A big grin on Franz Joseph

We awoke to a crystal clear blue sky and not a breath of wind. By 8am we were waiting for Steve to lift off from Franz Joseph and whisk us to the névé of the glacier in a shining blue and red helicopter. Steve, our grizzled pilot with 34 years experience behind him and just about to be put out to pasture, took us past Mount Cook and Mount Tasman before landing on the snow. Photos were taken and grins were exchanged. It had been worth the wait and we had almost perfect weather for the first part of our trip. Later the mist ascended from the valley and we had to fly beneath it to check out the upper reaches of the valley that had been formed by the retreating glacier. We were back in Franz Joseph in time for coffee and to start the long drive to Hanmer Springs. We didn't arrive there till mid afternoon but it took another hour in the out door hot springs for Sheila's grin to soften. Happy days, what could we find to do tomorrow to match today?