A few weeks ago, J and I went on a glow worm kayak trip on Lake Karapiro, new Cambridge. It was a guided tour done by The Boatshed Kayaks, and it was lovely.
Naturally, you see glow worms at night, so we started our kayak adventure a little before dusk. Lake Karapiro is stunning, and J and I enjoyed looking out at it and then doing some paddling around while waiting for the whole group to get settled into their kayaks.
J looks too big for the kayak in this picture, but I promise that he did end up with plenty of legroom.
We kayaked around the lake for a bit, then went into Pokaiwhenua Stream, which runs into it. There was a bit of current, but not enough to make it hard to go upstream.
After a while, we got to the canyon, where there were tall walls on either side of the river. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the walls are rock, with varying levels of greenery covering them.
This is the section of the river where we will see the glow worms on our way back. They hang to the rock walls.
Just as it was getting to be quite dark, we got out of the kayaks and the guides built a fire. We got to roast marshmallows, drink wine and/or hot chocolate, and eat cheese and crackers as the last of the light faded away.
J and I hadn't realized that there would be food, so we were quite delighted.
Unfortunately, from this point on, it was too dark to take pictures, and even if I thought they might turn out, I would not have wanted to ruin the experience for everyone with annoying camera lights and flashes. So you will have to rely on my descriptions, which will be terribly insufficient, so really you should just come to NZ and see them for yourself. That's really best.
We got back into the kayaks, but instead of paddling, we made rafts of four to six kayaks, and then we drifted downstream. We had no lights on at all, so that we could see the glow worms as well as possible. If you'd like to read about what exactly glow worms are before you hear about us seeing them, go to these links.
It was a magical experience. Everyone was quiet, and we drifted down the canyon with tiny pinpricks of blue light twinkling on both canyon walls as we went by, and with the stars shining down in the aisle of sky we could see between the canyon walls. I was so happy that everyone in our group also wanted to be silent and just appreciate the beauty. It was dark enough that I couldn't tell where the water ended and the canyon wall began, which gave me the sense that I was suspended in the air, surrounded by those tiny lights. I feel awe-struck and relaxed just thinking about it.
My suspicions that photography was a lost cause were confirmed by the guide, who said that a reporter tried for hours the week before to get a good picture and left almost in tears that he couldn't capture the effect. Good thing I didn't try.
This is a picture I found online that gives you something of an idea of what the glowworms look like.
The Waitomo Caves are the most renowned place to see glow worms, and I am excited to go there as well. I have heard that it is quite a different experience from this one, and I'm sure it will also be beautiful and inspiring.
In more current news: My mom is arriving today!!! She has been on a plane for ages already, but will be in Auckland soon and then fly down to New Plymouth!!! J and I are so excited to see her!
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