A full van of 12 set off from Hamilton with a forecast of rain ahead, but luckily when we reached Tairua the sky was clear.

We set off up a pretty steep hill in good spirits, and with the humidity at about 105% we were soon feeling the heat, with some of us leaking as much liquid out as we could take in. The climb was a bit of effort but rewarded with great views, even at the lookout, despite some low hanging cloud around.

Once we got the climb over with it was a pleasant trek through the bush and amazingly, once we turned on to the track towards Collins Drive, the temperature was quite different and a relief from the humidity. A bit slippery in places, we reached the tunnel to walk through to the other side. We found glow worms and some large cave wetas; amazing to get up so close to them. The tunnels were so cool compared to the outside temperature - a really interesting thing to experience.

Once through the tunnel we met the other group coming up, but we proceeded down the third branch track, stopping to check out various mining sites and shafts. We stopped for lunch in a sunny spot with pleasant views, then carried on to the water race track and back to the carpark.

We had made good time so took the chance to check out the Broken Hills and Golden Hill batteries, again marvelling at the cool air coming out of the various tunnels, which was so much colder than the outside air and really nice to pause at.  We then headed home with a stop in Paeroa for ice creams and coffee.

A very interesting and informative trip, thanks to the organisers and drivers of the day.

Catherine