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Magic in Real-Life: New Zealand’s Glowworm Caves

Note: All Photos in this post courtesy of Spellbound Glowworm and Cave Tours unless otherwise specified.

If Epcot ever gets a New Zealand pavilion, I already know what the ride should be: a quick sail through dark waters illuminated only by glow worms.

Let me explain. New Zealand is home to a lot of magnificent sites. From its many mountains to its hot springs, to its Lord of the Rings filming locations, there are a plethora of natural things to see and do here. And while I haven’t seen them all, I have seen quite a few, yet none of them have been as magical or as memorable as my time spent in Waitomo.

Waitomo is a small town on the North Island that has a population of about 50 people. However, its population grows by the thousands on any given day, as travelers from all over come here to see glowworm caves. Now, to be fair, glowworm is a nice name for the fly maggots that glow with bioluminescence in the area, but still, they are a really beautiful sight to behold.

A close-up of the magical glowworms in Waitomo

The many caves in the area are also where Waitomo gets its name. In Maori, the language of the native New Zealanders here, Waitomo is a combination of two words: “wai” or water, and “tomo” or hole. According to the town’s official tourism site, the combining of these words literally translates to “stream which flows into the hole in the ground.” It is these streams that provide the unique environment needed for the glowworms to grow and thrive.

Oh, and because this is New Zealand there was also a hike involved. Here’s a look at some of the limestone rocks that line the Waitomo countryside, and are responsible for the caves in the area (Photo by Amiekay)

There are a number of companies that run glowworm tours in Waitomo, including one that allows you to go rafting through the caves. However, because I went sort of unplanned, we had to call around and really just go with whichever tour would take us. This ended up being Spellbound, a private tour company who has access to caves outside of the town center. For Spellbound’s tour, we took a bit of a lengthy car ride through town, parks, and eventually a private farm. During this time, our comedic tour guide asked us silly questions like “if you were a cake, what kind of cake would you be?” to pass the time. He also told us a bit of history about the area, including the opening of sinkholes that would often result in the deaths of cows.

The tour we were on included a boat ride through a wet cave and a walking tour through a dry cave. Both are interesting and informative, but the first cave is far more spectacular. During this tour, not only are you treated to your first look at the glowworms but also you are given plenty of time for your eyes to adjust before getting into the boat. This means you see more glowworms more clearly.

A picture of the raft we took through the cave.

I have to be honest, the whole thing really felt like a ride at Disney World. It seemed totally unreal and completely out of a storybook, and I found that I had to repeatedly remind myself it was in fact, not only real life but also a natural phenomenon. Sure, the lights were being made by maggots but they are beautiful. (Our comedic tour guide also told us that the glowworms sometimes fall from the ceiling, but luckily this did not happen on my trip.)

A look at the worms in the light

After the boat ride, our tour stopped off for coffee and biscuits before heading to the dry cave. The dry cave is a little more traditional and features the tour guide explaining the difference between stalagmites and stalactites. However, there were some only in New Zealand moments. Including a close up look at the skeleton of a Moa bird, an ostrich-like animal that was killed off when the Maori arrived on the island hundreds of years ago. (We also were shown cave wetas and a huntsman spider, but I was a little less thrilled about those things.)

The skeleton of a young Moa that experts believe fell into the cave and died
Another skeleton we were shown, which our guide told us is the “most photographed dead cow” in New Zealand. I think he was joking… (Photo by Amiekay)

Overall, I have to say the glowworm caves are a must-see for anyone visiting New Zealand. While there are glowworms elsewhere in the world, the ones here are larger and more plentiful than anywhere else. And the tours aren’t expensive, either. Our entire tour cost $75 NZD and was 2 hours long, but some of the other tours cost as little as $35 NZD. Much cheaper than Disney World.

A look at what the glowworms looked like to the naked eye (Photo by Amiekay)
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Exploring Eastbourne

Sorry for all the cheesy names. I figured they are more exciting than “Amiekay went on another hike!” But really, that’s what I did, and this time it was just 20 minutes outside of the city.

Even the signs are works of art here

If you’ve ever looked at Wellington, New Zealand on a map, you know it sits on one side of a horseshoe-shaped harbor. Well, Eastbourne is the small village that sits on the other side of that same harbor. Its small, but it is cute, and behind it is a nature preserve called “Butterfly Creek.”

