Named after a NZ prime minister who was the first tourist to view the glacier – or so they say.  The snowfield at the head (called a neve) covers 32 km² and the glacier extends about 13km to its end (terminus) less than 300m above sea level.  It comes closer to sea level than any other temperate region glacier.    You can see rock on the sides, not as much as was on Tasman glacier.

Both Fox and Franz Joseph are billed as ending in rain forest, but bit difficult to see that because covered in terminal moraines, presumably when in full flow they did end in the rain forest. Misleading as penetrate the rain forest as you can see in this shot where the forest is above the rocky scree slopes.  A lot of people expecting to see glacier next to a tree.

Paul beneath a really big boulder and happy to have made it this far.

More happy people shots…

You can just see the ice ‘blue’.  Annual precipitation 16m, or more, on the upper slopes, decreasing to 5 m in the valley.  The flow rates are really fast, in the upper and lower ice fall approximately 4-5m a day and 50-60cm a day.

View back down the valley.  Scratches along the cliff face made by glacier.  200 years ago the glacier was this high!

Another well folded rock

Wading a stream.