Today is a bright morning as we wake up in this beautiful new chalet complex at Hot Water Beach. It rained heavily in the night; you could hear it on the roof, and I felt for the couple in our group who were camping. In fact their tent leaked just a little round the zip and they were a just bit damp this morning.
We left at 8.30 for Waitoma, leaving behind us a wide low rainbow over Hot Water Beach.
The weather was typical for spring in the UK with periods of April showers and warm sunshine, birdsong and luscious blossom. So strange it is November! There would be several stops en route, the first being a high lookout point with wonderful sea view. At this early time of the morning the sun was glistening across the water, but this weather was to deteriorate.
After driving for a couple of hours we stopped at Karangahake Gorge where we were able to get out and stretch our legs. In fact it was a rain forest walk following a river round a cliff edge.
There used to be a Gold mine here. We crossed several wobbly suspension footbridges and passed through some dark tunnels but the scenery was fantastic and the wild digitalis were in flower everywhere.
Our next stop for lunch, was Peroa, not far away. This is known for its drink L&P or Lemon and Peroa and there is a huge replica bottle as you enter the town. Peroa is an interesting town full of antique and craft shops.
I bought a flat white and an apple turnover to keep me going, as well as a small bottle of L&P to try.
We then continued towards Waitoma, passing through dairy and horse country. I noticed a sign to Cambridge where I’d stayed a few weeks ago with Kay and Chris. Our driver, Buzz, who was of Maori descent, started telling us all about the Moari culture; how Maoris have their own lands and strangers must be officially welcomed on it. They own rivers and mountains and have been in this country for over hundreds of years. He said that there were only fish and birds at that time and any other animal had been brought in from outside. He went on to tell us about his tribes and the importance of their tattoos. Here is one of Buzz’s ancestors who was a Maori chief.
Tattoos are done after talking to the recipient and gaining an insight into where they are coming from and their values in life. The three main things he has learnt from his ancestors are that they are warriors, the importance of family and their cultural values.
It started to rain again as we arrived in Waitomo but the hostel looked comfortable enough with 4 beds in each dorm.
After checking in, the rain eased off a bit and a group of us had a little wander around this small settlement on a hillside. Apparently it has a population of 120. There was a very nice little shop selling quality home-baked foods and more up-market provisions. There was a pub and an information centre. But otherwise it was the Glow Worm Caves that were the attraction to Waiitomo. Waitomo means water down a hole in Maori.
At 4 oclcock when the coach-loads had left we wandered down to buy a ticket for the caves. Many of the daring members of the group had been picked up by The Black Water Rafting Company to begin their 5 hours of underground abseiling, swimming and squeezing through narrow places. This was not for me. However, I was intrigued to see the famous glow worm and was able to do this on a simple guided walk tour. The caves themselves were pretty impressive with huge limestone stalagtites and stalamites, many of which had formed columns over thousands of years. The acoustics inside were amazing as our guide demonstrated when she turned the lights off and sang a beautiful Maori song. But the highlight was a short peaceful boatride where the ceiling above us was a mass of tiny twinkling stars in the darkness. These were the glowworms. I have no pictures of these as we were not allowed to take them. The glowworms are very sensitive to light.
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