Glow Worms

Sadly, the time had for us to depart Huka Lodge and all the kind hospitality and wonderful food.  We had one last breakfast, this time with the smoked trout they had made from our catch the day before.  It was amazing! A gang of ducks walked up to watch us depart.  The ducks are very tame around the property and were definitely not afraid of humans.

We had one sightseeing spot lined up for our trip back to Auckland but we drove through small towns along the way.  We spotted a McDonalds that had taken an old WW II airplane and made it into restaurant seating and advertisement. 


Our next stop was out in the middle of the country but is set up to feed hundreds.  Roselands Buffet Restaurant grills a variety of meat on an outside grill.  The rest of the meal comes from an indoor buffet line.  We ate out under the trees since the weather was perfect. 


Next up was our actual sightseeing stop, The Waitomo Glow Worm Caves.  You'll have to excuse the lack of photos, but these caves are camera free zones.  Apparently the worms become shy and shut off their lights in the presence of noise or light.  The tour start with exploring a couple of the large underground rooms that lead to an underground river.  One of the caverns has hosted singers from around the world because of its excellent acoustics.  Our Maori (the indigenous people of NZ) sang one of his favorite songs that was passed down from his grandmother to demonstrate the sound quality in the cave.  

It was dark going down to the boats on the water, but handrails and low lights made the journey a lot less dangerous.  Once on-board the boat, we passed under a ceiling full of the green glowing worms.  I couldn't take my eyes off them, which is probably why this has become a popular tourist destination.

After our cave excursion, we were ready to get back to the house in Auckland.  We noshed on a sack lunch from the lodge for dinner (it was really much higher quality than most sack lunches).  After spending a little time repacking, we turned in for the last time in NZ.

Tomorrow: On the way home

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