Ngarua Caves and Wainui Falls

I haven't gone on any trips the last few days, just a few walks. But today I feel like and motivated to go on a trip again. I want to go into a stalactite cave and take a short hike to a waterfall.

But first I have to drive. The road is narrow and very curvy. I can't drive faster than 50km. Now I also know why the navigation system planned almost 2 hours of driving time for a distance of 80km 🤷🏼‍♀️.

I make my first stop at the stalactite cave. It's dripping outside too, so get into the cave. The cave is amazingly large with countless stalactites and stalagmites. A stalactite like this grows approx. 1.5 cm in 80 years 😳. Touching is therefore strictly prohibited. Although, in some places touching was expressly permitted. The ceiling height was sometimes 4-5m.

There were also moa bones in the cave. Everyone was even allowed to touch a bone.

After the tour of the cave, the journey continued and the weather got better. When I arrived at the Wainui Falls car park, there was conveniently a small cafe where I treated myself to a small lunch. Well covered in sunscreen and, very importantly, with insect spray, the little hike began. It was a fairly flat path and was very easy to walk, right along the water and over a suspension bridge over the river.

The waterfall was quite powerful. It was quite loud due to the masses of water, but also very nice to look at.