There is More Than One Cave.

So, there’s actually three main caves that are advertised when you look into seeing the glowworms at Waitomo.  They are the Aranui Cave, Ruakuri Cave, and Waitomo Glowworm Caves.  What they do though, is get you to sign up for the trilogy bundle thinking you’re getting a good deal.  Come to find out later that the glowworms are only to be seen in the “Waitomo Glowworm Caves” (rookie mistake).

TIP: If you’re on a time crunch or only here to see the glowworms and leave, just do the Waitomo Glowworm cave.

The guides for all three caves were super knowledgeable, awesome at answering everyone’s questions, and great story tellers.  I could tell that they truly wanted to be there and were excited to pass down information to anyone curious enough to learn.  Obviously we found out that the glowworms were in the one cave, but the other two were almost just as interesting.  They may not be covered in blue dots, but they do have incredible stalactite and stalagmite formations.

There will be a LOT of walking

Unfortunately, this is not a very handicap friendly adventure.  There are stairs, climbing in to boats (only in Waitomo Cave), loose terrain, tight turns, and the caves are not well lit in most areas.  The duration of each cave is another factor.  We started our first tour at 0830 and ended the last one at around 1400 (also stopping for food before the last cave).  Plan for each tour being an hour to two hours in length.  This means on your feet through the caves with no benches or rest stops.  It doesn’t require any amount of athletic skill, but I definitely recommend knowing your limits and adding walking to your daily routine before you get there if you plan to do all three.

NOTE: If you’re the adventurous type, maybe try out the Blackwater Rafting that goes through the caves and let me know how it is!  It looked (and sounded) like an absolute blast.  When I asked our guides about it, they said it can get pretty cold, but also provides a really cool perspective of the caves.  Next time I get to be in the area, I’ll go and report back!

Keep up with your Guide

I was beyond impressed with our guides in all three of the caves.  Most of them seem to be descendants of people who discovered the caves.  Others became tour guides throughout generations of their family living in the area.  They must get asked the same things a lot, but each one was able to answer any of our questions.  If they didn’t know for sure, the guides would give us their best guess.  This gave us the opportunity to hear legends and stories passed down throughout the history of the caves, while also learning facts about their existence and the ecosystem they provide for.

You can generally tell how much people care on tours by their location in the herd.  I’m a “front row” type of person that likes to be as close as possible to the source.  I could definitely tell the difference between being close to the guide and being further back.  When I got stuck back there I felt almost drowned out by all the people (especially the children).

TIP: If you’re there to learn, do your best to stay in the front.

We had no regrets with getting there early, meeting our guide, and sticking to them like glue.  You’ll definitely wish you would have when you get stuck in the back, wandering along without knowing what you’re looking at.  Although the guides stop in larger areas to make sure the group is together and give an overview of where you’re at/what’s going on, the commentary along the way is even better.

DON’T TOUCH ANYTHING

This was a HUGE emphasis during our guided tours (to no surprise).  It was a shock to see as many small children as we did.  Some of them were incredibly well behaved and followed all the rules.  However, there was a whole group that decided running around and touching every piece of rock they could reach was totally appropriate.  Even I was getting pushed and shoved from kids running past and not paying attention at all.

TIP: If you’re going to take the kids, make sure that they can follow rules and you’re committed to keeping your eyes on them.  Don’t ruin anyone else’s time there.

When it comes to the glowworms, the instructions are to produce zero light and be as quiet as possible.  It’s a very fragile ecosystem after all.  When you see how glowworms capture their prey, you’ll really want to touch it (I know I did).  Practice some self-control, for the glowworms’ sake.  If you’re like me, just hold your camera with two hands and you’ll be just fine.  This leads me to my next point.

Forget the Camera (unless you’re a pro)

Expecting to get some of those amazing Google search images of the glowworms with your phone’s camera?  Not going to happen (sorry).  Sometimes the glowworms shine brighter, sometimes they’re dimmer.  Because of this, I highly recommend having a camera with the ability for settings in particularly low light scenes.  If not, you aren’t going to get any quality photos.  This was my first trip with my new Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III mirrorless camera.  Below are the photos I captured (I’m sure they’d be a little better now that I’ve gotten much more practice).  All in all, be fully prepared or just put the camera away.  There’s no sense in wasting your time trying to get subpar photos.  So put down the screen and embrace the magic that’s right in front of your eyes!  Just go and enjoy the experience.

(SPOILER ALERT) They’re Not Actually Worms

First of all, our beloved “glowworms” are actually just the larvae of a winged insect.  They’re referred to as worms because they can grow up to the size of a matchstick and, well, look like a worm (or maggot of some sort)!  As our guide was telling us about what they are and their lifecycle, all I could think about is what kind of interaction they would be having with the other characters in “A Bug’s Life.”  My favorite part was learning how they acquire food (they live in a dark cave after all).

So after the female lays all her eggs, the larvae hatch (at almost a month old) and crawl away.  The larvae (the glowworm) put down a “feeding line” that’s basically a sticky fishing line for prey.  Glowworms feed and grow over the span of nine months.  Get this, they attract prey with their glowing butts and reel in the poor suckers that get stuck to their lines.

Our guide told us to be extra careful around them, because if two lines got stuck together, it would unfortunately cause both worms to die.  After they cocoon for a couple of weeks, they emerge as big, beautiful… mosquito looking things.  Ok, so I lied about the beautiful part, but they are big and look like weird mosquitos that have NO MOUTH.  You heard that right folks.  Their only purpose in life is to reproduce and spread their species.  I mean, who needs food when that’s your life purpose? Exactly.

 

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