1. Visitor Centre
Nau mai, haere mai, welcome to Ruakuri Cave, in beautiful Waitomo.The tour is about to begin. Your guide is standing nearby. Please give them a big thumbs up so that they know everything is working perfectly.There are a few very important messages before we start. Toilets: This tour takes about 90 minutes. There are no toilets in the cave, so this is your last chance to visit the bathroom! If you need to do so, signal your guide so they know you’ve left the group. Headphones: If you are not currently using headphones, connect them now. Please do not use your phone’s speaker to listen to the audio guide. Backpacks: If you have a large bag or backpack, you will need to carry it on your front. Clothing: It can be colder in the cave, so keep an extra layer handy just in case. Photos: It’s OK to take photos in the cave, but please turn your flash off.Thanks for your attention! Now you can put your device in your pocket.From now on, your guide will control the audio for this tour using bluetooth. They will make sure you hear the right information at the right time.Relax and enjoy the tour! When we’re all ready, your guide will lead everyone to the cave.
2. Walk to Cave Entrance
We’re ready to move! It is a short walk to the entrance, and we will be crossing a road.Please take care while we cross the road, look out for cars and be mindful of your footing, as the ground may be slippery.Before we enter the cave there will be a short safety briefing. Your guide will speak to everyone first in English, and then you will hear the same information in Mandarin. After that, you will mostly hear this audio while you walk between stops. When you are stopped, your guide will address everyone in English.There are over 300 caves in the Waitomo area and around 4.5km of passage in Ruakuri Cave alone. The limestone in Ruakuri cave was formed on the seabed, more than 30 million years ago.
3. Cave Entrance
Welcome to Ruakuri Cave. Our cave is a very special place, and when we enter, we all make a commitment to look after it. This is called the tiaki promise. By making this promise, every visitor becomes a kaitiaki, or guardian of the land, water, rock and even the creatures of the cave. As kaitiaki, we are all responsible for protecting it for future generations. That means there are some important rules to follow while you are in the cave.First, don’t touch anything. The oil in your hands can permanently damage cave formations. Second, be aware of your surroundings. Some passages in the caves are narrow, and some are low, so do mind your head. If you have a bag, you must carry it on your front, not on your back, so you don’t knock or damage anything. Third, no smoking, vaping or eating in the cave. You can drink water, but only water please - no other drinks.Lastly, taking videos on your device could interfere with this audio guide, so we recommend just taking still photographs - as many as you like! But please make sure your flash is turned off. Glowworms don’t appreciate bright light! Thank you for being a kaitiaki of our cave.
4. Down the Spiral
This is the famous spiral entrance to Ruakuri. It was opened in 2005 after more than a year of very careful work. When we descend the ramp, we will circle seven times and descend 12 metres - about four stories - until we arrive at the level of the base of the cave. We like to think of the spiral as a great example of Kiwi innovation. Ruakuri is the only wheelchair accessible cave tour in the Southern hemisphere. Your guide is going to turn on the ramp lighting, so get your camera ready - this makes for a great photo opportunity!An interesting fact: Every light that you will see your guide turn on is solar powered.
5. End of Spiral
This water feature stands here, at our man-made cave entrance, for several important reasons. First of all, it helps demonstrate how caves are formed - more about that soon. Second, the water helps us to preserve the cave by creating humidity. The cave is naturally damp and wet, and we do not want to introduce dry air from outside through this entrance. So this water feature ensures that this area’s humidity matches that of the actual cave.There is a third important purpose for this water, which you will learn as you exit the tour.
6. Tunnel
Now we are going to pass through a tunnel, and then enter the cave through a branch called the Drum Passage. It’s called this because in the old days, cavers would crawl through a tunnel made of oil drums to get to the main cave this way. It’s much roomier now!
