Hike to Franz Josef Glacier

Westland National Park, New Zealand

4.0/5

based on 4 reviews

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Added by Lauren Schusterman

Distance: 5.4 km roundtrip. Time: 1.5 hours roundtrip. Great way to see the glacier without paying hundreds of dollars to go on it. Easy, mostly flat walk. Several waterfalls.

From the carpark take a quick walk through a green, forested area before making your way into the valley. Here you will get your first view of the glacier. At this point the trail gets a bit rocky but is still very doable. The trail continues mostly flat for the next 35 minutes. You will pass many waterfalls and interesting rock formations on this part of the hike. Right before the glacier platform there is a small uphill. Once you reach the viewing platform there is an amazing view of Franz Josef Glacier. The area around the glacier is very dangerous because of ice and rock fall so make sure to not go past the viewing platform.

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Hike to Franz Josef Glacier Reviews

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Korey Taylor

Explorer

Hike to Franz Josef Glacier

12/09/15

This is a pretty easy hike to the beautiful Franz Josef Glacier. It's really a shame how much of the glacier has receded since 2008 (when it entered a rapid phase of retreat). Just more of a reason to continually make efforts to preserve our environment and areas like these. Make sure you take the chance to see while you can!

4.0

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

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Hike to Franz Josef Glacier

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Hike to Franz Josef Glacier Reviews

Leave No Trace

Nearby

Hike to Robert's Point (Franz Josef Glacier)

Explore Peter's Pool

Camp on Alex Knob

Watch the Sunset from the Waiho River Bridge

Heli Ice Climb on Fox Glacier

Hike to the Fox Glacier

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