On this particular adventure we had a crew from Raglan which included myself (Amber), Anne, Alice, Daniel, Dan, Gabriele, Kate, Merve and Jai.
We had a great time underground. Some of our highlights were seeing the largest stalagmite in the North Island and the Amphitheater which was a big wide open area that formed naturally in the cave over time which has amazing acoustics. Our guide Anne, who has a good voice, sung us the Titanic song.
We all loved the big drops down where ropes and harnesses and rigging ropes were needed. One was about 5m and the other about 10m, this was fun and scary at the same time. My favourite part was towards the end of the cave when we came to a passage that was a continual squeeze. You had to manoeuvre your body in all types of positions, from sideways to crouching down low, to up on tip toes. It felt a bit like a yoga session!
Dan brought his phone along and took some good pics which we were all stoked about. Another favourite was a part where the water got deep, right up to your chest in height, so we all attempted to get across without getting wet. In order to stay dry, you had to have both arms and legs wide, like climbing up the inside of a door. Here if you got your footing wrong you fell into deep water. Some of us made it through not getting wet at all. Others dropped and made a big splash into the water, it was very entertaining to watch. Over all I would highly recommend this cave, and ask your instructor to start in “Zweiholen Cave” followed by “Downstream Gardners Cave”. This was the perfect mix.
To get to Downstream Gardners you need a guide with rope skills for abseiling and knowledge of the cave, as there are many drops and dangerous spots you need to know about. Luckily we had Anne, a friend who is very knowledgeable of this cave and very skilled. For a qualified guide we recommend trying waitomocaves.com.
Overall we had a great time and are super keen to take another group through next year in 2019. Flick me a message if your keen!