This trek didn’t end in a perfect view, but it certainly had some good ones along the way

Contrary to what the name may lead you to believe, there are very few butterflies in the area. In fact, the area is said to have gotten its name because there was a patch of land nearby that was shaped like a butterfly. Unfortunately, the only remaining evidence of this shape is the area’s name.

I loved the way the sun shone directly on the tropical looking fern at the time. Doesn’t quite read as well in a picture but at the time it was quite stunning to me

There’s a couple of different tracks you can take through the preserve, some of which are said to have been used by New Zealand’s native Maori. However, these paths certainly feel more modern than most paths, as they are full of steps, signs, benches, and directions to help you along the way.

The trek my friend Anca and I took was the one to the picnic area by the creek. It is a steep climb, but well worth it for the views, vegetation, and peacefulness. It was definitely the most “wooded” hike I have taken since being here other than Zealandia, but it was gorgeous. Also, the trip was pretty short, just an hour each way. (But, as it was steep, it was also a pretty decent workout.)

The view from the picnic area. This place would be a nice spot for couples, I imagine

The picnic area itself is really pretty as well, and I’m not just saying that because we brought chocolate hazelnut cake from the most amazing little cafe with us. (It is called Chocolate Dayz Cafe in Days Bay and if you’re ever in the area you better go. The food’s great but the views are better.)

Sometimes I wonder why I bought a gym membership when I have all this beautiful natural exercise waiting for me just minutes from where I live. But I’m in the contract until May so I guess I’ll still have to go and keep lifting weights or something.

Butterfly Creek is quite stunning
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Away in Wairapapa

Someone told me not to bother coming to New Zealand if I didn’t like hiking. Well, I never liked hiking before but I came here anyway, and now I am planning weekend getaways that include walking some long trails. I am really thankful.

I have to be honest, this likely wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t met people who were keen to go on hikes and walks themselves and invite me on them. I imagine I would’ve done all the touristy things around Wellington that involved little exertion and then fill up the rest of my week with drinks, the gym, and Netflix. Now, I have to admit already happened to some extent, especially while my more active and hiking friends were out of the area. But guess what? They’re back! And that means, I’ve gone on a few new adventures already, I just haven’t written about them up until this point. To start, I want to focus on our trip to Wairarapa, Greytown and Cape Palliser.

The view from the Cape Palliser Lighthouse

To give you a bit of an idea where this adventure took place, it was a 2-hour drive from Wellington to the cape, which is the Southern-most point of New Zealand’s North Island. That drive through the Rimutaka hills is long and winding, but it is also absolutely breathtaking. (For all of my Pennsylvania friends, it’s a similar look and feel as the Pine Creek Gorge area, which is better known as the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. If you haven’t been I would recommend it.) There are hikes through this area as well, but we just stopped at the lookout and kept driving. This is because it was a windy and chilly day, but also because the drive was quite long and we had a lot we wanted to do.

The view from the entrance to the Rimutaka Crossing, a trek made by 60,000 New Zealand Soldiers during WWI.

On our way to the lighthouse in Cape Palliser, we stopped in one of the hidden gems in the area: a small village called Greytown. The picturesque town is actually the oldest in the region and is full of architecture and cute, funky shops. My friend Anca says it reminds her of the town Stars Hollow from “Gilmore Girls,” and I would have to say this is accurate. (And now you know exactly how the village feels, don’t you?)

In Greytown, we stopped at an adorable coffee shop called “Cahoots.” It has your standard coffee-shop fare which was tasty but what I really liked about it was the atmosphere. It’s a little nerdy and a lot of fun; for instance the table numbers they give out so you know where the food goes all feature pop culture figures. (We were “G” for Gandolf, and someone next to us was “E” for Elvis.)

The ladies at Cahoots. That was my first of several coffees for the day. (Also, do you see Gandolf!?)

The rest of the village was a bit artistic and fun as well. There was a bicycle shop where you could buy a tandem bike if you wanted, a community theatre and a lot of locals who didn’t seem used to “so many” tourists.

