- Kay
Day 153 Ice Climbing and Glacier Cave
Thursday 12 March
Mt Cook - Tasman Glacier
Epic day. I had a brilliant guide, Dave, who was like a gazelle on the ice, and Mick assisting and acting as my personal photographer. I found the crampons pretty easy to use once I learnt to trust them. Only one small tumble onto the ice when I forgot lesson number one - walk like a cowboy. That is, with a wide stance, otherwise the crampons catch your other leg and trip you up. I can attest to that being the truth.



I was incredibly fortunate that there was the opportunity to explore an ice cave. It formed in about January and they expect it to only last a few more weeks. It constantly changes as the ice melts and freezes, and the water runs through it.
The ice climbing was adrenaline pumping. A high vertical wall of glacial ice that I had to first get down. A technique a bit like repelling, with getting over the edge and trusting I wasn't going to plummet to the bottom being the most challenging part. Then the climb back up.
As you can imagine, I loved it all, and the photos can tell the story.













