National Parks- Hawaii Volcanoes, Temple of Goddess Pele

Lava fountain from Kalapana viewing area

For many Hawaii means tropical beaches but for me it is synonymous with volcanoes!! I saw, smelled, photographed and walked on a live volcano for the first time in my life! One of the forms of nature's fury- a volcano, practically reminds us- the great humans, that there are some things not under our control. This beautiful eruption leaves behind a vast devastated area which is black and barren, like another face of the Earth. Today Hawaiian Islands exist because of this ever-going underground process of volcanism. When I saw the sight of that fiery fountain of molten lava I felt I was blessed! I had the moment that day!

Halema'uma'u Crater inside Kilauea Caldera

I had heard 'volcanoes create nature's monuments' and I agree to it hundred percent. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is one place where people can have the awe inspiring experience of viewing a volcano and also learn about the unique ecosystem of these remote Hawaiian Islands. It is the home of two important volcanoes- Kilauea- one of the most active volcanoes in the world and Mouna Loa- the most massive volcano (13,677ft) in the world. Both are shield volcanoes. The park is designated as International Biosphere Reserve and also declared as World Heritage Site. The national park visitor center provides much of the useful information and it is best to talk to a ranger officer for precautionary information.

Constantly erupting Halema'uma'u crater inside the Kilauea Caldera is the summit crater and is the star of the park. Hawaiians consider Kilauea caldera as home of Volcano Goddess Pele and hence very sacred. The park is unique in a way that it encompasses diverse environments. There is hot and humid coast, where the eastern winds bring heavy rainfall, dry barren due to the volcanism and lava flow, and the snow capped Mauna Lova. The rain forest surrounding this caldera is home for unique flowers and ferns. I drove from Hilo in the pouring rain, at places the road was flooded and the lanes were invisible. I drove on the Chain of Craters Road to see the miles and miles of devastated land. I had an aerial view of Mauna Loa with snow on the summit while flying from Maui. During my two visits to Hawaii I did hike few of the trails and brought back unforgettable experiences. Isn't it fascinating to know there is boiling lava flowing just few meters below your shoe-sloes.

Well, hiking on Halema'uma'u trail is closed most of the times. But, hiking Kilauea Iki, a sister crater just beside Kilauea caldera, is open for visitors. It also has outgassing steam vents and bubbled earth all around. Sulphur dioxide emissions are present all over the park and hence we need to be careful not to get exposed too much. There were very few who walked inside the crater and inspected the scary gas vents. All others including my friend walked along the rim, they thought there might be a sudden eruption in the crater. The heavy rain, dark clouds and then the sulphur dioxide emission gave very thin chance for any photography. Whatever I managed is here.

I was thrilled to be walking inside the crater, going near the steam vents made my shoes feel hot- not that bad. I kept in mind that teasing nature is not that good idea. Once I came out of the crater I was surrounded by the thick forest again.

I saw many dull and short trees with bright red blossoms. I wondered what a contrast! Then learned about a legend of beautiful Lehua flowers on Ohia tree. The legend is ... There was a young handsome man called Ohia who was in love with a girl Lehua. One day Goddess of Volcano- Pele saw him and requested him to be her sweetheart. Ohia honestly told her about his love for Lehua. Angered with this Goddess turned him into an ugly tree. Lehua pleaded Goddess to have mercy and turn him back into human again. But, Goddess did not. Then other gods and goddesses felt mercy on Lehua and they turned her into a red blossom on Ohia tree to reunite them. And locals believe that- if anyone separates these lovers by plucking the flowers the lovers weep and their tears turn into rain. I think many pluck these flowers and hence it rains all the time! :) Ohia Lehua is the official Big Island flower.

Well, I saw plenty of Kahili Ginger. In the picture is not actually the flower but the fleshy fruit pod which opens up to shed the seeds. Native of Himalayas, kahili is an invasive weed in Hawaii :) It was introduced as an ornamental plant but it escaped the fence very fast. Birds love these colored fruits and in the process they disperse the seeds. There were ferns and a lot of ferns- huge ones, small ones and so many varieties. There were berries of many colors which I really could not identify. The birds were chirping all the time when the rain subdued. I saw few colorful pheasants running behind the bushes.

Nahuku or Thurston Lava Tube is an easily accessible 500-year old lava tube through which visitors could walk. An easy walk through the massive chamber with lights and crowd! It is worth a visit to Jagger Museum for info on Hawaiian Islands, volcanoes etc. I was waiting for it to get dark. The best part is when it gets dark! One can witness the fiery fountain of erupting lava! I went driving to Kalapana viewing area which is actually outside the national park. After walking on the uneven surface of hardened lava in the dark it was a beautiful sight of lava erupting and flowing into the ocean creating huge cloud of steam. It was a sight to behold! It was cold in December, tough shoes and a flashlight are must in this area. 

My Hawaii Volcanoes experience was unforgettable! Well, other than the national park there are many state parks and state historic sites in the island. I couldn't visit all of them but did visit a few. Look for a separate post on other attractions in Hawaiian Big Island soon!

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Attractions in Big Island, Hawaii
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This post is liked to Our World Tuesday and Nature Notes.

If you want pictures please ask me :)
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Scrapbook- A Travel Blog by Kusum Sanu is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.