The black sand beaches in Wairarapa were surreal

Our beautiful drive through the mountains continued, before taking us out to the coast. Here, there were black sand beaches to explore and a rocky area that held some of my favorite New Zealand residents: fur seals and seal pups. There were so many in this area you had to be careful where you stepped because some of them were so still you didn’t realize they were there right away.

These are just a few of the seals that were hanging out in Cape Palliser. They didn’t seem to keen to have us around
This is one of the guys I almost stepped on, because he was so chill

After the seals, we continued on our way to the Cape Palliser lighthouse. The lighthouse has sat atop the cliff here since 1897 and is still in use today. Me, being a fan of lighthouses, almost didn’t mind the 253 stair climb to the top of the cliff to see it up close! (However, I would’ve loved to climb more steps to get to the top of the lighthouse itself, but alas, this was not an option.)

All of the steps to the lighthouse
The view is always worth the climb

Now, with all that adventure in one day, you’d think we would be done, but no, not us! Afterwards, we had one more stop yet to take, and this one was the tastiest. Close to Cape Palliser Lighthouse, there is a tiny fishing town known for its crayfish called Ngawi. It is so small, only about 20 people live in the area year-round. As it was the off-season, the only business we passed that was open was the “Captain Table Food Truck,” which sits along the coast. I bet you can guess where we stopped and how tasty the fresh-caught fish and chips were.

Don’t look at me, look at the food and that view!

Also in the town, we stopped to check out some adorable lambs. They were adorable, albeit a little dirty to pet. Still, totally worth it.

Lamb butts are cute too, aren’t they?

It was a really good day, and aside from the food and coffee, it was 100% free.

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Initial impressions of New Zealand

initial impressions of new zealand

I have only been here for a few hours and already I’m in love. This place is unlike anywhere else I’ve ever been.


The plants are a mix of the “tropical” ones I’ve come to love in Florida, as well as more evergreen sort of trees. The mountains are unlike anything  back home. Plus, there are lots of cool restaurants, bars and public art in Wellington. It’s quite fantastic.

Yes, it is cold. But I am surprisingly okay with it. After all, I’m in New Zealand, and that’s pretty amazing.

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I’m not looking for anything

I'm not looking for anything

​“I hope you find what you’re looking for.’ 

When I started telling people I was planning to quit my job and move to New Zealand, just about everyone reacted one of two ways.

The most common one among my close friends and family was “You’re so brave!” Now, while I don’t feel particularly courageous, I can understand the sentiment; I’m doing something a lot of people only dream about. And yeah, leaving the comfort of everything you know isn’t exactly easy, especially if you’re doing it hrough tears.

But boy, the other one. The other one got under my skin.

“I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

Um. What?

Why is it that when we do something out of the ordinary, people assume we are doing it because something is wrong with us? That we are searching to fill something that’s missing?

 

Last I checked, I was a whole person. And from someone who spent years in depression and anxiety, I can tell you that I couldn’t take this leap if I didn’t finally feel complete on my own.

And before anyone says it, I know part of this is the recent rise in books like “Eat, Pray, Love” and “Wild” that feature female protagonists who go into the unknown to heal. But it still feels somewhat condescending to me, as if I’m less of a person because I don’t want a house, a husband and 2.5 kids at 30. (Trust me, I tried to want that life and failed miserably.)

Bottom line: I’m not searching for anything, I’m just finally risking everything for my dream, and I guess that makes me brave.

 

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Taking off!

Taking Off Title Picture Amiekays Adventure

If you had a chance to change your fate, would you?

Right now, I am waiting to get on my one-way flight to New Zealand via Los Angeles and Fiji. I am much calmer than I feel I should be, given my history of anxiety and depression. But I’m not. Maybe that’s because I’m taking the leap and doing something I never thought would be available to me as a daughter of a single mother with 7 kids.

Just a week ago I would be arriving at my job as a news producer in sunny, West Palm Beach, Florida. But I’m not there, and chances are after 8 long years I may never put together another newscast again. Instead, I have chosen to be unemployed so I can pursue a bigger, more important dream: to see the world despite growing up poor, and despite the mound of student debt I have to my name.

Getting here was not easy; there was a lot of tears and sleepless nights. There were goodbyes I wasn’t prepared to say and lots of second-guessing. I will take you through that journey in posts to come, but right now…it is time to fly.