7. Drum Passage
Limestone - lots of limestone. That is what surrounds us. All the beautiful features we see in this cave were formed by limestone, plus water, plus time.Look up. The formations on the ceiling above you are called stalactites. The ones down on the floor are stalagmites.When rainwater passes through rich forest soil, it becomes slightly acidic and absorbs CO2.And when that acidic water runs over limestone, the CO2 is released, dissolving a tiny amount of the rock into calcium carbonate …As the water reaches the tip of the stalactite, some of the calcium carbonate deposits on the formation.The water then drips to the ground and leaves the rest on a stalagmite below. Eventually, the stalactite and the stalagmite will grow together, making a column or a pillar.
8. To the Limestone Curtain
Please be very careful in this narrow section of the cave. Because we want to protect every detail, there are alarms that will sound if anything goes outside the pathway, so please don’t set them off by mistake!We are now walking to a beautiful formation called a curtain. Curtains are formed the same way as stalactites and stalagmites, but it has a different shape. That’s because of the way the rainwater flows down the wall of the cave, rather than forming a drip.
9. Formation Growth
Cave formations grow very slowly: perhaps 1 cubic centimetre every hundred years. Are the formations around us still growing? It’s very hard to tell, and it depends on water flow and air flow. It’s possible their growth is changing due to environmental or climate factors. Unfortunately, due to their slow growth, we probably won’t understand in our lifetimes if there are changes.
10. Cave Coral and Rimstone Dams
As we head toward the glowworms, you will notice two other types of formations: cave coral and flowstone.Cave coral, as the name suggests, looks like coral, popcorn or cauliflower. It can sometimes be seen growing on top of other formations. It is formed when water seeps into the cave through cracks and pores, and then evaporates quickly, leaving its calcium carbonate behind. Cave coral is usually found near cave entrances and exits, because of the higher airflow in those parts of the cave. The other formation you may see here is called flowstone. This occurs where water deposits in pools on the cave floor. Look to your left and right to see some examples of flowstone that have rimstone dams at their base.
11. Glowworms
Here in Ruakuri cave, you will have a unique view of the famous glowworms - perhaps you have seen them at Waitomo Cave? Found only in New Zealand, they are called glowworms in English, but they aren’t worms. They are actually the larvae stage of a small flying gnat that looks a bit like a mosquito. The larvae need to grow as big and strong as possible before they turn into gnats. But food isn’t easy to find in a cave. The rainwater and streams bring in tiny flying insects, and those are what the glowworms want to catch. They have a clever way of doing so. First they hang a little thread of sticky beads down into the air. Then an organ in their body uses oxygen to make a glowing blue-green light. The flying insects are attracted by this glow, and fly into the hanging threads of sticky beads.The glowworm can then reel their catch in, a bit like a fisherman, and feast.Glowworms have to eat as much as they can, because in the final adult stage of life, they cannot eat anything - because they don’t have a mouth!As adult gnats, they will only live for two or three days. In that time they will have to find a partner, mate and lay around 100 eggs in an appropriate place, before they die. They never get to see the next generation. So for now, enjoy the beautiful light they make!
12. Walk to Hidden Waterfall
We will soon start to hear fast flowing running water. This is the sound of the famous Ruakuri hidden waterfall.Don’t worry, it sounds powerful but we won’t get washed away.
13. Hidden Waterfall
Can you hear the hidden waterfall? It sounds impressive, doesn’t it?In 1904, explorers heard this waterfall too, but they couldn’t find it. To them it sounded so strong, that they labelled it ‘the highest underground waterfall in the world’.The real height of this waterfall was only discovered in 1936 by a local laundryman who worked at the Waitomo Caves hotel. To his shock, he found it is only 1.5 meters tall.The waterfall is part of our Blackwater rafting tours. Listen - you might be able to hear some rafters yelling out!
14. Toward Glowworm Bridge
The next stop will contain a very special experience.When your guide stops the group, they will turn off all the lights in the cave. It will be pitch dark. The only source of light will be the glowworms.This is a chance to silently see, hear and feel the cave in its natural state.Please leave your device screen off and away until your guide tells you, and stay silent, listening to the sounds of Ruakuri Cave.
15. Glowworm Bridge
As you cross this bridge, look down to the dark water below you.The Māori name for glowworms is Titawai. This means starlight reflected on water. Can you see why?
