GEM OF SOUTH WESTLAND

Otago Witness, Issue 4063, 26 January 1932, Page 10

GEM OF SOUTH WESTLAND

THE GLORIOUS FOX GLACIER.

By

Ken J. Royal.

(Photographs in This Issue.) Listen to the torrent roaring in the deep ravine below, See the cataracts descending from their home among the snow. See the pine and larch and rata climbing up the mountain walls. Harken to the tumbling torrent answering the distant falls. —Bracken. New Zealand, as the Wonderland of the World, has a great many attractions, notable among them being the great snow and iee fields of the South Island. Westland is richly endowed in this respect with the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers. The Franz Josef is fairly well known to visitors and tourists, but not so the Fox.

The Fox Glacier, which derives its name from Sir William Fox, a former Premier of New Zealand, may aptly be termed the Gem of South Westland or the more beautiful twin sister of the Franz Josef, and is the largest glacier in Westland. The neve lies between Mount Tasman (11,475 ft Mount Ilaidinger (10,187 ft and the Bismark Peaks, while the Douglas Peak (10,100 ft stands boldly out at the glacier’s head. The snow fields of these mountains which feed the glacier are the most extensive in New Zealand. Like the Franz Josef, the terminal face of the Fox is very low, being only about 600 ft above sea level, even lower than the Franz Josef, and this is considered unique for glaciers in

the temperate zone. From its head the Fox falls 9000 ft in nine and three-quarter miles. At the foot of the glacier the notable Cone Rock stands guard, the sides of which are clawed and scarred by the glacial action through aeons past. A great portion of the surface of the Fox is very even, while its ice falls, the first, second, and main, are very beautiful, and never fail to excite the enthusiasm even of those who are skilled in mountaineering and ice craft. In the veined structure of its ice the Fox gives a very fine example. Some people think if you see one glacier you see them all. This is not so. The Fox and its surroundings are distinct. Nowhere in New Zealand can be seen such a perfection. of the beautiful crowded into one valley, making a grand and magnificent spectacle. The ice colourings alone are beyond comparison. The Fox Glacier is easily approached through a pretty bush road and track leading right on to the ice. Close to the glacier on the southwestern side are some hot springs, the medicinal qualities of which will later, no doubt, be made more widely known. The hill palisades of the glacier are covered with a tropic-like growth of forest, making a wonderful contrast to the beautiful alpine structure.

The road between Waiho and the Fox is without doubt the most entrancing part of the Great South road, and tourists of world-wide repute have acclaimed this to be so. All the splendours of the Buller and Otira Gorges are here, and more. The motor road running round th e mountain sides over the Oinaroa and Wai-kukupa Saddles, all clothed in giant forest, presents a picture of mountain, river and ravine, backed by the snow-covered Southern Alps, and is unsurpassed for beauty and grandeur. In fact, every turn of this picturesque road reveals something new to charm the senses.

Before descending to the Fox hostel, a splendid view of Cook’s Flat is obtained, with its herds of cattle roaming over th e landscape and the great Cook River in the distance. From Cook’s Flat, looking towards the glacier, there is a very fine view of Mounts Douglas, Haidinger, Tasman, La Perouse, Cook, and other peaks. At Weheka and close to-the glacier in pretty surroundings a very modern hostel has been erected by the private enterprise of Sullivan Bros. All the timber for this fine building, consisting of heart of totara and red pine, was procured and milled on the spot. The hostel has all the latest modern conveniences and appointments, the bathrooms and gentlemen’s shaving room being particularly fine. All the water is electrically heated and the food cooked in great electric cookers. The cuisine and service are equal to the best obtainable in New Zealand. ’ The lighting, churning, and all other power is obtained from Sullivan Bros.’ own plant. The milk, butter, and meat stores are all water-cooled, and the general furnishings of the hostel are on a lavish scale. A large billiard room contains a full-size

table. There is a commodious garage, and the hostel staff has its own quarters in a separate building. Besides “ doing ” the Fox Glacier, various excursions can be made from the hostel—to Gillespie’s Beach, the old site of a famous gold diggings, where a fine .view of the main divide and its numerous peaks is to be had —to Cook’s River and to Lake Matheson, a lake set in sylvan softness of great charm. Here native pigeons, kakas, the crested grebe, and other feathered game abound, and the reflections of the Alps, the glacier, and native bush on the mirror-like surface of the lake are indeed very beautiful. Recently two-well-appointed huts have been erected for the accommodation of visitors, one at the foot of the glacier at the Cone Rock, and the other towards

the Glacier head on the Chancellor Ridge. This hut provides a much-felt want for those wishing to spend over night on the ice. The Fox Glacier is set amidst scenes of infinite charm. It has lake, river, bush, and mountain scenery. There are rushing rivers, murmuring brooks, and thunderous waterfalls, and all around the air is filled with the sweet scent oi balsam and pine, while the golden note of the bellbird chimes off the sunny hours, and one would be cold indeed did he not appreciate the glories and magnificence of the scene.