Te Kopikopiko o te Waka

Te Kopikopiko o te Waka is a roadside viewpoint and landscaped waka installation on Cook Flat Road, about 9 km from State Highway 6. Its platform looks across pasture to Fox Glacier and Kā Tiritiri o te Moana, the Southern Alps, giving you the glacier panorama without a long walk up the valley. If the view is your main reason to drive out, wait for a clear window; cloud can hide the ice and peaks. A clear sunset is especially rewarding. For a photo, put the carved waka in the foreground with the snowy skyline behind it.

Co-designed with Ngāti Māhaki, the sculpture incorporates a viewing platform. Te Kopikopiko o te Waka means “the capsized canoe.” In a Ngāti Māhaki creation story, Te Waka o Aoraki capsizes and becomes Te Waipounamu, the South Island; its four sons turn into mountains: Aoraki (Aoraki / Mount Cook), Rakiroa (Mount Dampier), Rakirua (Mount Teichelmann), and Rarakiroa (Mount Tasman). The sculpture and the peaks are part of the same story, so look from the waka out to the skyline.

Look toward the high snow basin, or neve, of Fox Glacier (Te Moeka o Tuawe) between the ranges. The glacier is about 13 km long, and its terminal face descends below 300 m above sea level. During the last ice age, it spread as an ice sheet beyond today’s coast and shaped glacial features in the area, including Lake Matheson. The lookout gives you the broad setting; it is not a walk to the glacier’s terminal face.

A nearby five-minute walk through forest is an easy extra if you have a little time. Keep an eye out for kererū feeding on berries, though they are a chance sighting rather than a sure thing.

The viewpoint is reached by a 9 km drive along Cook Flat Road from SH6, and the parking area sits beside the paths. Landscaped walkways let you explore the installation without committing to a longer hike; picnic tables make a handy place to pause. Weather can change quickly in this part of the West Coast, so wear suitable shoes and bring a rain layer.