Did you know we have our own spectacular cave pretty much right on our doorstep, (if you’re from Auckland or the Waikato)? That’s right. On the back road to Port Waikato is a wonderful hidden gem, called Nikau Cave.
A group of 10 of us travelled out west of Mercer, through beautiful rolling countryside and pretty little settlements and met up at the Nikau Cave Cafe, (worth a visit in itself.)
After meeting with our guide and getting ready with our helmets and torches, we set off through the paddocks and trees to the opening of this massive cave system hidden in the rolling hills.
A shallow stream runs through the cave so there was no option but to get our feet wet and even our knees when we crawled through a 12 metre very low part of the cave.
Although we were all feeling slightly nervous about this part of the adventure, it wasn’t as bad as we had anticipated and we were through it very quickly.
Unfortunately we were not allowed to take photos so I’ve had to copy some photos off the website to try and show just how amazing this cave is. There was just so much to see and ooh and ahh over. Huge stalagmites and stalactites were everywhere, massive limestone formations that would have taken thousands of years to grow. We walked through great caverns where glowworms glittered all around us.
The walk through the cave takes and hour and a half and we were fascinated all the way through. It really is well worth a visit.
From here, we continued on along the road and into Port Waikato with it’s relaxed, laid back vibe. We stopped at the very popular Sylvia’s Cafe for a delicious lunch before heading down to explore the seriously eroded beach.
This wild, windy west coast beach certainly lived up to expectations. The waves crashed and surged aggressively up onto the beach as the wind blew the froth back out to sea.
We climbed the massive sand dunes and raced down their steep slopes to the bottom. Strolling back along the beach, we hopped in our cars and headed back to Auckland.
And all of this is, as I said, right on our doorstep!