Rob Roy Glacier | |
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Type | Hanging |
Location | Mount Aspiring National Park |
Coordinates | 44°28′0″S 168°43′0″E / 44.46667°S 168.71667°E |
Highest elevation | 2,644 metres (8,675 ft) |
Lowest elevation | 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) |
The Rob Roy Glacier is a small hanging glacier in the Southern Alps of New Zealand's South Island. It is located within the Mount Aspiring National Park, 9 kilometres (6 mi) south of Mount Aspiring / Tititea.
The glacier covers the steep slopes of the mountains surrounding the head of the Rob Roy Valley. The most prominent part of the glacier is on the northwestern side of the valley on the slopes below the 2,644 metres (8,675 ft) tall Rob Roy Peak.[1] This part of the glacier extends from just below Rob Roy Peak down to a bench high on the valley's side where it abruptly breaks over the cliff's edge at around 1,500 metres (4,900 ft).
The glacier covers most of the headwalls encircling the valley, except the eastern side where the bordering peaks are all just below 2,000 metres (6,600 ft). The spring melt causes frequent small avalanches, and seracs breaking off the glacier's terminal face on the northwestern side of the valley. Bigger blocks of ice can tumble and crash all the way to the valley floor.[2]