South Island
Franz Josef Glacier
Hike
Roberts Point Track
Time
5 hr 20 min
Distance
12.3 km
Difficulty
Advanced
Overview
Franz Josef Glacier, also known in the Māori language as Kā Roimata-a-Hine Hukatere which means "the frozen tears of Hine Hukatere" is located in the Southern Alps. It also moves faster than the average glacier at over 50cm per day.
Franz Josef Glacier is around 7,000 years old and 12 km long
Named after Franz Joseph I, the Austrian emperor back in 1865
The fastest moving glacier in New Zealand at up to 4 metres per day
The ecosystem is extremely unique due to the combination of the ice meeting the Waiho River and the rainforest
