After stopping in Matamata for dinner, we made it to the Mount Tutu Eco-Sanctuary Eco-lodge (http://www.mount-tutu.co.nz/). The selection of this hotel truly made our adventure in New Zealand. It is a small guest house, privately run, situated on a breathtakingly beautiful property. After getting settled in, we were all lent rain boots and head lamps, and we set off into the night. Tim and Debbie, the proprietors, led us on a hike, showing us some of the native plants like the silver back fern, pointing out some bird calls, and culminating in one of their creeks. There we waded in and turned off our head-lamps, and stood with our mouths open. Along the banks of the creek were hundreds of tiny lights, shining like stars: Arachnocampa luminosa -- glowworms! Unfortunately we can't show you how wonderful it is to be in a bubbling creek on a mountain in the night and see these points of light. The three brownish pictures on the left side of the collage show you what they look like under a light, and Google brings up a bunch of great photos. We took a lot of "memory pictures"! Imagine a yard full of lightning bugs, but staying in place. Or even simply looking up into the night sky. In fact, once we came out of the forest and back to the house we did look up at the night sky -- it was a cloudy night, but we still could see the Milky Way. (The pictures below are a collage of our time at Mount Tutu and then Sunday afternoon at Hobbiton.)
After serving us a nice breakfast the next morning, Tim took us for another hike around their property, pointing out the unique flora and fauna. They raise chickens and sheep, and we fed treats to both, and we looked at the kakarikis (native parakeets) they breed. The woods was full of birdsong in the morning, and the air was so fresh and clear. The water in the inn is from their own creeks, filtered, but also testing pure just naturally. It was really a shame to have to leave so soon, but unfortunately we only have so much time to spend in New Zealand. Miriam has been agitating for a move here. Anybody hiring?
From Mount Tutu, we continued our drive through Middle Earth, and out to the enchanted land of Hobbiton, the ranch where The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies were filmed. A working sheep ranch, after the first movies were filmed, they originally erased the set from the farm and returned it all to as it had been. As pilgrims made their way to the former set, the rancher realized that he had a special place on his hands, and when the filmmaker returned to make the next movies, they decided to keep the area as it was. Today, it's on it's way to being more of a village than just a movie set -- the pub is in operation and the staff keeps the gardens looking good. It's pretty funny, really -- neither of the kids have seen any of the movies, although Miriam has read and enjoyed J.R.R. Toliken's stories (we laugh about the fact that not many people have read The Fellowship of the Ring all in one sitting as she did), and Jake and I last watched the first trilogy in 2002, and possibly didn't realize that a second one was made. So I was pretty hesitant about booking this part of our trip. But still, it was a great side trip! Even full of tourists and in the rain, it's such a pretty village that it truly was a joy to visit. There really is no place like Middle Earth.
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