Bay of Islands: In Search of Glowworms

Cyclone Jasmine caused our captain to cancel the ship's stop in Tonga and head to the Bay of Islands in the northern island of New Zealand. The rumors that the crew actually cheered when the decision was announced were true. Of course, Ken was happy because when he were in Bay of Islands two years ago, Ken declared New Zealand his favorite country to visit and announced that he wanted to return for at least a month-long stay. NOw we at least have another day in this geographical wonderland. Having toured the early sailors' hangout of Russell and visiting Waitangi, the place of the signing of the Waitangi Treaty between the British and the Maori, we signed up the the tour of the Puketi Kauri Forest and Glow Worm Cave. While some of our fellow travelers informed us that the Glow Worm Caves were hokey, we who had never laid eyes on a glow worm but knew every word to the song, "Glow, Little Glow Worm, Glow," decided it was time to meet one up close and personal.

The trip through the New Zealand countryside and small towns was worth the price of the tour. Just think about the scenery in Lord of the Rings. Our tour guide Doug told us that considerable reconstruction of the highway system is occuring to widen and straighten the roads in an effort to reduce fatalities in what the natives refer to as the black spot areas. Raising sheep in this part of New Zealand was not good for raising sheep because the sheep start to suffocate from the heat. In the winter, snow falls only from the the middle of the North Island southward. The popular New Zealand kiwi fruit originated in China. Scientists determined that they could raise a better strain of the Chinese gooseberries in the rich volcanic top soil and called the fruit, which grows on a vine similar to grapes, kiwi.

On our journey, we stopped to view the Stone Store, the oldest stone building in the country that was first used as a library for the missionaries, and the Kemp House, New Zealand's oldest surviving house built of wood from the kauri tree. The small village of Kerikeri, which is becoming overpopulated, has built a bypass on the highway to direct traffic away from these two buildings because their foundations were being shaken. At our bathroom stop, Lorraine bought a beautiful dress at an outlet store that spotted the label, Made in China. It seems as if travelers from the United States are not the people who go to China to let their clothes attend a homecoming. My only wish was that the shop had the dress in my size.

In Puketi Kauri Forest, we were greeted by our guide Ian, a former dairy farmer who got tired of gazing at cow's rear ends and started Puketi Kauri Forest Walks (www.forestwalks.com or +64 9 401-9095) seven years ago. Now his ecotourism business offers wedding and other parties in which cocktails are served on the boardwalk and then resume to the clearing for dining under the stars. Ian told us that to know what could be eaten in the forest, watch what the bird's eat. He also explained that kauri is pronounced cody. The 120 inches of rain annually is the key to this example of one of the best subtropical rain forests that once clothed New Zealand. The Kauris can be more than 600 years old and provide a hardwood with a beautiful grain. We noted a tree felled by lightning in the 1930s that provided enough timber for 10 houses.

Laborers used to climb the trees with spiked boots to collect the gum, when gum used to be used for many things for which we now use oil because the gum supplied was depleted. Ian also pointed out a grasshopper that lives in the downed Kauri trees. When he was a young boy, he and his three brothers collected 1,000 of these at 5 cents each for a high school that used them in biology classes. According to Ian, $50 bought a lot of ice cream. A campaign has started to bring the birds back because they drop the seeds and reforest the Kauris.

Then we continued to Kawakawa where we bought chicken and mushrooms pies for lunch and used the public toilets designed by the Austrian architect Friedensreich Hudnertwasser. He had come to Kawakawa on a cruise ship tour, fell in love with New Zealand and moved to Kawakawa after the tour ended. We saw the train that offers a tour from the city for $18 on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

We then traveled on State Highway 1, the main interior route from the top of the North Island to the bluff at the bottom of the south island, before our turn off to the Kawati Glow Worm Caves, a family-owned business for several generations. Unfortunately, no one is allowed to take photographs inside the cave. So you will just have to go there yourself for an experience of a lifetime. After viewing the impressive livestone walls and magnificent delicate stalactites and stalagmites, we spotted our first glow worms. At first, the little blue bulb-like creatures seem to be battery-operated Christmas tree lights or stars in a galaxy. Then you learn that they spin down white strings to attract insects to feed themselves. They live in this state for 11 to 12 months before they mature and have about three days to procreate before they die. We did not want to leave this magical place but knew we had to climb us a winding set of stairs in the rain forest to return to our bus. Please put visiting a glow worm farm on your bucket list of things you must do.

After we arrived back at the port, Lorraine and I had time to purchase New Zealand T-shirts as a momentum of a fabulous day. However, being on the last tender to the ship was not an experience that we should repeat.