Someone from Ruston?!?!!

I just got off the glacier in Franz Josef and it was incredible! The ice, at some parts, was pristine and blue while other parts were a little dirtier with rocks. We didn’t have too many technical parts and only got to go through two crevaces but it was something I will not forget. While we were introducing ourselves one guy said his friend had lived in Louisiana for several years. I asked him where and his response was, “this little town outside of Shreveport, you have probably never heard of it…..Ruston”. I thought it was one of the neater parts of the day. His Father, Alan Smith, was a professor at Tech and his sister Alana Smith graduated around 1996. The guy gave me his business card, which was a little skeptical, and we talked throughout the hike about anything non-ruston related. The hike took us well up into the glacier, but due to overcrowding, there were a lot of bottle necks along the way. I opted to go with a slower group so that I could get some more pictures and so that the younger kids who desperately wanted to be up front could do it. I learned soon that this was a mistake. I hiked for around six hours up a glacier and I’m not even worn out. We constantly stopped to wait for a rather annoying man and his three kids. The guide kept her spirits high and a smile on her face so it made the trip a lot better. While on our way out I watched an older man fall on his face, although not certain of his injuries I could see the staff tending to him. We continued out and waited on our bus for about 30 minutes in the blistering sun. All in all the day was amazing I got some great pictures and some insight into the fascinating world of glaciers! Tomorrow we head off to Queenstown where I plan on spending two nights avoiding the hole that sucks money into it. i.e. bungee, skydiving, zorbing. After that it’s on to Dunedin and then Tekapo where I will get a chance to do a day climb on Mt. Cook, hopefully. I really wish I could post some pictures on here but it takes a long time to upload and it is way easier to put them on facebook. If anyone, barring Lindsey, would like me to add some or email them I would be more than happy to do it! Have a great time wherever you are and don’t forget my birthday is a day early this year for everyone else! HAHA