July 19th

Left our B&B in Kailua-Kona and drove along the southern coast to the town of Volcano. Our host was an older fellow who has written books about the island, and was extremely helpful with information on what to do in Volcano National Park, as well as the surrounding area. You could tell that this part of the island is very special  to him, and that he wanted to make sure that we would make the most of our time here. We started with what he thought was the most important hike - down and through the Kilauea Iki Crater. There were several spots along the crater floor where steam was coming up and in some places the ground was noticeably warm to the touch, even though the last eruption at this spot was in 1959. Most of this area consisted of lava rock, but there were a few plants growing through the rock. The Crater Rim Drive close by has been partically closed because of recent volcanic activity, meaning that some trails are currently inaccessible. After dark we watched the active part of Kilauea, which was belching smoke and glowing a brilliant mix of red and orange from the lava.

Our host suggested we get up at 6:00 am to take a short hike to the steam vents and the sulphur banks. The steam vents can only be seen really well as the sun is rising. The steam comes from the rain seeping into the cracks and meeting the hot ground below. It was cool to see this steam blowing along the cliffs. Kilauea also looked quite different in the daylight, although not as spectacular. The sulphur banks had a mixture of white, green and black rock, and the sulphur smell was quite strong. Signs posted warned that the sulphur dioxide could be harmful to people with respiratory problems, and although we both have asthma, it didn't bother us. We later walked through a lava tube, where hot lava had previously run. It's now like walking through a cave. We then hiked up a cinder cone to see the Mauna Ulu crater, which again involved walking on lava rock, but there was more vegetation growning on this one.

The weather took a turn for the worse, and we were tired from hiking anyway, so drove along a scenic drive in the extreme SE corner of the island. Saw an area where the lava had gone straight into the ocean, and run along both sides of a lighthouse. Although the lighthouse was spared, a nearby town had been completely destroyed by the volcano.

Tomorrow is our last day on the Big Island. We're going to spend a bit of time in the town of Hilo, which is the largest on the island, and then weather-permiting we will take an open-doors helicopter ride over the volcanoes and the coastline - should be pretty neat!