Hawaii 2015 Day 5

Hawaii 2015

Day Five

Thursday, February 5

 

Today is volcano day!! We had hoped to take a

helicopter or boat ride somewhere to see the orange

glow of lava flowing. We asked at every turn. And we

could not find anything. So many places were blocked

and closed down due to the recent eruption. It was a

disappointment. It was one thing Terry really wanted to

be able to see. But we wanted to at least see Kilauea.

It is a crazy drive on the Kona side but very cool. We

went thru umpteen little towns. Beautiful views. Saw a

couple of places where people were pulled over watching

some whales. Just start driving here, you will

see so many awesome things.

 

 

 

Once we got to the park, we had lunch at a

restaurant called Volcano House. Duh, what else?
Wall to wall windows with views of not only the top

of Kilauea but endless steam vents.

The food, mediocre. The service, unexceptional.

The view. You would only ever eat here for the view.

The waitress did offer one piece of very helpful advice.

Go to see the volcano after dark.
And boy oh boy, was she right.
But in the meantime, we went exploring. First, the 

steam vents. They are everywhere. And you feel like you 

are in the middle of a forest fire. Its what they look like. 

Its sulphur leaking out of holes. It really wasn't as stinky

as we were expecting. Unless you were standing right in the

steam, we didn't even notice it. Or perhaps we were just in

such awe at it all.

We walked thru a lava tube. Where the lava flows when the

very active volcano erupts. It was incredible.

 

Funniest thing, we ran into one of the scuba couples from the

manta ray night swim the night before. We chatted for a few

minutes. They were very friendly. But much younger and their

feet were on fire to keep moving, quickly. haha

We followed a road down to where the lava flowed into the

ocean. It was very cool to see the trails down the mountain.

Then we made our way back up to Kilauea. The crowd formed.

Terry found a terrific place for me to set up my tripod. One of the

park rangers made a point to mention to me that I was set up in

the perfect place for pictures. The best view.
Full location credit - Terry Hutson

You cannot actually see the lava. But you can hear it.

Which is extraordinary. You can hear the bubbling and

explosions happening. Its all incredibly powerful! The sound

and the view. What we were actually seeing is the lava

reflecting on the sulphur smoke. So beautiful.

 

It was an incredible day. And the vacation winds down

quickly. One more day here. Then back to Oahu.