New Zealand 2013
Our first stop was Christchurch where we were shocked by the visible destruction of the inner city even after two years of recovery.
Propping up the walls until renovation can begin.
More propping!
Rebuilding a local church
A beautiful but condemned building waiting for renovation.
A prayer.
We began our photo tour by traveling to Kaikoura on the east coast.
Blue-eyed cormorants
The next morning at dawn we went looking for dolphins and we found them in great numbers.
These are dusky dolphins.
They liked to swin alongside our boat.
They were jumping for joy, celebrating a new day and so were we as we watched and photographed.
Free-spirited play!
Surfacing for a peek at us.
More frolicking
A swarm of krill, the shrimp-like crustacean, that is a major food source for dolphins.
Observing the dolphins
Hiking in Kahurangi National Park
A beautiful trail in the Kahurangi rainforest.
A hidden arch deep in the Kahurangi National Park
In the far background you can see the Franz Josef Glacier, with the glacial flow in the foreground.
We took a hike in the rainforest next to Fox Glacier. This is the only place in the world where a rainforest is adjacent to a glacier.
On the trail near Fox Glacier.
A moss--covered giant tree.
As the light faded away, a view of a mountain peak in the Southern Alps.
Looking toward Fox Glacier from a nearby sheep station.
The fern is the national symbol of New Zealand and serves to transition to our next day in the Southern Alps.
Before dawn we began hiking to Lake Matheson when I saw this lonely tree in the fog.
We followed our guide to this location to photograph Lake Matheson and we were greeted with fog that rolled in and out.
Another view of Lake Matheson.
The fog began to lift and Lake Matheson reflected the Southern Alps beautifully on its calm waters.
We took a helicopter trip up to Mt. Cook and the Fox and Tasman Glaciers. On our way up we passed by this colorful mountainside.
An aerial view of the glacial flow through the valley revealing its striking turquoise stream and white rocks.
The spectacular Fox Glacier on a clear day.
A mountain cabin and the essential outhouse next to Fox Glacier.
The beginning of Fox Glacier.
The helicopter hovered down low over Fox Glacier for this close-up view.
Above the glacier, the massive ice fields make for intriguing formations.
What a place for a mountaineering cabin!
It is hard to get the scale of these massive snow fields until you see a reference -- like the group of climbers in this picture.
