FANTASTIC FRANZ Josef
MARY LAMBIE AND HER THREE TEENAGE CHILDREN PACK THEIR TRAMPING BOOTS AND HEAD TO THE GLACIER
I’m very glad we visited the tiny township of Franz Josef when we did because word is, the local council is considering moving it.
Franz Josef, we learned, is built in a precarious location. There are fears the nearby Waiho River will burst its banks and if it does, it will wash away the tiny town.
There’s also the issue of Franz Josef sitting directly on top of the Alpine Fault Line, which would also decimate the village should a sizeable earthquake eventuate. The locals say if the town is ever relocated, it will be 10km down the road and cost $300 million to move.
If that isn’t enough, spare a thought for the actual Franz Josef Glacier, which around 700,000 tourists a year come to see. Thanks to global warming, it is one of the fastest melting glaciers in the world, having retreated three kilometres in the past century. At this rate, it will be gone by 2400.
Franz Josef town is an hour and a half drive south from Hokitika. On our way down
(from Christchurch, via Arthur’s Pass), we stopped at “Walk the Treetops” about 15 minutes out of Hokitika to break the journey. It is a very cool 1.2km loop track 20 metres above the forest floor and a brilliant way to experience a walk in the West Coast bush.
When we got there, we discovered Franz Josef is small but busy. There are only 500 permanent residents and only
two main streets… both are packed with accommodation, restaurants and tourist operators offering everything from guided glacier walks to helicopter flights and jade carving.
We cosied up in the peaceful Rainforest Retreat, the largest accommodation provider in the town. You can choose your room options – Flashpacker, Family Holiday Park and deluxe rooms – all beautifully nestled into the West Coast native bush.
It’s quiet and clean with a fantastic restaurant and pub called Monsoon, whose slogan is “it rains... we pour”. And it sure does rain. Franz sees 5100mm of rain a year, roughly five times the rest of the country.
The Franz Josef Glacier is the obvious drawcard and there are a number of ways to see the diminishing wonder. By helicopter is very popular at around $300 per person and is the only safe way to get onto the glacier for guided walks.
The other is walking and there are a few free walks that head to the base of the glacier.
We elected to walk the Roberts Point Track. It isn’t really a track, more a slippery, steep, rock scramble. It took us two and a half hours to reach the viewing platform and it was an absolute “wow” moment. There are six long swing bridges over deep gorges. Unlike my children, I did not look down.
Our sore muscles the next day meant a far less strenuous wander around picturesque Lake Matheson, about 25 minutes from Franz. It’s a dead simple, 2.5km looped walk through lush bush with plenty of spots for photos of the “reflective” lake, so named for its calm, mirror-like quality.
On the wet days, we visited the Wildlife Centre in Franz, an interactive attraction and home to two of our rarest Rowi kiwi and a host of tuatara. We soaked in hot pools, went hunting for glow worms and chilled in our rooms.
Make sure you visit Franz before it moves!