Big Island - Champagne Pond

On Monday, June 4th, we drove from our cabin in Volcano town to our resort on the west side of the island. Along the way, we stopped at a couple sights. The first was Champagne Pond. This is a naturally occurring pool carved out of lava along the coast. The thing that makes it unique is that the water is heated by an underground lava tube, so it's about 95 degrees in there. It's a mix of ocean and fresh water, and a popular sea turtle hang-out. We saw 4 or 5 while we were there.

The pond actually borders a gated community in the back, so there are houses along the perimeter. Some have ladders from their deck into the pond. But if you take a 4-wheel drive lava road, there is public access from the back. You drive through the crazy, rugged lava flows from 1964. Once again, the Jeep comes in handy.

The rough lava road on the way to Champagne Pond:

Finally arriving after the bumpy ride:

This spot, on the eastern most tip of the island, supposedly has the purest air in the world. Scientists use it to compare other air samples to when measuring pollution. We stopped for a quick deep breath before turning onto the lava road to Champagne Pond.

Big Island - Molten Lava Flow

One of the highlights of a trip to Volcanoes National Park is to see real molten lava actually flowing. Since the exact location of the flow changes constantly, it’s impossible to know exactly where it will be on your visit. Sometimes it’s right at the end of the road, so you can drive right up to it. Other times, it requires hiking across the lava fields to where the action is.

On our visit, we consulted the park ranger. He told us that seeing lava would require a 6 mile hike across the lava fields. Each way. At night. After seeing our disappointment, the ranger pulled us aside and told us there’s another way to see lava, but he’s not allowed to talk about it because it’s outside park property. He advised us to ask some locals, which we did.

It turns out, you can get to the other side of the lava fields by driving to another area of the island, about 45 minutes away. The hike from that side is much closer since currently the lava has shifted that way, away from the park. So Conor and I set off to hunt down the lava. We drove until the highway ended. Then, you drive through what used to be a town, but has since been consumed by lava. This is where our Jeep came in handy. The road turns to lava, then back to road, and again to lava. Finally, we reach a point where we can’t drive any further, where the new lava fields begin. At around 6:30pm, we set out on foot for the 2 mile hike to where the lava is flowing.

Hiking across lava is not easy. The lava creates hills and valleys. The footing is jagged and uneven. You have to place each step carefully, or risk losing your balance. If you do fall, you’ll almost certainly cut yourself up since the lava surface is extremely sharp and jagged. Because of all this, the hiking is slow. It took us about an hour to make it 2 miles out to the flows.

Then, out of nowhere, we feel a strong heat. We look down between our feet, and through the cracks in the lava you can see a red glow. It is mesmerizing. Nearby, we see an area in the ground start to slowly open up and pour out a fiery red glob. It oozes out and downward at a snail's pace. You can walk right up to it. At this point, it’s almost dark. You can look across the landscape at the miles of cracked hardened lava, and see threads of thin red streams interlaced through the black. It’s amazing, but the best is yet to come.

In the distance, giant clouds of steam are rising into the air. As lava pours into the ocean, it hisses and crackles as it’s instantly cooled and made into new land. We head over that way, until we reach a few others observing from a cliff overlooking the show. Down below, there is a huge area of glowing red lava, slowly oozing out towards the sea. As it falls in, steam plunges upward. An eruption of sparks fly out. It’s dark now, and the glow lights up the night. We stayed there for awhile watching, not really wanting to leave.

The hike back was slower in the pitch blackness of night. We were armed with flashlights and extra batteries, which are an absolute necessity. As we head back, we can see certain streams of lava in the distance that we must have passed earlier but not noticed because of the daylight. Now in the darkness, it makes a dramatic impression. After what feels like forever, we eventually make our way back to the trusty Jeep.

Words and photos cannot do this experience justice. If you make it to the Big Island, this is an absolute must-do. This is easily one of the most unique and amazing experiences of our lives. Not a bad way to spend the last hours of my 20s!

Starting the long hike out across the lava, with a little bit of sunlight left:

As you can see, the footing is extremely uneven so we had to go slow. This is pretty much what we saw for miles and miles all around us:

The surface is sharp, like glass, so it's important not to fall. This made the hike back to the car in pitch black even slower.

After an hour or so, we feel a heat and look down to see the red glow beneath the cracks in the lava.

The first sighting of molten lava was very exciting, and almost surreal.

