So, we’re up and ready to get picked up at 9.45am. We all have to make sure we’ve got our swimmers with us, a spare pair of socks and warm clothes…..hmmmm ok….we get introduced to our instructor who is a youngish guy called Neil, who sounds very English but with a kiwi twang. We fill out some risk assessment / health and safety / disclaimer thing which covers their backs if we go missing in the caves I reckon! It’s us 3 plus a German couple – Eden and Ettienne – and we all pile into this minibus which has a slight aroma of wet dog.
He takes us off the beaten track and pulls up outside three sheds and starts telling us about the day. Firstly, we’re going to get kitted out with wetsuits, attractive white wellies, then we have to put a pair of pyjama bottoms over the wetsuit….god knows why…followed by our trusty helmet which has a light on it! So we get our wetsuits dished out and away we go to get changed. argh, what a faff trying to put a wet suit on! Lots of jumping around and squeezing yourself into rubber – nice!
Once that palaver was done, we pick our wellie boots and pj bottoms. Don the helmets and we jump back into the minibus and get taken down this valley. We hop out there and then walk down for some rope training. Neil shows us the technique of abseiling, all done of flat ground, which was weird but necessary I feel! We don’t have gloves on and I can feel my poor wee hands getting roughed up by the rope. After ten minutes of practice, we head down towards the abseiling point……as the cave entrance is 30ft below us.
Aaron volunteers to go first, hero that he is, and away he goes into the black abyss! Dave next, then Eden, then me, then Etienne. No hiccups so far and we all survive! Once we land at the mouth of the cave, there is pretty fast flowing river going through the cave, which I wasn’t expecting…..the wellies are already filled with water and it feels like you’re walking through treacle – this is going to be hard work – how am I going to cope!? Neil tells us to all walk in single file and head into the cave….the mouth of the cave is about 10ft high, so you don’t feel claustrophobic….yet…..and away we go into the unknown…..
It certainly is an experience, but one I wouldn’t want to do again!! It’s very demanding and there are parts where you have to crawl through tiny holes and the potential for a freak-out due to claustrophobia is HIGH! Neil shows us the glow worms which was really amazing. We’re all sitting there, on a rock in the pitch black and you look up at the ceiling of the cave and there they all are! Thousands of glowing dots above your head! Beautiful to see! But then that was followed by me falling over in the fast flowing river and clinging onto a rock for my dear life….with the instructor yelling at me to stop! Er hello?! It’s pitch black and you’re yelling ‘oi you, stop’ at the whole group with your light shining in my face – who do I know who you’re talking to!? Grrrr!!! He did apologise slightly, saying ‘I’m not being a knob on purpose, it’s for your own safety’ ah ok, cheers mate…..how about you learn the groups’ names like a good instructor – doofus!
After that faff, its onto black water rafting…..you jump into your black rubber ring and away you go….yeah, sounds fun doesn’t it? Not when you have a rubber ring that wont accommodate your fat ass and you keep falling out of it, going under freezing fast flowing water and gasping for breath, trying not to smash your face into rocks on either side….yeah fun it was……….bloody traumatic I say! Dave didn’t even try to save me!! Neil eventually susses out my problem and swaps rings around which is much better, but now I’m scared for my life and not wanting to do this anymore!!
We get back to the entrance of the cave – such a good feeling to see daylight again – hallelujah! But then we get told we have to rock climb up the way we came down…..with wellies on?! Great, I’m so exhausted and just want to get back into the safety of our hire car and head to Auckland! I’m second to go up and slip as I start, so the rope goes very tight as I head up! I’m sure Neil has it under control…..but I manage it and I know it’s all over – yay!!!
After the ordeal is over and we pay for the photos, we get given a bowl of tasty tomato soup – for our efforts! Nah, it does the job and away we go heading to Auckland. It’s supposed to take about 2 and a bit hours, but we’ll be hitting rush hour so nearer 3. Everyone is cream crackered with Aaron crashing out in the back immediately. Dave and I swap over and he then crashes out. Luckily, I’ve had 40 winks and a coffee so I’m all good and end up driving the whole way back to Auckland – even driving in the blimming city centre!!!!
