The Powerline Trail heads south off of Saddle Road around the 22 mile marker. This trail used to be, as the name suggests, where power lines ran, but only the stumps of poles remain. It’s a very straight trail, which used to run all the way to Kilauea until lava flows disrupted it.
This trail is about 3.5 miles long to the point where it meets the Pu’u O’o trail. The southern part of the trail is dotted with kipukas and is shady and alive with birds. However, the northern two miles or so are exposed as the photo shows. The main feature of interest in this stretch is the Emesine Lava Tube about which, more tomorrow.
For more information about this, and other hikes on the Big Island, go to bigislandhikes.com.
I met Yogi on the trail just before entering the forest. Here, he makes his way through the dense growth.
Huge Hapu’u ferns line the forested section of the Nāpau Trail.
The old Pulu factory.
Yesterday, I posted about the first part of the Nāpau Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which crosses extensive lava fields. Today’s post picks up from there, on the rim of Makaopuhi Crater, where the trail slips into dense forest on its way to the Nāpau Crater overlook.
Puʻu ʻŌʻō from the Nāpau Crater overlook.
It’s a remarkable contrast between the stark lava and thriving forest. Birdsong is continuous. Ferns of every kind grow in abundance. Bamboo orchids pop out here and there. And above it all, tall Ohia trees provide the backbone of the forest. This forested trail is clear, but somewhat overgrown. I was hiking in shorts and, at the end of the day, my legs were generously scratched.
Early on in this section, it’s possible to get views of Makaopuhi Crater. Also in this area is the junction with the Nāulu Trail, which starts out at the Kealakomo Overlook, farther down Chain of Craters Road.
The forested part of the trail is about 2.5 miles and towards the end of it is an old Pulu factory. The sign there reads: “Between 1851 and 1884 great quantities of pulu, the soft, reddish-brown fiber covering the coiled fronds of the tree fern (hāpuʻu), were harvested on Hawaii. Much of it was processed within these walls, later to be shipped from Keauhou Landing to foreign markets for use as stuffing in pillows and mattresses.” Unfortunately, in drier climates, pulu quickly breaks down so the industry collapsed.
A little farther along is another junction. To the left is the very basic Nāpau campsite, a few open flat areas and an outhouse. To the right, the trail continues to the overlook, where I was lucky enough to have a wonderful, clear view of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, busily pumping out sulphur dioxide and other gases, and of course, million upon millions of gallons of lava, currently entering the ocean on the southeast coast.
Picking the right day for the hike is not always obvious and weather changes quickly around here. At the visitor center, on the way in, it was completely overcast and drizzling, but by the time I got to the trailhead the sun was out and a nice breeze blew. The wind direction is also important. On this day, the northeast trades were blowing and the vog trailed away to the southwest, which is fine for this hike. But if the wind blows more easterly or south of east, then this trail would be downwind of emissions from the volcano, which could potentially be a dangerous situation.
An early part of the trail follows a surface flow down the side of a hill with a small ohia tree toughing it out in the lava.
In a couple of places the trail goes through sunken areas that channeled the lava.
The Nāpau Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, is a 13-mile round trip. It passes over extensive lava fields, plunges into dense forest, and ends at the Nāpau Crater overlook. The overlook offers a terrific view (weather permitting) of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, one of two active vents on Kilauea Volcano. In today’s post I’m going to cover the lava fields portion of the hike with the second part coming tomorrow.
From the Mauna Ulu parking area, the first mile or so is a well-trodden trail to Pu’u Huluhulu (hairy hill) cinder cone. The foot of Pu’u Huluhulu is where the Nāpau Trail branches off across the lava. It’s a stark landscape, but with lots of interest. The trail passes over surface flows and through channels where lava rivers ran.
The Park’s website notes that the Nāpau Trail “follows the path that magma takes as it makes its way underground from its source at the summit to the point where it comes to the surface near Puʻu ʻŌʻō.” The many steam vents around Mauna Ulu are testament to this.
And in this hostile landscape, nature is at work. The lava fields are dotted with tenacious plants establishing a toehold. Ohia trees and ferns are most frequently seen, but grasses and other plants lend color to this sea of gray and black.
It’s 2.2 miles of unbroken lava from the Pu’u Huluhulu junction to the rim of Makaopuhi Crater, but at that point the trail changes in an almost surreal way. I’ll post that section tomorrow.
The I’iwi (vestiaria coccinea) is a native Hawaiian honeycreeper, which is still quite common on the Big Island, as well as on Kaua’i and Maui. I saw several while hiking the Pu’u O’o Trail, off of Saddle Road. The fact that they’re bright red and they have a quite distinctive call makes spotting them a bit easier for a non-birder like me.
More recent lava flows have yet to be reclaimed by vegetation. The greenery is a kipuka on the trail with Mauna Kea in the background.
When the trail passes though a kipuka it offers shade and abundant bird calls.
An older lava flow has been softened by vegetation.
It took me a while to discover the various trails off Saddle Road. That’s because, from the road, they look like they’re mostly lava with some scrubby vegetation, but this is misleading. The kipukas (areas of land where lava has flowed around leaving it relatively untouched) are full of plants and a haven for wildlife including many endemic species. The whole area is an example of the cycle of destruction and regeneration that shapes this island and, indeed, the Earth.
The Pu’u O’o Trail, off of Saddle Road, has nothing to do with Kilauea’s Pu’u O’o vent. It refers to the Pu’u O’o Ranch on Mauna Loa. The trail was used for moving cattle from one grazing area to another.
The trail alternates between crossing lava flows and passing through kipukas. Depending on the age of the flow, it might have a good deal of greenery on it, but more recent flows are stark lava fields. While the open lava flows offer great views of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea (assuming it’s a clear day), the kipukas offer shade and are alive with bird calls, most of which I don’t recognize.
After about 4 miles the trail intersects with the Powerline trail and a loop can be made back to the start, or simply retrace your steps. Bear in mind that if the clouds roll in, which they do on a regular basis, the trail is a good deal harder to follow.
For more information about this, and other hikes on the Big Island, go to bigislandhikes.com.
One last photo from my trip to see the firehose of lava from Kilauea Volcano gushing into the sea. I tried a few longer exposures and I particularly like the effect of this one. More lava photos here.
As the sun sinks slowly in the west, a firehose of lava from Kilauea Volcano gushes into the sea. More photos here. A good video of the firehose, since the cliff collapse, can be found here.
I posted here about the current flow from Kilauea Volcano entering the sea, in a dramatic, firehose-like outpouring. In that post, I mentioned that the day after my visit, a cliff collapse caused the firehose to disappear from view. Things have settled down again and the firehose is once more visible, though another large crack not far back from the cliff is expected to cause another collapse soon.
From the Kalapana side, it’s about four miles to the viewing area and a thriving trade in bike rentals has sprung up. When I was down that way last July there were a few bikes available for rent. Now there are maybe 200 or 300 available from a large number of vendors in the parking lot. At the viewing area, bikes were piled alongside the road, and locked in clumps.
I preferred to walk, seeing the towering column of smoke and steam getting gradually larger on the way out, and enjoying a star-studded night sky on my return.
Graham's Island 