Waipu Caves

We drove from Russell — the hell hole of the Pacific— back to Waipu, the town not pronounced WHY-poo. The camp site is on a lovely beach and we had missed some not-to-be missed caves during our first visit.

En route, we stopped a few places. We visited Helena’s cafe which has the best view of any restaurant I have ever seen. It’s a fancy place with a garden and high end gallery filled with garden art. There was art that probably weighed hundreds if not thousands of pounds so I am not sure who is buying it.

this picture does not capture the view. the restaurant is outdoors with a view of the ocen

in the garden. jack "photo bombs"

Sonia declares this is the worst vacation for the nth time.

We enjoyed the view and drove for a little while longer until we found another quiet cove. We poked around there and Ryan and I wondered what it would be like to live there.. very secluded lovely beach.

We decided we’d return for more visits but that kind of life isn’t for us yet.

When we arrived in Waipu, we immediately jumped in the water. The water is oddly warm and does not require a wetsuit. We didn’t eat dinner until 8PM.. losing track of the time because it’s light until 9.

When we woke up, I went for a run on the beach that is only 25 yards from our van. Then, I quickly put on my suit and went for a swim. Ryan surfed. Pretty great morning.

We met a family of Americans — all surfers from Santa Barbara. Even the 9 year old had her own surf board. They were on the same kind of trip.. not planned.. focused around beaches. We compared vans. Everything worked in their van. Lucky them.

We then visited the Waipu caves. They are a set of three large caves. In places, the ceiling of the cave was 20 feet high, and in others, 3 feet. It was very dark and muddy and it made me think of the basilisk cave in Harry Potter. Once it was completely dark, you could turn off your flashlight and the ceiling was covered with glow worms. It looked like the night sky. 

from the web.. I didn't bring my camera. At one point, we were knee deep in water