A 7.5-mile long Franz Josef Glacier is one of the two temperate maritime glaciers in Westland Tai Poutini National Park on the New Zealand’s South Island. It is descending from the Southern Alps to about 980 feet above sea level. The whole glacier area is part of Te Wahipounamu, which has been declared a World Heritage Site park. The Waiho River runs from the glacier terminal. The formidable power of moving ice is constantly reshaping the valley, reforming the moraine and creating the massive wall of ice at its terminus.
In 1865, Sentinel Rock emerged from beneath the Franz Joseph glacier, a very hard schist bedrock that was scraped by the power of passing ice. The Rock offers great view of the glacier valley, the glacier itself and the Waiho River. A number of plants grow from the rubble dumped by the glacier, ranging from low shrubs of tutu and tree daisy to kamahi and rata forest. Mosses and lichens cover the rocks. The glacier can be visited by car. There is a short walking path from the parking lot.
Franz Josef Glacier, Westland Tai Poutini National Park, New Zealand