16. Bridge to Old Lunch Room
Our next stop is an open area called ‘The Old Lunch Room’. Why is it called this? Two separate teams worked on the construction of this tour back in the early 2000s. One team was outside, digging the spiral entrance. The other team worked here inside the cave, building all the walkways. This second team got to work each day by swimming in through the cave’s natural entrance. In this area, they would hang their wetsuits, change into dry clothes, and have their tea for the day.Not exactly roomy, but it did the job!
17. Old Lunch Room
In this area, you can see bare limestone rock which is layered like pages in a book, or a stack of pancakes. This rock was formed at the bottom of a shallow ocean almost 35 million years ago. Each layer of rock is made from sea life, corals, and other organic matter that fell to the bottom of the ocean. The weight of these layers, and the pressure of the ocean, compressed it into stone. It has also been bent and twisted by the movement of the earth's crust.Then, about 10 million years ago, tectonic plate movements lifted this rock out of the ocean.Amazingly, you might even see marine fossils in the next few areas of our cave.
18. Walk to Pipe
This narrow passage is dry today, but once it was a stream. As the flowing water wore away the rock, it eventually found a new channel through the cave, and left this one behind. That’s the amazing thing about these caves: they are always changing as water carves into limestone. Now that the stream has moved, we can travel this very convenient dry route from the Old Lunch Room to the Pipe. What is the Pipe? We will tell you more soon.
19. Look up the Pipe
Look up - you will see a pipe coming out of the roof of the cave. If you peer up it, you will see daylight. Why?When the paths through the caves were built, the only access in was via the stream. And a lot of cement was needed for the job.Bringing a cement mixer in was a big challenge in itself - it had to be broken into pieces and floated on the stream.But cement powder is very heavy, and must be kept dry at all costs. How to manage that?The team came up with a brilliant solution. They dug this pipe connecting the cave to the surface, 55 m above us. Now, cement could be poured straight down the pipe and into the cement mixer. Pretty smart, right?Have a look up the pipe and see for yourself.
20. Fossils
Your guide will now show you some examples of fossils that were found in Ruakuri Cave.These organisms lived millions of years ago on the bottom of the ocean. The fossils in this cave will be preserved for years to come.
21. Walk to Pretties
We are now walking to one of our most famous formations, known as the Pretties. We are now walking to one of our most famous formations, known as the Pretties. You will have a chance to view them and take photographs. You will notice, on one of the ceilings, stalactites that look like lightning bolts. The reason for this unusual shape is seismic activity millions of years ago. These events tilted the whole cave to a new angle, causing the formations to no longer point straight down. However, as water continued to drip, the same formations kept growing - directly downwards.This shift of direction happened several times, resulting in these amazing bold lightning shapes.
22. Pretties - Free Wander
Here we are at ‘The Pretties’. At this point we will spend a few minutes to let you look around and take lots of photos. Please remember not to touch anything, and be very careful with any bags you have. They must stay on your front, not your back.If you would like your guide to take your photograph, please hand them your camera, they know the best place for a great background. This is also a good time to ask your guide any questions you might have - they’re happy to chat!
23. Walk to Cavers
The huge pile of loose rock on our left is the result of a rock fall about 40,000 years ago. If you look up above the pile, you will see that this is also the home of some of our friendly cavers - the people who explored this cave, and worked out how to move safely through the passages. Today we have nice gentle, flat walkways, but the cavers needed ropes, harnesses and helmets. If you want some underground adventure like that, ask your guide about Legendary Blackwater Rafting after your tour!
24. Cavers
Over the last 100 years or more, cavers have explored hundreds of kilometers of caves in the Waitomo region. There are still undoubtedly caves that have not yet been visited by humans.But even those early cavers were not the first to visit Ruakuri. Shortly we will learn who gave the cave its name, what it means, and why there are sacred sections of the cave that we cannot visit.
25. Walk to Rockfall Passage
As we make our way along this passage, keep an eye out for a vertical shaft above us. It looks like the inside of a chimney. It reaches 40m up, but doesn’t go all the way to the surface. This type of feature is called an Aven. Avens are formed by water running through porous limestone and wearing away the rock more quickly than elsewhere in the cave.
