The Westland National Park is also characterized by great precipitation. This condition combined with the sharp angle of the western slopes of the Southern Alps produces some of the world's fastest moving glaciers. If you stand at the foot for half an hour or so, you're bound to see a piece peel off. Both glaciers have receded over three kilometers since Cook saw them at their greatest recent extent soon after the Little Ice Age of 1750. In 1985 the process reversed; but after fifteen years of bucking the world trend by advancing, the glaciers have been back tracking once again.

The two glaciers, Franz Josef and Fox, were initially named “Victoria” and “Albert” respectively. In 1865, geologist Julius von Haast renamed Franz Josef after the Austro-Hungarian emperor. Following a visit by prime minister William Fox in 1872, the other glacier was named Fox.