If you’re a fanatic about nature, New Zealand is one destination not to be missed. It’s one of the most beautiful countries I have ever visited and rivaled by few others. There are a few locations in New Zealand that stand out for me particularly. One of those places is a town on the North Island by the name of Waitomo. If you’re into hiking, caving, or spelunking, Waitomo is one place you cannot miss! It’s ground zero for any kind of caving. It is home of the, “Lost World Epic Tour”.
If you do visit Waitomo, one tour you must be sure not to miss is the “Lost World Epic Tour”, by Waitomo Adventures. Epic is truly the only word that describes this tour appropriately. I personally, am not one for tours. I don’t like to be ushered anywhere, but on this tour you will definitely get your money’s worth on the Lost World Epic Tour.
BEGINNING YOUR LOST WORLD EPIC TOUR
The tour starts you out with a brief safety lesson on abseiling, then off you go to a hole in the ground. Hole doesn’t accurately describe this opening in the ground. It’s quite huge and quite far to the bottom. It’s 100 meters down in fact and the only way to get to the bottom is by abseiling. It’s quite intimidating at first glance, but once you are tethered to your rope and on your way down, you grow numb to the fact that you are so high up. For those of you concerned about abseiling down, you are also tethered to one of the trained instructors. If for some reason, you lose control of your abseil, they are able to halt your free fall.
DROPPED IN: THE LOST WORLD EPIC TOUR
Once at the bottom, the group will take a quick break so everyone can catch their breath. Then, it’s time to huff it to the mouth of the cave. The hike is somewhat uphill, but isn’t too intense. If you are relatively in good shape, it should be no problem hiking it. Once at the mouth of the cave, there are some rather large boulders that you have to scale. Once you scale those rocks, be sure to turn around and say goodbye to the daylight, because it will be a few hours before you see it again.
THE LOST WORLD EPIC TOUR OVERALL
The tour is amazing, and in case you are wondering, yes you will get wet; very wet! There are plenty of times that you will be wading through the water and climbing waterfalls in the cave!!! And I haven’t even mentioned the glow worms yet. This Lost World Epic Tour is amazing and worth every penny.
My biggest complaint about the entire tour is that they don’t allow you to bring cameras. The guides take pictures for you and then email you the link, but the pictures were rather lack luster. I heard if you book a tour in the off season and you have a group of four people, they will allow you to bring your camera, but that needs to be arranged in advance. The Lost World Epic Tour is a must do if you come to New Zealand. You will not be disappointed.
SIDE NOTES:
If you do the tour in the summer time, the hotels in Waitomo are insanely priced. I actually found it more reasonable to stay in the town of Hamilton which is roughly an hour away from Waitomo. It’s definitely worth checking into if you are looking to save a few bucks.
IMAGES:
Group photo at a waterfall inside the cave.
Group photo with my teammates and the glow worms.
Looking up at the abseil ropes.
Scaling this waterfall is an option, but why wouldn’t you want to climb a waterfall?
Staying dry on this tour is not an option. There’s a river running through the cave for Pete’s sake!
The hike to the mouth of the cave is a bit of a workout for someone in not the greatest shape, but doable.
After you suit up and gear up, you head down to the platform that holds the abseil ropes
Me and my mates are lined up on the platform waiting while the instructors ensure we are attached to the ropes properly.
Once off the platform, I post for a photo opp.
Attached to the rope, the hardest part is stepping off the platform.
My signature pose anytime I’m in exploration mode.
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