After leaving Melbourne, we sailed overnight to Burnie, Tasmania, and we were ready to spend the day spelunking at the Gunns Plains Caves. During our 45-minute ride through the pastoral countryside from Burnie Port, we soaked in the cool morning temperature, clean, fresh air, beautiful green rolling hills (some slightly hidden in low-hanging clouds and mist), and lazing farm animals. Our guide mentioned that Tasmania is world-renowned for having the cleanest air on Earth, pristine wilderness, tight-knit communities, a favorite location for nature-loving and relaxed life, its unique wildlife (Tasmanian Devils, platypuses, wombats, and bird species), fresh seafood, wines, and whiskey and gin distilleries, and its dark convict history. By the time we arrived at Gunns Plains, we entered a low-hanging cloud or fog, which oddly made me think of the musical Brigadoon, which we had watched on board a couple of nights ago. Anyway, we piled out of our bus and met a young man who warned us about the low-hanging rock formations, the tight squeezes between the "chambers", the wet, uneven, and slippery stone stairways, and the narrow concrete pathway into this 275 m (around 900 ft) long hike. Most of us who wore non-slip athletic shoes and hooded rain jackets were prepared for this experience, but some others who probably didn't read the excursion description before signing up weren't. We descended 54 narrow, steep stairs into the cave and proceeded along the concrete pathway. At the same time, our young guide, who claimed he and his mother used to frequent this area, was well-acquainted with the caves' history and rock formations, and often jumped off the path from the back to "magically" appear at the front of the line. The delicate, shawl-like calcite rock formations were quite dazzling, and our guide often compared them to streaky bacon. He often warned us not to touch the rocks, walls, or water to protect the cave's ecological system. Besides, we looked forward to the treat at the end of the trail featuring glow worms. Parts of the trail were so narrow and steep that access was only available through climbing a ladder and twisting or turning your body to avoid hitting low-hanging or jutting formations, which made me thankful for adhering to physical therapy exercises after my total knee replacement this past August. As in most "show-caves" we've visited, the dim yet well-lit areas allowed most to capture the beauty without high-intensity flash. Also, there were several areas where our guide turned off the lights to demonstrate how naturally dark the cave is, to help imagine the time in 1906, when the local hunter, Bill Woodhouse, discovered the caves using only an oil lamp while hunting for possums. I was glad that my smartphone camera supports "night vision," so I took a couple of photos to compare with those taken under commercial lighting. A visit to the Gunns Plains Caves was a nice tourist diversion, historical, welcoming, and, luckily, not so commercial, with no gift shop or fancy trappings. We spent about an hour spelunking and were then whisked off to nearby Wings Wildlife Park. read more

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Diane and I explored these caves earlier today, and really enjoyed the icy-looking formations, rugged passageways, and even the total lack of light when all electricity and candle power were turned off. Seeing illuminated glowworms on the ceiling was also a nice sight, although I hoped to see more of them. The difficulty of moving deep into the cave was somewhat understated in advance advertising, for there were numerous steps required up and down from precarious positions and ultra-steep inclines, and the trek is definitely not advisable for anyone with any mobility or cardiac problems. Metal guardrails were very helpful, and arm power was required as well as leg power. Completing the full guided passage available to the public from beginning to end provided a good workout; bestowed a feeling of accomplishment as a novice caver; and made me believe that I may be ready to tackle the visually intoxicating Inca ruins of Machu Picchu afterall, if I make the attempt soon before I age much more and physically decline--although there the element of very high attitude is added to a strenuous climb. A nice practice run with interior instead of exterior beauty as the main payoff! 4-1/2 stars overall, and highly recommended to the physically fit! read more