High in the Southern Alps of New Zealand's South Island, two blinding white rivers of ice force their way down toward the thick rainforest of the costal plain. Within a handful of kilometers, the terrain drops from over 3000 meters to near sea level bringing with it Franz Josef glacier and Fox glacier, two of the largest and most impressive of the sixty-odd glaciers that creak off the South Island's icy backbone into the costal rain forest. Together Franz Josef glacier and Fox glacier form the centerpiece of the rugged Westland National Park.
The existence of the glaciers is a balancing act between competing forces: the snow fall high in the mountains battling with its rapid melting down in the valley. The victor determines whether the glaciers will advance or retreat. Snowfall meters thick gradually compacts to form clear blue ice which accumulates and starts to flow downhill under its own weight. Friction against the valley walls slows the sides while the ice in the center charges down the valley.
Maori legend tells of the beautiful Hinehukatere who so loved the mountains that she encouraged her lover, Tawe, to climb alongside her. He fell to his death. Hinehukatere cried so copiously that her tears formed the glaciers, known as Ka Riomata o Hinehukatere, the Tears of the Avalanche Girl.
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