the west coast gold rush in the 1800s.

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And yes, even in kiwi paradise we all still have our challenging moments…luckily with a glance or two at our surroundings we can usually 🙄 turn it around pretty quickly.

From the beach in Hokitika were able to catch the sunset in the west & the moonrise in the east at the same time. ☀️ 🌙

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A short drive north from Hokitika we visited a place called Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki. The drive was amazing (and nail-biting in parts) as it hugged the rugged coastline until we arrived at the park.

The heavily eroded limestone was “pancaked” over time through immense pressure on alternating hard and soft layers of marine plant and animal sediment. If you happen to be in the area be sure to catch it during high tide (which unfortunately we didn’t 😠), because there are also a number of impressive ocean-fed blowholes to check out.

Our second stop in the wild west was Franz Josef, home of the 7.5 mile long Franz Josef Glacier. Together with its neighboring Fox Glacier, they represent one of only two places in the world where you can view glaciers descending into temperate rainforests.

The picture below is from the backyard of our farmstay in Franz Josef.

When we first entered the Franz Josef Glacier valley there were two things which overwhelmed us…first was the sheer vastness of the valley itself, and second was the seemingly endless curtains of falling water. 💧

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It’s a bit of a longer hike into the valley than it used to be since the glacier has continued retreating over the past decade, losing over 1/2 mile off the glacier face since 2008.

That said, once we arrived at the base of the glacier we couldn’t help but be amazed by the power of the crumbling rock and misty blue ice. 🧊

The volume of water rushing through the glacial valley is impressive in scale and also beautiful at it exposes the countless green, blue & gray jade stones.

We were also fortunate enough to get a visit from one of New Zealand’s endangered Kea, the world’s only alpine parrot. 🦜

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The allure and expanse of the west coast does come with a price…lots, and lots, and lots of rain. ☔️ Luckily, we were gifted with more sunny (ok, partially sunny) days than not, which I took advantage of early one morning to check out the reflective views of Lake Matheson.

With Mount Tasman on the left and Aoraki Mount Cook (New Zealand’s highest peak) on the right, Lake Matheson “typically” provides unsurpassed views of the Southern Alps. I say typically because in this area a somewhat sunny morning can turn into a very cloudy morning in a matter of minutes.

We all felt like our time on the west coast escaped way too fast…but we also very much appreciated everything we had the opportunity to experience. The relentlessly pounding Tasman Sea, the towering Southern Alps, the roaring waterfalls and of course, the Kiwi! 🥝 🐦

As we made our way towards Wanaka we had time for a few stops along the way, first to Jackson Bay, the literal “end of the road” terminus on the edge of Fiordland National Park…

…and then on to the Blue Pools of Haast Pass. They weren’t all that “blue” during our visit due to the rushing water and in-process downpour, but impressive just the same.

As for Haast Pass, if I was only allowed to drive on one scenic road for the rest of my life…this would absolutely be it. (insert mind-blown icon)

We’ll see you in Wanaka!