Tawarau Falls

We took it easy on the Thursday after our energetic Tongariro tramp the previous day. About mid morning we drove to Otorohanga,  a charming farming town nearby for a coffee and stroll around.  Otorohanga is internationally renowned for its Kiwi House,  where for the first time the general public could view this unique flightless bird in captivity. In the afternoon we took a walk through the Tawarau Forest to see its small but very picturesque waterfall. Tawarau is of particular interest as it is a virgin forest growing in karst or limestone and is the habitat of a variety of exotic birds such as falcons,  grey warblers and bell birds. In the evening a group of us dined at the rather exclusive Waitomo Hotel, where we were met by a tall statuesque African Hostess and escorted to a pannelled high ceiling dining room, where we enjoyed a gourmet silver service meal. A really pleasant finish to our day.