Situated beneath the Waikato, one of New Zealand’s more prominent agricultural regions located to the south of Auckland, the Waitomo caves are a natural marvel. Over the last 30 million years, the Waitomo caves (nearly 300 in all) were carved out of limestone by volcanic activity. (Fun Fact: The Waitomo Caves were used to record audio effects for scenes involving Gollum in The Lord of the Rings films)
However, Waitomo’s true claim to fame is that its caves are home to one of the largest populations of glowworms (Arachnocampa luminosa) in the world, with the largest assembly of glowworms located in the Waitomo Glowworm Cave (They’re really good with names). The local Maori tribe had long known of the location of the cave prior to its first official exploration in 1887, but had never traveled inside of it due to a combination of the varying water depths and a general lack of interest. The first people to explore the interior of the cave were local Maori Chief Tane Tinorau, and English surveyor Fred Mace. The two men entered the cave through what is now referred to as the lower entrance on a raft made of woven flax stems.
After entering the cave, they floated into the area known as the Glowworm Grotto where they discovered thousands of glowworms hanging down from the ceiling. After exploring the cave further over the next two years, Tinorau decided to open the cave to tourists, a practice, which continues to this day (many of the guides at the Waitomo Glowworm Cave are third and fourth generation descendants of Tane Tinorau).
If you’re in the mood for thrill seeking however, Waitomo is also home to the world famous Black Water Rafting Company. A combination of caving and a slightly more adventurous lazy river, black water rafting is definitely worth a go. Throughout their various black water tours, The BWR Co. take rafters through dense New Zealand jungle, down tight cave entrance, over pitch black waterfalls, and under colonies of brightly illuminated glowworms. When I went this past winter, I originally had planned on taking a GoPro inside the cave with me, however I was told that such activities were not allowed. So, instead of my own personal video, I invite you to take a look at The Company’s own promotional video (sorry, it was the best I could do).
jmr6277 says
Visiting New Zealand is a prominent feature on Josh Riley’s bucket list. The beauty of the untainted nature of nation is astounding. This cave is a prime example. I’m sure you were left speechless by the beauty there several times. The pictures of the glowworms give the cave a magical feel. No wonder so many fictional movies involving magic are filmed here.
Josh Mairose says
Message received! I’ll start including maps of where each place is located. I was actually thinking of having my last post be one where I specifically look at LOTR filming locations.
Christian James Morris says
New Zealand does seem like an interesting place, and I’ve noticed that a lot of things have been filmed there. For being such a secluded niche of a place, it’s surprising how many world famous features they have. I think it would’ve been nice to have a map showing where the caves were. I’ve heard of everything from Harry Potter to Narnia to now the Lord of the Rings being filmed in New Zealand, and being able to visualize where they are would be helpful.