We were on the road by 10 this morning; Barry & Fay had dropped by to check on the lawn & we enjoyed a wee visit. They were very helpful & gave us their phone # just in case we got lost badly enough to need help!
Today our destination is “Waitomo Glowworm caves” about 100 km southwest of Hamilton. Using the same directions to leave Hamilton as we did for Raglan, we had only one short detour before we were on highway 23 driving to “Whatawhata” – yes that is its colourful name! From there we travelled south to Otorohanga, on route passing Welsh Street. First Bryant & now Welsh – thus covering off my parents family names! We drove through green picturesque scenery; rolling foothills, terraced hills etched into valleys, farmlands, beef & Holstein cattle, hillsides dotted with sheep, equestrian farms and giant ferns everywhere (10+ft) with broad Cleopatra-style fans.
Reading town’s exit sign “Farewells You” and repeating our mantra for safety “Wide Right, Tight Left!” we drove to Otorohanga. A town with giant-size statues of colourful Kiwi birds the national icon, a flash in time to Toronto’s Moose. We stopped at a pharmacy for lozenges where a helpful sales lady suggested Ruakuri Caves instead of Spellbound Tours for Waitomo. We booked a 2-hour tour for Ruakuri Cave which left within minutes of our arrival. Spellbound was only available after a 3-hour wait.
We were not disappointed – right choice! This cave was discovered 400-500 years ago by Maori hunters – or so the legend goes. The Maori considered the original cave entrance sacred so a man-made entrance is used; a spiral ramp with dim lights so your eyes can adjust to the darkness 75 metres below. The tour covered 2K of vast caverns, awesome limestone formations of stalactites and stalagmites, glowworms and fossilized seashells. Our guide, Zane, was an entertaining teacher of fact and folklore! For example, glowworms are actually fly larvae whose glow is provided by their excrement. The females glow brighter because they hold more ___.....according to Zane. We saw and heard screams from people black-water rafting in the underground rivers far below our walkway. We also heard mighty waterfalls only to learn they were actually quite narrow and shallow; the echo magnifies the rush of water! We walked through this cave where millions of years ago water flowed; careful not to touch the delicate formations and hoping we had captured on film some of the majestic surroundings. Well worth the visit! Google Ruakuri Cave tour!
From here we travelled back towards Otorohanga to an all-day breakfast place & veggie market. It was after 2pm & they had venison burgers on the menu ... how could one resist? Fresh vegetables loaded in the car we headed for home via alternate route hwy 3. This time we entered Hamilton’s south end; no detours! The return drive was through prosperous-looking farms: dairy, beef and horticulture. We drove through Te Awamutu the Rose capital of NZ. We didn’t stop at its Museum although we did see the Uenuku carvings, symbol of the local Maori tribe.
A full day and a good day! Kia Ora
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