Our hike followed the public trails over swing bridges and through the gravel beds to the Hooker & Mueller Glaciers that both terminate in lakes – complete with little icebergs floating around.
Heather was absolutely brilliant… she is a qualified glaciologist and talked easily for 5 hours about the glaciers, mountains, plants and animals of the region, without ever getting boring. She and her boyfriend have been involved in several rescues over the years so she also knew about the history of the range and the 50 people that are still unaccounted for. (A body or backpack turns up occasionally when the glaciers move or the snow melts in spring)
When we got back, a flock of Keas – NZ Alpine parrots were in the car park behind the Hermitage.
Oh yes, they look innocent now, but a few seconds earlier they were both ripping off the windscreen seal with gusto and twanging the radio aerial! 
