Caving adventure

It was drizzling again today. Which made it a perfect day to do some caving underground!

I was really looking forward to doing something like the reputed piece de resistance of caving tours, the 7 hour epic which included an abseil down into a huge cave and then finding your way out through waterfalls and underground rivers. I was looking forward to it as much as Shannon was not. Luckily for her, it was sold out.

We compromised on a three hour less intensive tour with Legendary Blackwater Rafting Co. Donning chilly wet suits and grabbing an inner tube, we made our way down to the caves.

It was freezing water! The temperature was about 11C, but thankfully the wetsuits were thick. I also put on one of my wool t-shirts and rash guard as I usually get cold in the water.

The entrances to the caves always amazes me. They're often non-descript small entrances with a gentle stream running into them. Crawling in, the small low overhanging ceiling gives way to crazy rooms and crawl spaces. I was the first to enter and lead the group which was really neat, as if I were exploring this cave on my own.

Near the entrance, there was this low and tight corner to be negotiated which led right into a cozy cave room with an impressive waterfall crashing down to the cave floor. I think this was the coolest thing I've seen in a while. Our headlamps weren't bright enough to see where the waterfall began, but all of a sudden this rush of water cascades into this small enclosed space, and then out the passage that we just crawled through.

There were several floating areas where we'd turn off our lights and see these amazing blue-green star like points on the ceilings of the caves. These were the glow worms, and they actually got really bright. Their life cycle was actually quite gross. They're not exactly worms, but maggots. These insect larvae have excrement that glow in the dark to attract flies. The flies get stuck in sticky strands the larvae secrete and get eaten. Eventually, the bug makes a cocoon and emerges as an adult. The adult insect doesn't have a digestive tract so it lives only three days. But 10% of its body is reproductive organs so you know what.

There was a small waterfall jump, and eventually we made it to the cave exit, got a hot shower followed by bagel and soup. It was a very good tour, but too short, I thought and if I were around again, would definitely sign up for one of the longer ones.

The last time we were in caves was in Belize. I thought these ones were more interesting especially with the beautiful glow worms and the waterfall. Both had the tube ride. For Shannon, I think this was just right for her. She told me again that she was quite nervous for this one, but coming out of it, it wasn't as bad as she thought. Made it!

We drove into Rotorua and did some motel searching again. After about 6-7 motels, we found Collingwood Gables Motel, run by a Korean lady who knew I was Chinese right away, unlike the otherwise nice corner store clerk at Rawene who thought I was Indian. We're finding that most of these motels are pretty much the same, all built around the same time with two faucet sinks, two burner stoves, a separate small kitchen, a bathroom in the back and bedroom in the front. The room was $75 ($60 CAD), whereas many others averaged $80 CAD.

After getting pizza for dinner and a quick stop at the Countdown supermarket since we had a fridge, we went to the Polynesian Spa down the road. Rotorua is on top of things crust and has steam rising from hot springs all over the place. In fact, as soon as you hit the city limits sign, sulfur starts hitting the senses.

The spas were great. There were pools ranging from 38 to 41 degrees were we just soaked and reaped supposed healing properties of the alkaline and acidic pools. One 41C pool looked out onto the lake and I think it's this view that gave it a top ten rating by some agency.