After tugging back the mustard curtains in the back of the van, we wiped a patch of condensation from the windows to see what beauty would greet us bright and early this morning. The clear blue skies of yesterday were today hidden behind a low laying blanket of cloud which gently hovered at what felt like touching distance above us, and tucked in along the small hills surrounding the town.

That would be a definite no to the helicopter to the glacier then.

After a quick bowl of cereal followed by a nice warm shower inside the guest house, we zipped up the road to Franz Josef township and bee lined to a little coffee shop to plan our day over a cuppa. The cafe was showing the Ice Age movie on loop, which we're sure the staff didn't appreciate as much as us…

First stop was Fox Glacier's big brother… that's Franz Josef Glacier. We trekked along the bottom of an ice carved rocky valley on the fringes of the town to check it out, but there was no chance of actually stepping on the cold stuff here either thanks to the shifting ice and very strict safety regulations. But no point dwelling on that. We enjoyed a sight from the do not pass ropes at the foot of the glacier terminal which was well worth the two hours it took to hike there, and we left without a shed of disappointment.

We then squeezed in another sweaty trek up a steep tree-clad hill which was marooned at the bottom of the valley. At the top we caught a glimpse back across the top of the stream of ice as well.

… And all that before lunch. Phew!

This afternoon we gave our hard worked walking feet a rest and continued north in the van, following a very windy road to a town called Hokitika. The journey, as usual, was just as special as the destination and we stopped countless times to take in the views across gorgeous lakes and lush green hills.

We arrived in teeny Hokitika in time to view some glass blowing which is popular in the area, among other artsy stuff. We also visited lots of NZ jade jewellers, including small independents and the larger Traditional Jade Co to watch artists carving classic Maori designs into the greenstone.

Long before the gold rushes, Maori headed here in search of pounamu, which is the name for NZ jade. It's apparently prized for its strength, durability and beauty and was used for weapons, tools and jewellery to mark great status.

Just before the sun went down, we followed some locals to a 'not the be missed' chippy in the main town and drove back around the corner to Sunset Point, so we could enjoy our supper with a view over a wonderfully wild black sand and pebble beach.

What we hadn't bargained for though, was that once the sun went down, it would be dark… There wasn't anywhere obvious for us to pull up for the night, so we drove back out of town along a dark narrow lane (never fun in a campervan, never mind at night time) to a wooded DOC campsite.

The clearing we're now parked in is eerily quiet and with no light pollution in the area we're also enjoying another of NZ's gorgeous star-filled night skies while what appears to be a relative of the kiwi bird pecks at our worn out feet.

Just another day in the campervan!