07/12/2016
Puʻu ʻŌʻō
Big Island, Hawaii
Puʻu ʻŌʻō is a volcanic cone in the eastern rift zone of the Kīlauea volcano of the Hawaiian Islands. Puʻu ʻŌʻō, meaning “hill of the digging stick” also translated as "Hill of the ʻŌʻō Bird".
Puʻu ʻŌʻō has been erupting continuously since January 3, 1983, making it the longest-lived rift-zone eruption of the last two centuries with over 60 different episodes. Most famously covering the Royal Gardens subdivision and the town of Kalapana from 1983 to 1992. So far the volcano has added over 230 acres of land to the Southeast coast of Hawaiʻi. So far, the eruption has claimed 189 buildings and 8.7 miles of highways, as well as a church, a store, the Wahaʻula Visitor Center, and many ancient Hawaiian sites, including the Wahaʻula heiau. The coastal highway has been closed since 1987, as it has been buried under lava up to 115 feet thick.
For the past week I have been hypnotized by youtube videos of a new lava flow on the Big Island of Hawaii. Every day, I read the latest lava report. Every day it gets closer to the ocean. It’s luring me like a mermaid.
I decide to go check out the lava. It would be a quick one day trip. The plan was to hook up with a friend, Jesse and Wynn and stay at the lava flow taking pictures all night. I was really excited about going to see the lava flow after living in Hawaii for over 23 years.
I grabbed my camera gear and flew over to Hilo. I rented a car and drove out to the Volcanoes National Park. Then drove through the park on the Chain of Craters road to the very end where the lava had closed the road twenty years ago. I did my final packing. Like a true photographer, I opted for an extra lens instead of extra water.
I started walking out on a gravel road built in the past 5 years for emergency access. A sign right at the gate said 5-6 hours round trip, ten miles roundtrip plus walking on lava. With my 1/2 gallon of Gatorade cherry flavored I walked and walked and walked. It was 4pm and still hot from the sun and there’s no shade in these old lava fields.
The gravel road was up and down there were no flat sections. After four hours, I made it to the the beginning of the lava flow. After walking by myself, there were a lot of people assembled here preparing to walk out on the old lava. There were a bunch of bicycles parked on the side of the road.
It was about a mile or more across the glassy lava to reach the red hot lava. It was a surreal scene when I reached the new lava. There were at least 200 people all around the area taking pictures, posing, and celebrating. It was about 30 minutes before sunset. Sunset is a wonderful time to be out on the lava. Photography wise lava looks best during the golden hour and surprisingly not so great during the night. It was hot. I was dehydrated just sitting around the lava flow. Everything was lava sharp and hard. Awkward taking pictures.
After two hours, I decided I better head back. I was dehydrated. I rationed my remaining Gatorade. That didn’t last long… I quickly drink all my Gatorade within two miles and I have four more miles left walking. After walking another hour, I ran into Jesse and his girlfriend Wynn. They were hiking out having started at 9pm. They were like angels sharing a cold beer. It was the best beer I’ve had in years and is it so wonderful to talk a little, while I took some pictures of the Milky Way. After a nice break, said goodbye to my angels and parted ways.
I got to the car at 1 AM in the morning. Open the trunk and slammed a half gallon of cherry Gatorade within a minute… ohhh so sweet. I drove to the Volcano Lodge. I took care of my feet that had some blisters and fall asleep in the rental car. The next morning I drove back to Hilo and fly home.
Here’s some tips I learned. First rent a mountain bicycle. Drive to Kalapana and park way out of town. Bicycle to the beginning of the lava flow trail. Leave bike on road, hopefully locked to a bunch of friend's bicycles. Walk out to the new lava flow with lots of water (at least 2 gallons.) Lava photography looks best during the golden hour. Wear boots, shorts, headlamp and bring some light rain gear for showers. For my Camera gear, I brought a super lightweight tripod and used a water bottle for stabilizing weigh (it windy). Bring a 35 to 70 mm zoom, 14 mm wide angle and 100-400mm zoom lenses (best lense not to get cooked by lava). And a video camera like a GoPro. Also something to sit on like a cushion or cheap yoga mat.
According to my Fitbit, roundtrip I walked 34,000 steps, 15 miles, 105 floors and 9 hours of walking and photography.
I plan on going back soon :)
