Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

Aside from the fact that the entire state is a volcano, we had to go see an active volcano, so we headed to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. There’s just something about standing near the crater of an active volcano that makes you feel very expendable. We enjoyed the views of the Halema'uma'u Crater (say that even one time fast) from the various stops along the park. Our first real view of it was at the rim of the Kilauea caldera at the historic Volcano House lodge. That would be a neat place to stay, with most of the rooms having a view of the crater that glows at night.  

Lily didn’t enjoy the view as much as the furniture in the observation room.

Our next stop was the vents. I could see them across the rim from the lodge and wasn’t sure what to expect. I thought they might be stinky, like sulfur. Turns out, they’re giant steam vents. No stink, just water vapor! It was almost eerie to see this vapor coming out of the ground.

From the lodge and then up close.

Using nature to open up the pores. It was a little intense.

Those little white dots are some of the observatories on Mauna Kea!

Next, we were off to the Jaggar Museum, which is now the end of the road. There is a road that goes around the crater, but due to elevated sulfur dioxide gasses, a large portion of the road is closed. The museum was quite good and the view of the crater can’t be beat.

After seeing the Jaggar Museum and crater, we went the other direction towards the Thurston Lava Tubes. This area was like a jungle, then we entered these lava tubes/caves that were really neat.

After the lava tubes, the younger set was getting tired, so we parted ways with my parents. They headed home and Loran and I changed and went out to dinner nearby in Volcano Village at Kilauea Lodge. Great food, great place for a date. And, they had an elderly cat, so we felt right at home.

After dinner, it was dark so we drove back to the park to the Jaggar Museum to see the volcano at night. Definitely worth it. Obviously, during the day you can tell something is happening by the vast amount of steam and smoke rising from the crater, but when you’re driving in and can see this ominous red glow on the horizon, then to be able to see the lava lit up in the darkness, it’s pretty awesome. I was able to rest my camera on a wall and use my timer to take a long exposure photo and capture some of the intensity of the volcano. Hard to believe it’s the same thing we were seeing in the daylight. Those lodge rooms seem even more impressive now, with this as your nightlight.