Akaka Falls State Park is on the wet side of the island. There’s a short loop walk through the park that showcases the abundant vegetation and the falls themselves, which have a more than 400 feet drop.
Category Archives: Parks
Abstracts: Green turtle swimming
A green turtle swims through rippling shallow water at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park.
Growth in the lava
In May of 1969, a series of earthquakes opened a large fissure alongside Chain of Craters Road in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. This was the beginning of what is known as the Mauna Ulu eruption. For five years, lava poured forth in a series of eruptions. Chain of Craters Road, completed only a few years earlier, was buried for several miles. Landmarks along the road were destroyed or irrevocably altered. A swathe of forest disappeared in flame.
When the eruptions finally ceased, life soon began to reappear on the barren lava landscape. In this photo, vegetation has reclaimed a section of the original 1969 fissure. Roots are anchored in cool, moist cracks in the lava. The tree on the left is particularly striking. Having started out in a crack on a vertical face, it has reached up to the light and is going strong. I like to think it shows how resilient nature can be.
For more information about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, go to nps.gov/havo/. For more information about Kilauea Volcano and it’s eruptions, go to hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/history/main.html.
Kilauea Volcano’s Pu’u O’o vent
Pu’u O’o is one of two active vents on Kilauea Volcano. It sits on the eastern border of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Continuously active since 1983, Pu’u O’o is currently pouring lava into the ocean around Kamokuna on the south-eastern coast of the Big Island. These views of the vent were taken from Pu’u Huluhulu cinder cone.
For more information about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, go to nps.gov/havo/. For more information about Kilauea Volcano and it’s eruptions, go to hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/history/main.html.
The path to Thurston Lava Tube
Thurston Lava Tube is one of the more visited spots in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. It might not be as compelling as Puapoo Lava Tube, but it’s not far from the road and easily accessed. I tend to visit it whenever I’m in the park.
One thing I like about Thurston is the path to and through the tube. It starts with a drop into dense tropical forest, features a bridge leading to the maw of the tube, and then wiggles through the damp and the eerily lit interior until reaching the light at the other end.
Hawaiian stilts
The Hawaiian stilt (Himantopus mexicanus knudseni) is known here as the Ae’o. It’s endemic to the islands and endangered to boot, though the population is thought to be increasing. These two were by the Kaloko Fishpond at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. I wonder why they’re called stilts?
Abstracts: Moorish idols
A pair of moorish idols swim in shallow water at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park.
Roseate skimmer dragonfly
While I was at the Queen’s Bath in Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park, I saw this striking roseate skimmer dragonfly looping back and forth above the water. It’s an introduced species and this one is, I think, a male.
Graham's Island 