We struggled to make our intended luggage dropoff before returning the hire car at the airport, so having failed miserably we returned the car having driven around the car park at the interisland terminal and incurred a parking charge in the process, and then utilised the shuttle service to the departure terminal.
Check in was a doddle, Aloha Airlines operate like the budget airlines of England, no seat allocation in economy class. The tent and our backpacks were x-rayed and sent off and we moved on to security check. My bag passed through without alarm but Ian's was selected for searching and out came everything. A manual search was performed and Ian's washbag was visually inspected. It was soon after that that I realised Ian was carrying his razor in his hand luggage and that had not been spotted or removed. So, I guess security isn't as strict as they like to have you believe. And security staff don't have a sense of humour, despite the huge quantity of security staff there are. Ian volunteered to repack it himself, luckily, or we would have been delayed a further 30 minutes whilst security partake in a game of the Krypton Factor.
Our 30 minute flight departed at 09:51, following an Easter Sunday breakfast of foul hot chocolate and a Milky Way that was more like a Mars bar. The first 10 minutes of the 737 flight were quite bumpy and the remaining last 10 minutes also, but the 10 minutes in between were very smooth and pleasant. As we approached and landed at Kona International Airport we could see that the airport really was built on a lava field and the ground either side of the runway was black.
As soon as we got off the aeroplane and walked 50 metres we found our luggage was sat still, waiting for us on the stationary conveyor belt, which we collected and then found that we were free to leave. No security checks, no passport checks, nothing. All said, it was a very good service from Aloha Airlines.
We strolled to Avis car rental and received an upgrade on a vehicle by presenting a coupon I'd found in the inflight magazine so Ian is happily tootling around in his Chevrolet Montecarlo. I moved it around the car park when we collected it but was a little put off by it being so big and automatic. I have only driven manual transmission cars before. Ian's more than pleased to be playing with cruise control as we tear around the island.
We drove until we reached Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. I fell asleep for most of the journey. The car made me feel quite queasy. As we arrived at the visitors' centre it started to rain and as we stepped out we soon felt the cold of the higher altitude. Within minutes I was back at the car for my fleece! We timed our arrival well, a sixth grade science teacher, who is pretty young herself and has taught many other age groups, gave a 20 minute talk about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, native trees and plants and plate tectonics, using very enthusiastic and creative methods that had everyone's attention of each age group. She was fantastic fun to listen to. She has obviously found her niche and performs very well. Immediately after her talk we sought refuge in the centre and watched a film, then mooched around the visitors' centre.
Kilauea releases enough lava every day that could wrap a four lane freeway around the Big Island of Hawaii, Hawaii, four times. That's a lot of lava! Every day! The latest bulletin of Kilauea's eruption was posted on the map in the centre and suggested that there was some breakout and lava toes which were reaching vegetation. The lava was creeping slowly towards the road, most of which was destroyed in the earlier lava flows of 1974 onwards. The lava flow last crossed the road at the beginning of April 2003. When we left the centre a trail had just been placed so that you could walk to within a safe distance of the active lava flow. We chose to try to find somewhere to live for the night. It continued to rain. It was still cold. We drove to the Namakani Paio campground with a view to pitching our tent but it was wet, the campground was exposed to the weather and in the short time we were there another tent, obviously significantly sturdier than ours, blew over. Our tent, our USD 35 bargain, is not waterproof. We are not full of confidence in its suitability for this island.
Down the road, in a village called Volcano, we had some lunch then tried our luck at the Aloha Junction bed and breakfast. The proprietor had three rooms available in his second house, a wooden house built in 1927 for the Japanese sugar cane managers. It was delightful. We took the biggest room, checked in our baggage and returned to the general store for some soup to heat for dinner. It was fast approaching sunset so we grabbed our jackets and torches and drove down through Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, down to Chain of Craters road, noticing all of the sights to stop and gaze at on a drier, lighter day, getting more and more excited as we approached the coastline, some 3,000 feet down. There is so much to see here!
We parked the car alongside many others at the end of Chain of Craters road, which is accessible by car, and walked along the road until we reached a park ranger's van. We had already spotted the lava glowing uphill so had big grins broadening across our faces!
We followed the trail which led to the active lava flow. Signs at the roadside advised you to remain 150 feet away from the lava. It took a while to reach it for the ground was a lava field and was jagged in places and was very rough terrain, slippery elsewhere. The sun had set and we were losing light. There is, thankfully, no artificial light on the south side of the island other than the torchlight given off by the visitors. Gradually you could feel the heat beginning to reach you as it had drifted from the heat source of lava. It was raining but we didn't care. It was so exciting! The trail ended, clearly identifying the limits to which the park rangers wanted you to obey, but the populace had gone further, most of whom seemed to be within 10 feet of the lava. As cautious as we were, Ian and I began to film this incredible moment. We were being battered by the rain from behind, our trousers were completely soaked. The scene was absolutely stunning, so special! The raindrops managed to find their way to my camera lenses so I'm not very confident of my photographs but I had to try to capture the incredible sight that unfolded before our eyes. We had ventured pretty close too, within 10 feet ourselves. The heat from the lava was welcome, as was the wind, both aiding the drying process of our trousers. It was just so beautiful! The vegetation was being ignited from the lava and the land was positively glowing all around! It was fairly dangerous to be so close, the possibility of a methane explosion was considered to be high, but it was an incredible experience, one that I am extremely happy to have witnessed. As you watch you can see the lava oozing from the tubes, forming toes and being absolutely beautiful.
We were unfortunately beaten back by the rain and called it a day, being completely soaked to the bone by the time we reached the car. Walking away from the lava flow we found that we had drifted from the trail and were walking past rocks which had lava glowing from within, glowing out of the cracks and crevices. We sought safer ground, away from the 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit lava, and made our way back to the road and to Aloha Junction. It had been a remarkable treat!
As the rain fell on the hot lava it sounded like burning charcoal as the surface splintered. It was a beautiful sound.
At the bed and breakfast we changed into dry clothes and ate our soup. I then spent an hour or so painfully waiting for the computer's internet connection to repeatedly fall over and reconnect. I managed to read three e-mails and reply to one. It was gruelling work and I was shivering by the end of it. A few minutes later I was tucked up in bed seeking warmth, which soon came once I was undercover, and I drifted off to slumberland...
Today we had driven 253 miles on Oahu and 170 miles on Hawaii.
Copyright 2003 Helen Fuller. All rights reserved.