Now you can see little patches of red throughout the vast black landscape.

This particular flow opened up and began right before our eyes. It hardens quickly, so it was already blackening over when we left it.

Who ever thought we'd be this close to lava? And yes, it is hot. The sea breeze helps out somewhat, but you definitely break a sweat.

In the distance, we can see the clouds of steam from where the lava is pouring into the sea. We know there's a good show being put on over there, so we head that way.

From a safe distance, we join some others looking over a cliff onto the lava delta below. Here we watch the tributaries of lava intertwine and flow into the sea.

Video footage of lava flow:

Big Island - Volcanoes National Park

All of the Hawaiian Islands were formed millions of years ago by volcanoes. Simply put, there is a vent in the ocean floor that spews up lava and forms an island. Eventually new life settles on the lava; trees, grass, and species grow and multiply. As time goes by, the island drifts northwest, away from the vent, and the volcanoes that gave birth to the island become inactive. The ocean pounds the land and creates the cliffs and natural features that we associate with Hawaii. Eventually, the sea reclaims the island and it is lost forever.

Because of this process, the islands are in a diagonal line, northwest to southeast, from oldest to youngest. Kauai is the northern most and oldest island; the sea has had 6 million years to carve out its natural beauty. The Big Island is only a baby at 800,000 years old, and is the only Hawaiian island that still has an active volcano. At over twice the size of all the other Hawaiian islands combined, the Big Island is still growing right before our very eyes. On the eastern side of the island, Kilauea Volcano has been spouting lava consistently since 1983. Kilauea is the most active volcano in the entire world.

Volcanoes National Park encompasses Kilauea volcano, and Conor and I spent the whole day there last Sunday. There are several large lava craters formed by old eruptions. We did a hike through the bottom of one, the Kilauea Iki crater. The four mile hike took us through an ancient rain forest to a newly lava-paved crater and back. In another part of the park, we were able to actually walk through a lava tube.

Starting the hike through the Kilauea Iki crater. The hike starts in a rain forest and goes down through the center of the crater bottom, over lava and past steam vents.

The view into the Kilauea Iki crater from the top:

Getting to the bottom and starting out across the crater:

Panoramic view of the Kilauea Iki crater from the bottom:

Hiking through a lava tube. It's really dark in there when you turn off your flashlights.

This is a panoramic of Kilauea Caldera. A caldera is a huge crater. This one is next to the smaller Kilauea Iki crater, which we hiked through. The Kilauea Caldera also contains another larger crater inside of it, the Halema'uma'u crater. (the close up of Halema'uma'u is the first photo of this blog post).

Big Island - Our cabin in Volcano Town

Our first two nights on the Big Island, we stayed in a cabin located a mile outside of Volcanoes National Park. We found this cabin on vrbo.com, and it was our first experience renting from the website. We wanted an economical choice that was close to the Volcano, and this cabin fit the bill. We looked at the photos online, and figured it would suit our needs. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much more than a suitable place to sleep.

When we arrived, we weren’t prepared for how charming the cabin would be. The photos we had seen did not do the place justice at all. The cabin was immaculate, with high ceilings and hard wood flooring and finishes. It had recessed lighting all over highlighting the different features and decor. There was a gas fireplace that provided heat during the chilly mountain nights. They also had a nice deep tub for soaking sore muscles after hiking over lava all day.

Behind the cabin was a covered porch with benches. We sat out here to have our coffee in the morning while enjoying the lush tropical surroundings. The property is completely secluded and surrounded by woods, with plenty of large windows to showcase the natural beauty. If you’re planning a trip to the Big Island and are looking for accommodations near the Volcano, we highly recommend this place.

Looking towards front door and foyer from kitchen. The entire cabin had tons of track and recessed lighting everywhere:

Kitchen:

Living area with gas fireplace, which we used at night because it gets really cold here in the mountains (high 40s). The doors lead out to the back porch area:

Dining table overlooking the forest view:

View of bedroom from living area, with large bay picture windows with views of the forest:

Bathroom with dual basins, large soaking tub and separate shower:

Back porch, where we enjoyed our coffee in the mornings while overlooking the tropical forest:

Big Island - Hilo

To celebrate my 30th birthday, Conor and I traveled to the Big Island of Hawaii for four nights. This was our first time on this island, and we saw many amazing sights. The Big Island, as its name suggests, is very big. It’s bigger than all of the other Hawaiian islands combined. We spent the first two nights on the east side of the island, in a cabin near the Volcano. We spent the last couple of nights at a resort on the west side of the island. And we stopped along the north side to see a few sights as we drove between the two.

