On our departure from Ragland, we stopped to catch sight of Bridal Veil Falls - a picturesque waterfall that plunged into a calm pool below. Stunning.
Next we meandered south to Waitomo Caves, a premier attraction for “glow worms” - i.e., hanging larvae with luminescent organs that reside inside underground limestone caves. Hoping to get our adrenaline pumping, we opted for the venturesome option to discover the glow worms in the pitch-black caves (the alternate option was to walk along a dimly lit path... boring!). Our day included rappelling into a 100 foot cavern, wedging ourselves through cramped limestone holes, viewing stalactites/stalagmites in the cavernous chamber, tubing along the underwater stream, and rock climbing up the vertical wall out of the cave. The luminescent underground cave system was somewhat magical and romantic. We imagined staring up into a starlit night’s sky as we lay in our inner tubes floating downstream. Finishing the experience soaking wet, our huge smiles radiated... we made a beeline straight for warm showers and hot tomato soup. What a fabulous day!
Next we meandered south to Waitomo Caves, a premier attraction for “glow worms” - i.e., hanging larvae with luminescent organs that reside inside underground limestone caves. Hoping to get our adrenaline pumping, we opted for the venturesome option to discover the glow worms in the pitch-black caves (the alternate option was to walk along a dimly lit path... boring!). Our day included rappelling into a 100 foot cavern, wedging ourselves through cramped limestone holes, viewing stalactites/stalagmites in the cavernous chamber, tubing along the underwater stream, and rock climbing up the vertical wall out of the cave. The luminescent underground cave system was somewhat magical and romantic. We imagined staring up into a starlit night’s sky as we lay in our inner tubes floating downstream. Finishing the experience soaking wet, our huge smiles radiated... we made a beeline straight for warm showers and hot tomato soup. What a fabulous day!
Jumping into “Big Green” (our van) we bounded east to Rotoura, the sulfur rich city of thermal activity -- thankfully, we quickly became acclimatized and it didn’t bother us. (Sophomoric side note: We joked that the city allowed us full farting potential as we could blame all violations on the sulfur). We ventured into Wai-O-Tapu park for views of crazy colored boiling pools (green, yellow, and orange), hot springs, and exploding mud pools.
The following day, we heard the redwood forest on the edge of town was home to some of the best mountain biking so we rented bikes and off we climbed, climbed, climbed. Ken and the bike salesman selected an intermediate route for our excursion... fast forward three hours later... I was in tears because my legs hurt so bad from straight uphill climbing. After reaching two summits (did we mentioned we became lost?), we zoomed down the mountain thankful the pain-in-the-ass (literally) ride was over. Shout out Patty Elliot who loves spin class - you would have rocked it!
And finally, our campervan has grown on us as we mature in our nomadism. Or should we say, we’re beginning to figure out this whole “yes-we-live-in-a-van” thing: maximizing efficient storage in tight quarters, creating an effective system for cooking meals, and navigating through the winding hills and quaint villages. One thing we cannot, however, wrap our brains around is... our portable toilet.
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