March 08, 2014
I had one more plan in mind for this particular road trip. Looking at routes back to our boat in Tauranga, I’d noticed one of them would take us through an area called Waitomo, an area on my must-do list for this season. It was near the west coast and rather out of the way; so what better time to do it?
What’s so special about Waitomo? Glow worms! These worms are actually the larval stage of a particular gnat. They make sticky threads to capture small flying insects that are attracted to a bioluminescent light that emanates from their bodies. They’re generally found in caves but can sometimes be found in the thick bush around dells or hollows. The common element to these places is that they are dark and have a stream or river running through them.
Bug larvae may not sound very glamorous, but to witness the emergence of their bluish glow, gradually materializing when lights are turned off (or dusk turns to dark), is a wonderous experience! In caves, glow-worms look like thousands of stars on the ceiling above, and along riverbanks they look like fairy lights peeking out from bushes or hollowed out logs.
While the worms’ preferred environments are common throughout New Zealand, glow-worms are actually not common at all; it’s not like a person can just go into any suitable forest and find them. Thus places where they dwell are fairly well-known.
Rarely these are small, local spots like one nestled in McLaren Falls park which we’d visited the previous year. Sometimes the spots are more mainstream, such as Waiomio Caves near the Bay of Islands or Abbey and Waipu Caves, not far from Whangarei (the latter two free of charge because they’re located in New Zealand conservation parkland).
But without a doubt, an area known as Waitomo is the superstar destination for glow worm caves. It’s basically a small rural area, but the caves here are one of New Zealand’s “big gun” attractions, a stop on every tour-bus itinerary. In fact I’d been there years ago on just such a bus, but I wanted Rich to see it, too. Actually the attraction aspect of the Waitomo caves had developed quite a bit since I was last in New Zealand. Not since Rotorua had we seen such an extravaganza of tourist activities!
Of course there’s an i-Site Centre (New Zealand’s main visitors centers) where one can stop to get information on the options offered and book activities. Options to choose from include their most famous cave, called the Glowworm Caves. This tour entails a walk through a network of cave passages and ends with a boat ride through glowworm grottos.
Second in line is the Aranui Cave which doesn’t have glowworms but does have spectacular stalactite and stalagmite formations. There’s also the Ruakuri bushwalk and cave, guided hikes into the backcountry to see even more remote caves, and finally, thrill-seeking activities such as black water rafting (rafting in caves), abseiling down into sinkholes, and climbing adventures. It should not come as a shock that these activities aren’t cheap.
Thankfully I had chosen our options ahead of time; coming to this i-Site without having done some research would be overwhelming. I’d hoped to go blackwater rafting at some point, but for today the obvious choice was the two-package deal for the most famous of the caves, the Glowworm Caves and the Aranui Cave.
Arriving at the caves we were impressed by the Maori-themed visitors center. This beautiful structure included a restaurant, theater, exhibitions, a cafe, gift shop and, of course, ticket purchase counters. Since this area is Maori-owned land, the guides and workers are of Maori descent. Below a few photos of the visitors center and a photo from one of the trails leading to the caves.
We made the short hike to the first cave system, the Glowworm Caves. Our guide was an older woman who, like many people who’ve been in the tour business a long time, was somewhat cranky with us tourists (who admittedly can be annoying). This guide reminded me of an elementary school teacher who’s seen it all and is tired of dealing with children. She began our tour of the cave by ordering us NOT to use our cameras. Of course people were sneaking and using their phones, and she admonished the group, “Turn off your cameras; I can see you!” People dutifully turned off their phones, at least until they were out of view of the guide.
We had managed to get a couple of photos but with no flash they didn’t turn out well, which is too bad because this cave was impressive. It was beautifully lit and had three levels linked by a vertical limestone shaft. After making our way through an area called The Catacombs then down a level to the Banquet Chamber (it seems the cave’s first visitors would light a fire and eat here), we descended to the third level. Here, we entered The Cathedral, a high-ceiling area that makes an acoustically perfect auditorium. Aside from the glow-worms, the Cathedral is the cave’s most famous feature. The Vienna Boys’ Choir are among the many famous singers who have made trips to perform here, but tour groups always stop so anyone with a beautiful voice can give it a go.
Earlier a group of guys from India had joined our group at the last minute before we started this tour. My initial reaction was to hope they’d go with the group behind us so we’d have fewer people, but I ended up being so glad they were with us. After telling us about the Cathedral, the guide asked if anyone would sing, but there were no takers. She was stubborn, though, and eyed the Indian guys. They were shy and didn’t want to sing, but after getting the stink eye from the all-knowing “teacher,” they gave in. The song was an Indian Swami song, and it was perfect for this atmosphere! What a moment sitting there in that spot listening to those beautiful voices singing an Indian hymn. I realized how lucky we were because we haven’t heard singing from any of the groups ahead of us or behind us.
We next headed to a cave area with our first few glowworms and our guide gave a talk about them. A bit later one of the Indian guys asked how the glow worms get in here, and she snapped that she’d already explained that and if they’d quit talking among themselves they would have heard! Rich remarked, “Yes mam!” Realizing she was being snappish, she softened and answered the question. We then walked down to the cave’s waterway where we boarded a boat. From here, a guide on the boat pulls on ropes stretched above the river to quietly move it through the water as glowworms best show themselves in silence.
Our boat headed into the darkness, and a starry sky of glow-worms began to appear overhead. It was very dark, but there were so many glow worms covering the surfaces of the cave that we could see the rocky shape of the cave’s surfaces which made for a surreal 3-D effect, elevating the experience beyond that of simply looking at a starry sky into a feeling of being in it and floating through it. It was a beautiful and wonderous experience, and I wished we could stay here and camp out for a night. Sadly about 10 minutes later, we emerged from the cave.
Because we weren’t allowed to take photos, I’ve borrowed a few from the internet. They include (from top left) a photo showing what glow-worms look like in the bush (not at Waitomo), photos of The Cathedral from a postcard, a photo of the Glow Worm Grotto, and a promotional photo of a cave boat from a brochure.
After heading to the Visitors Centre and checking out the cafe, we decided to skip lunch and head to the next cave. It was a good choice as this time, we ended up with a kind and lovely young Maori woman as our guide, who had plenty of stories about what it was like to grow up here. To start our tour we went through a deceptively small opening before emerging into to a spectacular scene of stalactites and stalagmites. From here we took a series of stairways and paths to the back of the cave, marveling at what looked to be an amusement park attraction or movie set come to life. Thankfully we were allowed to use our cameras in this cave, from which I’ve made the gallery below (click to enlarge any photo).
What a treat this was–I was very happy with our choices today! Now it was time to head home. We passed through a couple of interesting towns, one of which was Otorohanga known for its murals of Kiwiana, nostalgic New Zealand classic items such as a toy bee most children have owned, gumboots, a kiwi bird, and other items. The other area was called Cambridge, a lovely country area where horses grazed in roadside pastures. I had no need to ever see Otorohanga again, but Cambridge would be worth a visit.
It actually felt good to arrive back in Tauranga late that afternoon. Our trip had only lasted a few days, but there was so much packed into it that it felt like we’d been on a grand adventure. To celebrate we had some champagne and looked at our photos before settling in to watch Survivor. Tomorrow, I’d start thinking about the next trip. –Cyndi
