We enter the Ruakuri Cave by way of a magnificent man-made shaft, descending a corkscrew ramp lit by tiny orange lights. As we walked our tour guide sang a waiata, her voice bouncing off the walls and filling the air with echoed melody.
Now inside, we speak in careful whispers, as if a shout might wake the beast we have entered. As we walk, the limestone walls provide an ever-changing tapestry, sometimes dripping like pancake batter from the roof or forming rough, popcorn-like bubbles on the walls. My favourite hang down in delicately-folding milky sheets.
I had been nervous of feeling claustrophobic, but the cave is roomy and well-lit. We amble along sturdy walkways and bridges through the sprawling tunnels, occasionally stopping to peer at glow-worms and the jewelled threads they catch food with.
For the most part, it is quiet – the silence occasionally punctuated by a drip of water – but, as we get deeper into the cave, we hear shrieks and a rushing river.
Like a mob of slippery eels, wetsuited thrill-seekers are floating along the river in rubber rings.
They appear to be having fun, but privately I decide they must be nuts. The air temperature in the cave is cold enough already and even the thought of a swim is enough to make my bones ache.
Our guide tells us the best place to spot titiwai (the Maori word for glow-worm, meaning ‘projected over water’) is directly above the rivers, where there is the most food.Thankfully, I’m able to float down a river without getting near a rubber ring.
That afternoon I take a tour of the Waitomo Glow-worm Caves – home of the vast limestone ‘cathedral’ where concerts are held – which ends with a magical ride on a wooden boat.
We float in silence beneath a magnificent canopy of twinkling white lights, drawing a collective breath in as we tilt our heads backward. We are spellbound, star-struck. It’s easy to see how insects would be drawn to these glittering death-traps.
And then our boat rounds a corner and, at once, it’s all there: sunshine, trees, and people going about their daily business.
Do they even know there’s a fairytale world beneath their feet?
Reported by Alice Galletly for our AA Directions Winter 2012 issue