Nestled in an obscure hillside, and guarded by a long and winding uphill trek that would put off even the hardiest of white knights, lies Rawhiti Cave. 

CAVE ALCHEMY

The stalactites stretch out towards the sunlight like daisies on a hot day. Formed over a million years, the stones icicles are festooned with various mosses and algae. They pay homage to the continual 'drip drip drip' of unseen waters.

Through a strange kind of alchemical process, the unseen waters deposit calcium carbonate over the stone, plants and all, thus incorporating them into the structure of the stalactites. This bonding creates a new material, called Phytokarst. Because plants respond to light, growing faster on the sunlit side, the stalactites also grow towards the light.