November 19 - New Zealand: Hamilton to Waitomo (North Island)
Our first night in the tent was just fine, although COLD! When the sun goes down this country gets very, very chilly. Jon got up at 6:00 to go for a run, and I woke up soon after. Next to the campground is a construction sight (a hotel, I think) and the workers started hammering around 6:45. So I was up and packing up the tent before Jon got back from the showers.
Jon finally logs his runs in NZ! (written on 4 Dec.) - Run #18
What's the best thing to do when you haven't been able to run in what seems like ages? Wake up at 6am to get a run in, obviously! I woke up early so I could get back and get an early start for Waitomo. Driving around town yesterday I had scouted out what looked like a nice running path along the river, about 2km from our campground.
The run to the path was uneventful as it was early still and there were few cars for me to have to share the road with. Once I got to the path it quickly began going downhill for what seemed like forever and I was reminded that 'what goes up must come down' or as applied to runners 'what goes downhill will have to go back uphill!' The run along the river was nice--it was early so there were only a few people out at this hour. After turning around I got to go back up the long hill I had descended earlier. No worries though, but boy did I feel it later in the day, after running some decent hills for two days in a row.
Jon put our new pan and spatula to use by whipping up some pancakes for us in the communal kitchen. We'd bought some syrup as well but it tasted absolutely foul so it ended up in the trash (from Jon: we learned our lesson - real maple syrup is good, imitation maple syrup is bad). After brekkie, we finished packing up the car and were on the road before 9:00AM.
The drive to Waitomo was absolutely beautiful, and we both agreed that New Zealand looks a lot like Virginia. Specifically the stretch of road on Route 29 between DC and Charlottesville. There are a lot of hills, trees, cows, and horses, and much of the drive is on a two-lane road.
We made it to Waitomo in an hour and a half, and went straight to the Glowworm Caves.
Waitomo Glowworm Caves (http://www.waitomocaves.co.nz)
The New Zealand Glowworm is the larval stage of a small fungus-gnat (Arachnocampa luminosa) which emits a light to attract its food. It builds a nest of mucus and silk in the shape of a hollow tube which is attached to the cave roof by a series of fine silky threads. About 20-30 sticky threads (fishing lines) are hung from the tube. Midges or other flying insects are attracted to the light where they become trapped in the sticky lines. The glowworm draws in the fishing line and has its dinner.
This, by the way, is the only time the glowworm eats. When the adult emerges from the cocoon, they mate, the female lays about 120 eggs, and they die. They have no mouth parts and therefore cannot eat. So their life span is only a few days long.
Jon and I bought tickets and waited for the guide to begin the tour. There were about 50 people in the tour, which included a walk through some large limestone caves and a boat-ride through the glowworm caves. The walk through the caves was lovely, and we learned all about stalagmites and stalactites. There was one beautiful area called "The Cathedral" that actually looked like it had a pipe organ and an angel.
After the walking tour, we climbed onto a boat and our guide (Ephram) pulled us through the glowworm caves. I say "pulled" because he navigated by a series of ropes extended from the walls above the water. After a while, we forgot to notice because we were awed by the glowworms. The cave was pitch-black except for the ceilings which were covered in little green lights. They looked like stars! Everyone in the boat was silent, and it was quite a peaceful few minutes.
We arrived at the end of the cave in the sunlight, where we climbed off the boat and walked back to the car. We were going to fix ourselves some lunch, but walked by a little path that said, "Scenic View - 5 minute walk". So we looked at each other, shrugged, and turned up the path. The walk smelled of honeysuckle and flowers, and it passed over a fence and through a field. The end result was a lovely view of surrounding fields and trees.
We stayed on top of the hill for a while, just looking around and snapping pictures, and then we made our way down again. At the end of the car park were a few picnic benches. So we had a nice lunch of pita and hummus and drinks. We had to fight off the birds, though. They were very aggressive!
The Lost World - a deviation from "The Plan"
After lunch, we got into the car to hit the road. Not far from the glowworm cave, we passed a sign that said, "Adventure Trips: Lost World Excursion!". We pulled over and turned around. The Lost World is something we saw on the Discovery Channel last year and we both agreed then that we wanted to do. And we'd completely forgotten about it. But we were suddenly determined to do it, and gave up our plans to go to Rotorua today. Basically, The Lost World is a monstrous rappelling trip down a 330-foot gorge and then a hike back up the gorge again. We signed up for it and then consulted the camping guide to find a place to sleep. As we sat in the car and looked at the guide, I looked up from our parking place and said, "There's a campsite right across the street!". So we settled into the "Waitomo Top 10 Holiday Park" campsite. (www.waitomopark.co.nz)
After setting up the tent, we got back into the car and went to a grocery store for pasta, veggies, and tomato sauce. It was such a beautiful day that we decided to go for a drive to a quick hike beyond our campsite.
Ruakuri Natural Tunnel
The Ruakuri Natural Tunnel was a short hike up through some caves and tunnels next to a stream. We were about five minutes into the walk when Jon discovered a little cave in some rocks, so we had to head back to the car for the flashlights. Then we went exploring. The cave was pretty big - once we got through the narrow opening - and it was well-used so we obviously weren't the only people who'd found it. It only went back about 200 feet, but it was far enough for us to feel as though we'd done some decent exploring.
Jon In Our "Secret" Cave
After a while in the cave, we left and continued our walk to the Natural Tunnel. The hike was lovely, and very simple to do. We passed through a number of caves and tunnels, and finally ended up at the suspension bridge.
Then we went back to the campsite to relax, update journals, and cook dinner. We were SO EXCITED to make pasta. You'd never know that, at this time last year, we were SO SICK of pasta. But not now. Now, we're just thrilled to have a kitchen to cook some veggies and boil some pasta like ordinary people. While we chopped/sauteed/cooked, we talked to some nice Australians who are traveling around NZ for about 8 months or so. They were obviously retired and said they were traveling around the Pacific on their yacht. Wow.
Glowworms at Night
The Ruakuri path is also known for its nightlife. After the sun goes down, the glowworms begin to glow. So we were told at the campsite that we should check out the area around the suspension bridge tonight. Around 8:00, we hopped in the car to go there. But the sun was setting slowly so we drove around instead on some random roads, looking at the sights and watching the gorgeous sunset. A 8:30ish, we went to Ruakuri, parked, and walked the quick walk to the bridge. The glowworms were just beginning to appear, so we walked around a bit longer. After about 1/2 hour, there was quite a glowworm show. They covered a good deal of a ledge near the bridge, and it was very cool to see them up close. With our flashlights, we could see what they looked like in addition to seeing the sticky threads they use to trap their food. We stayed for another 1/2 hour, but it was getting cold and - while glowworms are cool - they really don't do much so it gets kind of old. We walked back out to the carpark, admiring all the glowworm lights along the way. We realized that we left just in time because a huge tour bus of teenagers began the walk and were they ever noisy!