Cox.— Notes on Valley System on Western Flanks of Mount Cook. 579 
alpine plants, which were at this time in full flower, and by eleven o'clock 
we were on the summit of the range. 
On the northern slopes of this spur little or no snow rests, but on cross- 
ing the crest of it a large snow-field is seen at an elevation of 5,800 feet above 
the level of the sea, and sloping eastwards. 
This field is surrounded on all sides by turretted peaks, which rise as 
bare patches above the snow, and at one point only could we see an outlet, 
viz., at the S.E. edge, from which point the Balfour Glacier is fed. 
The Fox Glacier trends away to the N.E., at a point about two miles 
above its foot, to an extension of this snow-field, lying to the westward of a 
dome-shaped mountain, which we took at this point for the dome of Mount 
Cook, but whether correctly or not, I am unable to say. The Francig 
Joseph glacier heads from the northern part of the same snow-field. 
The ridge of the spur to the south of the Fox Glacier follows the trend of 
the Fox Glacier itself ; that part of the snow-field, from which the Balfour is 
fed, thus widening out to considerable proportions, as shown on the dia- 
gram, but I had neither the means nor the time to determine the exact 
extent of this accurately, and am only able to shew it relatively to other 
points, which have been fixed by topographieal surveyors; however, it 
extends continuously over the dome. 
Beyond this snow-field, in a S.E. direction, there is a deep valley sepa- 
rating it from the main range, which, as far as I could determine, is the 
valley of the Balfour Glacier, and its elevation above sea level cannot be 
more than from 2,000 to 8,000 feet, a dense bush being seen on the 
western flank of the main range, which rises abruptly from this valley. 
The northern branch of the Weheka or Cook River rises from the Fox 
Glacier, the middle branch from the Balfour Glacier, and the southern 
branch—which, according to all accounts, is not an ice river—in all proba- 
bility has one of its sources in a valley at the foot of the main range in the 
direction of Mount Cook; the main source, however, heading from Mount 
Sefton, as is evidenced by an account I got from a digger at Gillespie Beach. 
It appears that this man wished to get from Gillespie to the Mackenzie 
country, and thought he could effect a pass at the head of the southern 
branch of the Cook River, the elevation of the main range there being con- 
siderably less than at most points, but very broken and rough. With this 
end in view, he went up to the head of the south branch, and, as he says, 
completely lost himself. However, he kept on rising till he got, as he 
imagined, to the summit of the main range, and then commenced to 
descend, ultimately finding himself in the bed of the Karangarua River, 
which brought him out at its mouth, about ten miles from where he started, 
showing that the southern branch of the Cook River saddles with the 
Karangarua, at a point to the Mount westward of Sefton, 