26. Rockfall Passage
This part of the cave is quite low - please watch your head as you move through this passage! Be aware also that the lighting is dim.
27. Walk to Holden's Cavern
As you walk into this next section, you may notice a change in air temperature. This part of the cave is always a couple of degrees colder than the rest. That’s because of a massive dry entrance close by at the bottom of a forest valley in the Ruakuri Reserve.The cool air of the forest settles at the bottom of the valley, and the cave “sucks” it in here. Other parts of the cave are higher up, or lie behind sealed doors, so the cold air stays here.You may wonder why we don’t go further into this cavern on the tour, and leave through the original entrance. The answer to that is the most important story of Ruakuri Cave. It explains the name Ruakuri, and why that part of the cave is tapu, or sacred. We will tell you all about that shortly.
28. Holden's Cavern
The name Ruakuri roughly means "den of dogs".This entrance, the first to be discovered, was found almost 400 years ago by a Māori tribe traveling through this area from [Kawhia, out on] the West Coast. It is said that a party of hunters saw a group of wild dogs (kūri) taking shelter in the area around the cave entrance.When the group reported the sighting of the dogs to their chief, Tane Tanetinorau, he ordered them to go back and kill the dogs. They were skinned, as dog hides were prized for making ceremonial cloaks.Some iwi (Māori tribes) used caves as shelters, however here in Waitomo they were sometimes used as Urupas (burial grounds). It is Māori custom for important figures, men and women, to be buried in caves and so naturally Ruakuri Cave became the wahi tapu (sacred burial ground) for Tāne Tinorau, and other important members of the iwi (tribe).
29. To Trespass Sign
This entrance to the cave is no longer used. It is considered to be extremely sacred. Out of respect for its significance, we no longer go into this area. However, early cave tours did use this entrance. If you look underneath our pathways, you will see the wooden boardwalks from those early tours. The Ruakuri was rediscovered by a local man, James Holden, in the early 1900’s. The entrance to the cave lay on his farm, and he began running tours in 1904. Soon after, the government took over the site for the next 80 years. In 1987 the disagreement about the ownership of the cave was clarified, and the Holden family, who are of Māori descent, took the cave back. They then spent nearly twenty years planning how to give access to the cave in the correct way, respecting the sacred area. The cave, with its new entrance, re-opened in 2005.
30. Trespass Sign
In a small alcove ahead, you will find a wooden sign that once stood outside the entrance to the cave. The sign says ‘no trespassing’. Don’t worry, it’s not addressing us!It was made by Jimmy Holden, James Holden’s grandson, in the 1980s, to remind any government officials that the cave's ownership remained in dispute.
31. Return to Spiral
We have now walked in a loop, and are starting to return to the spiral.We will go back past the glow worms, and the very narrow parts of the cave. Please remember to be extra careful not to knock or touch anything. This part of the cave will be familiar - but keep looking around, because there’s always more to notice!Please stay with your group as we make our way back.
32. The Limestone Rock
We have now returned to the spiral, and to this water feature. There is another reason why we have this. This feature is a Wahi Whakanoa: a place where people are able to wash with water upon exiting a building or area. Join your guide in briefly washing your hands in the water - this is an important element of tikanga (customary behaviors or practices). Why do we do this? There are two important and complementary concepts in Maori culture: tapu and noa. Tapu means sacred, and noa means normal or everyday. Interacting with some sacred things or places, like this cave, puts you in a state of tapu. To negate or break the tapu, we use water. This practice ensures that the things that belong in this space, stay in the space.
33. Cave Exit
We hope you will remember this place, and the people you have learned about.We will now walk back to the visitor centre together. If you would like to know more about anything, please ask the guide, or if you would like to do that in your own language, we have an interactive display that will answer all your questions.We are also always happy to hear any feedback you have, on this audio guide, or the tour. Please let us know how we can make things even better.Haere rā. Goodbye. Travel safely.Thank you for visiting Ruakuri Cave with us.
