The current activity on Kilauea has continued from 1983 to the present. It is the most continuous activity that has been observed on Kilauea since European times at least. The eruption is presently centred on the Pu'u O'o vent on the south east rift zone. Since the eruption began extensive areas have been covered by lava as indicated on the map below. At the time of our visit lava was erupting from the vent travelling down lava tubes and entering the sea. We tramped out to the point of the first lava entry and then later took a Helicopter flight over the area. The photos below document our visit.
Information on the lava flows is available at this site
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At the start of the trek, the National Park Service require you to view a video to brief you on the dangers. These include; becoming overcome with fumes, falling through recent lava crusts, steam explosions where the lava enters the sea and portions of the new coast breaking away. Visitors have been killed here | |
| Just over a kilometre down the road the point at which the road is cut is reached |  |
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From here the track follows the old road for about another kilometre and then ascends onto thick lava flows | |
| The "track" disappears and we made our way across a very irregular surface heading towards the steam |  |
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The two entry points where the lava was entering the sea very visible from high points | |
| At the point of no return we were very much on our own. The National Park Service takes the view, that while they cannot stop you, they will provide information on the dangers, but you are very much on your own |  |
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Approaching the end of the two hour trek in. | |
| Reward for our effort. Good views of the point of entry of
the lava entering the sea from about 200 metres. (Note the burnt sign). The
ground was was warm underfoot and probably only days old.
The lava builds out a shelf over the steep former coast line. This periodically collapses (as it did in the week following our visit) resulting in masses of lava hitting the sea and explosive eruptions |
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We caught glimpses of the lava as the wind blew the steam
away. The air was thick with fumes and fine lava droplets. It was not
healthy to stay around too long.
We then faced the prospect of the long two hour trek back |
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Equally fascinating were the textures of "yesterdays new earth". The flows we travelled across were less than two years old and near where the lava was entering the sea weeks if not days old. The flows are almost exclusively of the Pahoehoe type. The surface had a iridescent glassy sheen. |
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