Tag 44 - Waitomo Caves in Waikato

Today is all about the Waitomo Caves. We have booked a cave tour in the morning and in the afternoon. In the morning, we will visit the Waitomo Glowworm Caves. The limestone caves are 30 million years old. First, we walk down some stairs into the cave and can admire stalactites and stalagmites. Then we take a boat ride through the cave and admire the glowworms. The glowworms (Arachnocampa Luminosa) found here are unique to New Zealand and spin a thread to catch prey. They use their light to attract the prey. After this beautiful experience, we walk along the path to the Dimond 100 Year Memorial. Garnet Dimond was the discoverer of the Waitomo Caves. Finally, we end up in a cow pasture and spend some time with the curious animals and the beautiful landscape.

In the afternoon, we visit the Ruakuri Cave. We enter the cave through the spiral-shaped entrance that goes up to 60 meters below the ground. Here, we can once again admire some impressive limestone formations. Inside the cave, we can see some glowworms and a small waterfall. In the evening after this eventful day, we will go out for an Indian dinner and then pack our belongings as we will be flying back to Australia tomorrow.