Day 12 - Tue 23 Oct

Break out the rubber suits

Set the alarm for a full day of power-touring. A beautiful day - sunny and warm, but what did we care since we were to spend much of it underground!

First up was down a Blackwater Cave Tubing expedition. This involved first being suited up in full wetsuit longjohns and jackets, socks, boots. Also helmets, complete with head mounted lamps, to complete the ensemble. We were driven to a river where we selected and tested our tubes by jumping bum-first into the water and floating a short distance. This was also our first experience of the bracing water temperature. Then back into the van and over to the start of the adventure. From there we squelched a short distance into a small, muddy entry to the Ruakuri cave system.

The passages we followed were quite tight in many places requiring crouching or even crawling. In one place we had to slither on our stomachs through water under a low ledge. In about the second room we had an optional extra section where we climbed up two waterfalls to re-emerge on the surface. We then came back in the original entrance and continued on.

Not much further along, after floating down a very low passage, limbo-style, we had another small bum-first jump (don't forget to close your mouth - I landed with a gob full of water). We then formed up into the "Eel formation" which we had rehearsed outside, where each person rests their feet on the tube of the person in front. In this state, it was all lights out and a gradual drift through a cave with glowworms all along the ceiling.

A bit more walking then and another jump (about two metres) down into the water which most people took feet first with tubes around the chest. Then we were sent off down a long dark tunnel, solo. It was a wonderful peaceful feeling (and by this stage not at all chilly, but perhaps we had just gone numb) drifting along gazing up at the glowworm cities along the roof. It was disappointing to see the telltale sign of light at the end signalling our imminent re-emergence into the real world.

This was a great fun experience .. a good mix of soft adventure with the magical glowworms. The guides (Tou and Paulie) were that perfect mix of humour and knowledge but were obviously thoroughly trained and well versed in all the important survival skills (and with a ready supply of chocolate fish).

The journey ended with warm (so they claimed) showers, then soup and bagels chatting with the guides and our fellow tubers.

Bunny bondage

Click go the shears

From here our busy day continued at the Shearing Shed, where they shear .... wait for it ... Angora Rabbits. We were just in time to see the shearing exhibition, where a rabbit is tied from each leg to a rottisserie-like arrangement over a table so they are restrained yet can be rotated to allow the shearer to get at all sides. This looks as bizarre and potentially cruel as it sounds, however, they assured us that the rabbits weren't in any discomfort and needed to be shorn four times per year for their own comfort. Today's victim didn't seem to be overy distressed. The fur is wonderfully soft. They of course had many Angora products in the store out front, along with woollen and possum-fur products.

Next we hurried along to Woodlyn Park for "Billy Black's Pioneer Show" - a real laugh!. Billy Black is ex-shearer Barry Woods, and for an hour he puts on a one-man show that combines wise cracks, prop humour, stunts and practical jokes with a real history lesson and a shearing exhibition using a hand cranked shearer ("engine" power provided by the audience, including in our case, Emma). There's lots of audience participation, and lots of participation from Barry's well trained animals including sheep, dogs, roosters, pigs and a full-size steer which all trot on and off stage under the control of Barry's "computer" - a system of ropes he uses to remotely open and close gates. Woodlyn Park also includes self-drive jet boats, a licensed restaurant and a 1950s rail car refurbished as a motel room. Barry has just purchased a Vietnam-era cargo plane which he also intends turning into further motel rooms.

Cave mouth

For our final adventure of the day it was back to Blackwater, this time for their Blackwater Dry trip. This starts with a van ride to Mason's Cave while the guide explains many features of the cave systems in the surrounding karst, including tomos, shafts and avens, dolines and uvalas and sumps. A short walk then into the caves. This tour was not as much fun or adventure, but stronger on the education side. Our (ex-teacher and wannabe author) guide Zane was again very knowledgable and explained much about the cave systems and life cycle of glowworms. Part way through we all hopped into a rubber dingy which Zane then pulled through some rooms with wonderful glowworm displays by using ropes strung along the ceiling. At the end we hopped out and sat for a while in a glowworm theaterette where he taught us more, and I tried to take some photos. No idea how they'll work out. The same journey reversed took us back to the surface, then back to the base.

We decided to eat out tonight, most nights recently having been spent cooking in the van. The majestic old Waitomo Caves Hotel on the top of the hill looked a suitable destination, however, when we arrived we were told that their food delivery didn't come until Wednesday, so as a result they were out of food! Bizarre! So we had a couple of average burgers down the road. Oh well.