Because we were out partying last night, and because of the expense of her activity today, I made sure Kate got to her glacier tour today. She lifted off shortly after 8:30AM and had 3-4 hours on the glacier. (Note: the Kiwis pronounce glacier with a soft "a".)
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I got to rest for an hour or two before my kayak adventure. Everyone on the bus opted for the glacier tour today, except Yohan and I ... we went for the kayak exploration of Mapourika Lake which included an hour hike. We had a good view of the mountains on the near side of the glacier, but we mostly focused on the lake and the flora/fauna in and around it. For those who don't get out and kayak/hike much, it must have been cool ... but it was a bit tame.
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They went to show us a young heron in a nest, but it had flown the coop. They went to show us eels, but none were found. I explained to them about the black fungus growing on some of the trees. Oh well, it was a nice 3.5km crossing and 1km hike, and they served us hot chocolate and told us some info. The best news is that the local species of kiwi were brought from the brink (150 birds) close to the maximum they figure the local environment can handle (800 birds). We didn't see any since they are nocturnal.
When we got back together, we walked into town and did some souvenir shopping. Then I went to the hot tub for a bit. Suddenly it was time for our included dinner: pork roast. We followed it up with a $10 ice cream sundae (desserts tend to be $10+ here).
The coolest part was that this was the start of our 80's party. We had stopped 2 days ago and hit the thrift shops for 80's clothing ... most of us participated, and (of course) Lantern participated in a big way: he arrived in an orange suit, and was presented with a leopard-skin bathing suit, which he eagerly switched to. There was lots of drinking, singing, and dancing. Kate and I even started the conga line.
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