After four days in New Plymouth, we set off for the caves of Waitomo which is about two hours to the north. Over the years, Toni and I have become connoisseurs of caves as we visit almost every one we come across from the truly magnificent such as Carlsbad Caverns and the Grutas de Cacahuamilpa to small caves in the Yucatán where ancient Mayas left their offerings to the underworld, to the drive through the Fantastic Caverns of Missouri where people too fat to walk can enjoy stalactite and stalagmites too. I don’t know why caves have a fascination for us, although I imagine that Freud might have something to say about it.
The Waitomo caves’ claim to fame is its glow-worms. The glow-worms are actually small larvae (also known as maggots) whose butts glow in the dark. They set up shop on the ceilings of caves, tunnels, and overhangs. Each larvae sends down a single cobweb line. Flies, midges and other insects mistake the maggots’ glowing posteriors for stars in the sky and therefore a way out of the cave. The prey is caught in the sticky silk strand, and the waiting larvae reel up their lunch and suck their victims dry.
I should point out that flies are not the only ones to be sucked dry. New Zealand is far from a cheap destination. The two-cave tour which we went on was $72 a person. Longer tours were much more, and the black water rafting (that is floating on an inner tube down the underground river) costs up to $230 each. The prices are in New Zealand dollars, which are about 65% of the US dollar, but still.
Another attraction of the Waitomo caves is the accommodation to the local Māori tribe’s religious beliefs. One of three caves which make up Waitomo system is the Ruakuri Cave. The cave was discovered by a young Māori hunter about 500 years ago when two dogs ran out of the cave, which was being used as a den, and attacked the hunter. Rua means “den” and kuri means “dogs.”
Over the years, the natural entrance to the cave became sacred to this band of Māori. To this day, the entrance is not opened to the public, only members of this particular band of Māori can enter and only with expressed permission by tribal leaders. This is in direct contrast to the struggles of American Indian tribes to protect their sacred sites from commercial and government interests.
However, all is not lost; capitalism is still alive. Hobbiton, the movie set for Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit series, is only a short distance away. Bring your cloak, swords, and rings as you too can tour the Shire for only $285, but they do throw in a breakfast at the Green Dragon Inn.