We flew into the city of Hilo, which is the second biggest city in the state of Hawaii. It’s an interesting place. The town has been hit by hardships, such as tsunamis, threats of lava flow, and the demise of the sugar industry. It’s a mix of older, worn buildings that remain from the exodus of the sugar business, and newer more modern shops and restaurants. Hilo is lush and beautiful, located on the rainy side of the island. It offers many scenic treasures. After arriving, we saw Rainbow Falls and Boiling Pots, two of the more popular Hilo sights, before having dinner.

Boiling Pots, in Hilo:

Panoramic view of Boiling Pots:

The path to Rainbow Falls, in Hilo:
Rainbow Falls:
Panoramic view of Rainbow Falls:

Ha'ena to Hanalei Race

On June 2nd, Conor and I ran an annual North Shore race. I ran the 8 mile run, a one-way route from Ha’ena to Hanalei. The course travels along the beautiful coastal highway, with the Pacific Ocean to the right and the mountains to the left. It was reminiscent of the Big Sur Marathon in California, which I ran 6 years ago. Except with a tropical twist. Conor ran the 5K course, which was an out-and-back through Hanalei.

As with everything, racing is different here on Kauai. Our running readership should be able to appreciate these differences. First of all, we went to pick up our packet the day before the race. Inside the packet was our race number, and a shirt. That’s it. No course map or directions. And certainly no electronic timing chip.

They shuttled the 8 mile runners to the starting line. Once there, I realized there was no real start line, per se. Just a big area where everyone was hanging out and waiting to start. Then, all of the sudden, I hear someone shout ‘GO!’, and everyone starts running. I wasn’t really prepared, so I fumbled to start my watch. Although, with no real line, I wasn’t exactly sure where to start timing anyway so it was more sort of an estimate. And there were no pacing corals at the start. I guess the faster folks just shoved their way up front.

The main road is a curvy, hilly, two-lane road. There are a number of one-lane bridges, where one side of traffic must stop and yield to the other. I had assumed that the road would be shut down for the race, like every other race I’ve ever run. But this is Kauai, so no. Instead, the cars just kind of slowed down and waited for the runners to go to the side of the road. At least there were a couple guys on bikes that sort of let you know to get over. On the one lane bridges, you only had enough room to run single file behind the other runners if there were cars on the bridge. Which makes it hard to pass during those points.

You’d think that mile markers are an essential element of a road race, but not here. Who needs them when you can just sort of guess where the miles are by using the tiny, barely visible highwaymile markers that run backwards on the other side of the road? Forget about timing your splits. I felt lucky to get water stops.

After what seemed like an eternal last mile, I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Just as I’m approaching the finish, I notice Conor cheering on the sidelines. And I see a huge red pick-up truck driving right in front of the finish line. I had to run around the truck to cross into the finish zone. In all the races I’ve run, on both east and west coasts, that was a first.

I ended up doing ok, considering I hadn’t trained hard and my advancing age. My time was 1:08, an 8:30 pace. I placed 48 out of 190 overall, and 9 out of 92 females. My main concern was my age group. I was fairly certain that I was the oldest runner in the 20-29 female division, considering I only had two days left to qualify in it. And I wanted to go out with a bang. I finished 2 out of 14 in my division, which wasn’t too shabby for this old lady. The woman who got first won the entire race. So I guess I can settle for second.

Conor did very well, especially considering that this is his second race ever and his 'training' consisted of going out for an occasional leisurely 3 mile jog in the weeks preceding the race. He finished in 25:22, an 8:10 pace. He placed 12th out of 77 overall, and 10th out of 30 males. But most excitingly, he placed first in his division!!! He completely blew away that other guy in the 20-29 males division and placed 1 out of 2.

No one should be awake when the moon is still out.

The sun rising over Hanalei Bay. This was the first and only time we've seen the Bay in the early morning light. Beautiful, but not worth waking up at 5:30am for. Luckily, we'll always have these pictures to look at during a more reasonable hour.

The finish line area, with the mountains as a backdrop.

About to cross the finish, just after taking a detour around that red pick-up truck.

Happily on our way to the free pancake breakfast.