Day 3, Part 2: New Airbnb and Lava!
After visiting Akaka Falls, Drew and I drove the rest of the way to our next Airbnb near the Hilo side of the Big Island. We drove our little rental car down a narrow, muddy path (the car made it, phew!) and followed a gravel path through the woods to our temporary abode: a treehouse!
If you’ve never slept in a treehouse with running water before, add it to your to-do list. It was so much fun! We had to tie a rope to our bags and use a pulley to get them to the house and climb up a steep ladder/staircase too far to the top. I felt like I was in The Swiss Family Robinson!
After dropping our bags, we set off for Volcanoes National Park in Volcano, HI. Our first stop was the Thurston Lava Tube, which were suggested by Mark and the park ranger we met this morning. This large tunnel was formed by flowing lava. It was pitch dark in the cave so we had to use flashlights to traverse our way through. At this point, we set out for the Kīlauea Caldera and Halema’uma’u Crater, the home of Pele, Goddess of Volcanoes and sister of the Goddess Poli’ahu who resides on Mauna Kea. Along the way we stopped at the steam vents, two big rectangular pits surrounding deep cracks in the earth. Standing in the warm steam was so nice on the chilly evening!
After moving on again and finally finding a parking spot, we walked the rest of the way to the Jaggar House and the crater. The Jaggar Museum is a neat building with facts about the volcano, as well as stories and artwork related to the story of Pele. I love how the murals were used to support the stories that were being told in conjunction with the real thing — the actual crater! We arrived just in time for sunset. It was amazing, watching the sky darken as the crater grew brighter, casting a beautiful red glow on the surrounding land and rising steam. You could easily imagine it being the home of a great Goddess.
We’ve decided to head back to the park early tomorrow morning to watch the sunrise. Should be really cool!