We check into Base and get told it’s a free bar downstairs from 8pm – we get there at 8.10pm and the free bar has finished – what!? Pesky travellers! Haha. I have a couple then head upstairs to pack and ring a few peeps. Not long now til the Vanstone arrives – yay! Can’t wait for some crazy LA banter! The boys stagger in past 1am, reeking – hmmmm nice hangover for them tomorrow!
He takes us off the beaten track and pulls up outside three sheds and starts telling us about the day. Firstly, we’re going to get kitted out with wetsuits, attractive white wellies, then we have to put a pair of pyjama bottoms over the wetsuit….god knows why…followed by our trusty helmet which has a light on it! So we get our wetsuits dished out and away we go to get changed. argh, what a faff trying to put a wet suit on! Lots of jumping around and squeezing yourself into rubber – nice!
Once that palaver was done, we pick our wellie boots and pj bottoms. Don the helmets and we jump back into the minibus and get taken down this valley. We hop out there and then walk down for some rope training. Neil shows us the technique of abseiling, all done of flat ground, which was weird but necessary I feel! We don’t have gloves on and I can feel my poor wee hands getting roughed up by the rope. After ten minutes of practice, we head down towards the abseiling point……as the cave entrance is 30ft below us.
Aaron volunteers to go first, hero that he is, and away he goes into the black abyss! Dave next, then Eden, then me, then Etienne. No hiccups so far and we all survive! Once we land at the mouth of the cave, there is pretty fast flowing river going through the cave, which I wasn’t expecting…..the wellies are already filled with water and it feels like you’re walking through treacle – this is going to be hard work – how am I going to cope!? Neil tells us to all walk in single file and head into the cave….the mouth of the cave is about 10ft high, so you don’t feel claustrophobic….yet…..and away we go into the unknown…..
It certainly is an experience, but one I wouldn’t want to do again!! It’s very demanding and there are parts where you have to crawl through tiny holes and the potential for a freak-out due to claustrophobia is HIGH! Neil shows us the glow worms which was really amazing. We’re all sitting there, on a rock in the pitch black and you look up at the ceiling of the cave and there they all are! Thousands of glowing dots above your head! Beautiful to see! But then that was followed by me falling over in the fast flowing river and clinging onto a rock for my dear life….with the instructor yelling at me to stop! Er hello?! It’s pitch black and you’re yelling ‘oi you, stop’ at the whole group with your light shining in my face – who do I know who you’re talking to!? Grrrr!!! He did apologise slightly, saying ‘I’m not being a knob on purpose, it’s for your own safety’ ah ok, cheers mate…..how about you learn the groups’ names like a good instructor – doofus!
After that faff, its onto black water rafting…..you jump into your black rubber ring and away you go….yeah, sounds fun doesn’t it? Not when you have a rubber ring that wont accommodate your fat ass and you keep falling out of it, going under freezing fast flowing water and gasping for breath, trying not to smash your face into rocks on either side….yeah fun it was……….bloody traumatic I say! Dave didn’t even try to save me!! Neil eventually susses out my problem and swaps rings around which is much better, but now I’m scared for my life and not wanting to do this anymore!!
We get back to the entrance of the cave – such a good feeling to see daylight again – hallelujah! But then we get told we have to rock climb up the way we came down…..with wellies on?! Great, I’m so exhausted and just want to get back into the safety of our hire car and head to Auckland! I’m second to go up and slip as I start, so the rope goes very tight as I head up! I’m sure Neil has it under control…..but I manage it and I know it’s all over – yay!!!
After the ordeal is over and we pay for the photos, we get given a bowl of tasty tomato soup – for our efforts! Nah, it does the job and away we go heading to Auckland. It’s supposed to take about 2 and a bit hours, but we’ll be hitting rush hour so nearer 3. Everyone is cream crackered with Aaron crashing out in the back immediately. Dave and I swap over and he then crashes out. Luckily, I’ve had 40 winks and a coffee so I’m all good and end up driving the whole way back to Auckland – even driving in the blimming city centre!!!!
We check into Base and get told it’s a free bar downstairs from 8pm – we get there at 8.10pm and the free bar has finished – what!? Pesky travellers! Haha. I have a couple then head upstairs to pack and ring a few peeps. Not long now til the Vanstone arrives – yay! Can’t wait for some crazy LA banter! The boys stagger in past 1am, reeking – hmmmm nice hangover for them tomorrow!
Hayley
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