Geomorphology of the New Zealand Southern Alps

Details

Currently Full

Date: 7 February – 12 February (with option to end in Queenstown on 9 February)
Departs from: Christchurch
Ends: Queenstown on 9 February or Christchurch on 12 February
Fieldtrip leaders: Associate Professor Peter Almond (Soil Science, paleo climate and Quaternary geomorphology), Dr Sam McColl (hillslope and alpine geomorphology), Professor Ian Fuller (fluvial and applied geomorphology) + unnamed PhD student
Cost ($NZD inc 15% GST):
3 days shared accommodation $1300 per person
3 days private accommodation $1600 per person
6 days shared accommodation $2250 per person
6 days private accommodation $2900 per person

Accommodation: 2 nights’ or 5 nights’ accommodation (7 Feb Hokitika, 8 Feb Franz Josef, 9 and 10 Feb Frankton, 11 Feb Aoraki Mt Cook)

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Description

This 3- or 6-day tour of the Southern Alps takes in a wide cross-section of world-class mountain geomorphology. The full trip is six days and starts and returns to Christchurch. For those short on time, there is a shorter three day option that ends in Queenstown (which has an international airport). The tectonically-active Southern Alps, perpendicular to a very humid prevailing westerly air flow, experiences some of the world’s fastest rates of uplift and erosion, and captures a remarkable record of Quaternary landscape changes in its diverse landform assemblages. Moreover, its active processes result in a challenging array of natural hazards, from earthquake-triggered landslides, to debris flow and alluvial fan hazards, to very dynamic and flood-prone river systems. In a circuit that crosses the alps twice, the tour takes in a range of geomorphic and climatic domains, with opportunities to visit key research sites and fantastic sight-seeing.

Start: 8.30 am Saturday 7th Feb from Te Pae Convention Centre, Christchurch;

Finish: Either: 7.30 pm Thursday 12th Feb in Christchurch; Or 7.30 pm on Monday 9th Feb in Queenstown (near to Queenstown International Airport).

Note: we discourage booking onward travel for the final day (Day 3 or Day 6) of the field trip, in case of later-than-expected arrival at our destination. We encourage you to arrange your own accommodation for the night you finish the fieldtrip (i.e. if you doing the half trip and ending your trip in Queenstown on Day 3, you will need to book accommodation in Queenstown for Monday 9th Feb; if you are doing the full 6-day trip, you will need to book accommodation in Christchurch on Thursday 12th Feb).

Duration: Either: 5 nights / 6 days for the full trip; Or 2 nights / 3 days for the half-trip.

Fitness and field expectations: Easy hiking on well formed tracks, of up to 3 hours. Some hill walking with steps. Some rough terrain (e.g. on natural terrain such as alluvial fans).

What to bring:

• Hiking shoes or light hiking boots
• Wet weather gear (i.e. for torrential rain!)
• Warm clothing
• Sun protection (sunhat, sunscreen)
• Walking pole if you usually use when hiking
• Personal medication
• Insect repellent
• Toiletries etc

Day 1: Christchurch to Hokitika. Crosses the Southern Alps via Arthur’s Pass, from the dry hinterland on the east coast to the hyper humid West Coast. The journey crosses the plate boundary (Alpine Fault). Landforms include a variety of alluvial fans, limestone tors, landslides, braided rivers, moraines, and marine terraces. We’ll visit sites that were the target of some of the earliest investigations of Southern Hemisphere glaciations, and consider the historical gold mining activities of the West Coast. 

Day 2: Hokitika to Fox Glacier. Travelling down the western side of the Southern Alps, along coastal plains, glacial foreland, and across braided rivers and moraine-covered ridges, to Fox township, with views of the Southern Alps. We’ll consider several seismic hazards as we pass sites with outstanding paleoseismic records and the site of the Alpine Fault Drilling Project. At Franz Josef we’ll see the famous Waiho Loop moraine, and discuss the multitude of earthquake, landslide, alluvial fan, and flood hazards affecting Franz Josef township. Alpine fixed wing or helicopter flights would be available that evening at participant’s own cost (and weather dependent).

Day 3: Fox Glacier to Queenstown. We’ll walk to Mills Creek Fan in the Fox Valley, to see an incredible example of slope-channel coupling with active slope instability, alluvial fan aggradation, and the sensitivity of tourism to our dynamic landscapes. Travelling farther south, we’ll consider Maori history, the sedimentary impacts of earthquakes, coastal progradation, a soil chronosequence, forest ecology, and marine terraces. We’ll cross back over the Southern Alps to Queenstown in the drier but spectacular Central Otago. Participants opting for the shorter (3-day) fieldtrip will end in Queenstown that evening. Participants will have the evening free to explore the bustling tourist town of Queenstown, where there are plenty of dining options to choose from. 

Day 4: Day trip from Queenstown. A day trip to Glenorchy, driving along the margin of Lake Whakatipu, which is New Zealand’s longest lake and second deepest, and occupying an overdeepened glacial trough. We’ll take in views over Lake Whakatipu of schist landslides and stunning mountain vistas. We’ll examine some of the late-Glacial to Holocene evolution of the Dart Valley and Whakatipu Basin, where we’ll see evidence of post-glacial lake level changes, impressive valley progradation, and curious rock avalanche deposits. We’ll get up close to active braided rivers, delta, and alluvial fans to discuss ongoing hazard management issues.  

Day 5: Queenstown to Aoraki Mt Cook Village. Weather-permitting, we’ll begin with a stunning view over Queenstown and the Shotover River before heading down the Kawarau Gorge, passing kilometre-scale schist landslides, ancient moraines, historical mining sites, and vineyards. We’ll pass through great examples of high-country grasslands as we cross a divide into the MackKenzie Basin. As we travel towards Aoraki Mount Cook, we’ll pass impressive active fault scarps, outwash surfaces, hydro power scheme infrastructure, and moraine sequences of Lake Pukaki. If weather permits, there are fantastic views of the Southern Alps including Aoraki Mount Cook. 

Day 6: Aoraki to Christchurch. The morning will begin with a 3-hour, easy walk up the Hooker Valley to see views of the Hooker Glacier pro-glacial lake and surrounding mountains. We will then visit the proglacial lake of New Zealand’s largest glacier, Tasman Glacier, and discuss the rapid development and growth of the proglacial lake in recent decades. In the afternoon we will pass outcrops of till and moraine ridges of the Pukaki Glacial system, and into the Tekapo glacier system. The trip will end by passing across the Canterbury glacial outwash plains and hinterland of the Southern Alps, returning to Christchurch late evening.

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