Back down under(ground)

Thank goodness for the heated blankets on the bed - cold morning wake up. The houses here are poorly insulated so the winter air is quite brisk indoors.

Explored the town a bit more, as well as a few of the surrounding towns. The driving is beautiful - sprawling landscapes and hills all over.

Waitomo caves - incredible experience. The cave is millions of years old formed by water flowing from the stream that runs through it and ground water that seeps through the layers of limestone. The rock formations are created by acidic rain water that makes its way through the earth and into the cave, resulting in 1cm of growth every 100 years. We exited the cave via boat where we saw thousands of New Zealand glow worms glowing above us like stars.

Te Ruakuri cave and bush walk - just as nice as Waitomo. The cave was much larger and deeper into the ground with more stalagmites and stalactites, but fewer glow worms. The cave is “owned” by a local family, but includes areas that are sacred to the Māoris in the region and also serves as a burial site for some Māoris. In the 2000s, the cave entrance was moved to ensure tourists cannot access the sacred area and was also made wheelchair accessible. As a result, the cave entrance was moved out of respect to ensure tourists wouldn’t traverse the sacred areas.

Bush walk was great. A lot more fauna and vegetation hidden away by the creek and caves.

Otorohanga - another small town, known as Kiwiana Town. There are several kiwi statues, murals, lakes, etc.Read more