We are still on the Big Island but have moved to the Volcano National Park Lodge at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
And what a mixed day it has been !
Had another lovely breakfast overlooking the pool in Waikoloa before packing the car and heading south again. We had only been in the car about half an hour – just past the airport in fact – when i noticed the engine warning light had come on in the Dart (yes – the Dart !). So we turned around to go back to the airport and the car rental place. We drove in and told them about the problem and they simply told us to just take everything we had out of the car and go around to the despatch clerk and they would give us another car. This we did and we were back on the road again so the “delay” had only really been about half an hour or so.
Coast near Punalu’u Beach
So now we have a Chevrolet (Holden) Captiva. We continued south, along the Kona Coast. It was a quite spectacular drive as you are about 1,000 to 1,500 feet above sea level, and more in parts, but not really far from the ocean itself. It is obviously a coffee growing area as there were numerous coffee tree plantations and various coffee shops.
We passed the town of Captain Cook – named after the spot where he met his fate – but the actual monument is not easily accessed so we just passed through. It is amazing as you drive that one minute you are in lush green countryside which could be anywhere in the world and next you are in an old lava flow – just black or brown rock with little vegetation to be seen.
Black sand beach
Green sea turtle
As we came toward the bottom of the island we turned east – not much option really – before heading north east toward our destination. We stopped in at Punalu’u Beach which is a black sand beach and is also supposed to be a good spot to see green sea turtles. Well the beach is certainly black ! Quite an unusual sight ! We looked a bit to see if there were any turtles but it looked like we had missed out. Then just as we were about to leave, a family near us spotted one coming into the shore. Just one on its own but we got a good show as he came through the shallow water and onto the black sand.
Exhausted turtle !
Sea arch from the lava flow
We moved on and reached our destination – Hawaii Volcanoes National Park – about 2pm and we were luckily able to check in. So we unpacked and then headed off to drive the two scenic roads – or the parts we could anyway – the Chain of Craters road and the Crater Rim road.
Pauahi Crater
The Chain of Craters road is quite a drive really – a couple of hours there and back – as it heads down from the volcano to the ocean and through various volcanic activity over the years. However it is really worth the drive ! Photos just don’t do justice to the amazing scenery ! We went as far as the road goes until it reaches a point where it has been closed. From this point – as the crow flies – it is not all that far to Pahoa where the current lava flows are causing havoc. We heard the park ranger telling someone that depending on which way the wind is blowing the smell of the fumes can reach that point. We noticed also that there were warnings around about the possibility of sulphur fumes in the area which could be dangerous.
Lava tube
On the way back we stopped at an old crater and walked through an old lava tube. This area is almost like a rainforest now and there was misty rain falling each time we were around this area.
The Crater Rim road is much shorter and it has also been cut as it used to be a loop. We visited the Jagger Museum and Observatory which is the point where you get closest to the current active crater in the Kilauea Caldera – called Halema’uma’u.
Back at the Lodge, Adrienne had booked us a crater view room so we were hoping to get a good view of the activity. When we had dropped our bags earlier we could see the smoke/steam plumes from the crater. It also faced west so we were interested to see what sort of sunset we would get. Well, by the time we got back, the “vog” (volcano ash fog) and clouds had settled and you could hardly see the sun and certainly not the crater.
Glowing crater
At dinner we had a table with a “partial view” but the only glow we could see when we sat down was the reflection of the restaurant light in the window ! There were various hopeful sightings for a while and at one point someone in the know made the comment “It’s Hawaii, the weather can change quickly, give it 5 minutes”. The words had hardly left his mouth and there was a sudden visible glow followed by a chorus of oo’s and ah’s as the glow intensified. Then they turned the restaurant lights out briefly to give everyone a good look. After dinner we drove back out to Jagger Museum to get a closer look and had a good show there. The temperature changes dramatically here too. When we arrived at the lodge in the early afternoon the temperature was about 65F (18C) down near the ocean on the Chain of Craters drive it wgot up to about 85F (29C). When we went out to Jagger Museum after dinner it was down to 55F(12C) and a lot colder with the wind chill. We had on all of the very few “warm” clothes we had and it was pretty cold !
Our dinner was also very nice – another thing the National Park Lodges do well. Adrienne had chicken with goats cheese, fetta and spinach and I had an excellent steak with lobster. We also shared a spicy avocado dip with chips made from sweet potato and taro.
So despite the few hiccups today, everything turned out really well.