Hawaii Part 5 - 'Land of Frozen Fire'

‘Hawaii - Land of Frozen Fire’ was the title of our tour. As we continued our journey, I realised how appropriate that title was. 

After the Lava Tree State Park, we journeyed more into the countryside of Hilo, where we saw many regions that had been covered and shaped by lava flows. The appearance and consistency of the lava depends on the temperature and speed at which it flowed out of a magma chamber and its rate of cooling. We saw fields covered in lava that looked like recently ploughed earth - it had very rough surface. 

At one place along the sea front we visited the Ahalanui Thermal Pond. Our guide told is that as rain water seeps deep down through all the pores in the lava, it is heated. Eventually it flows back up and thermal ponds can result. This pond was right next to the sea and here the warm waters that have sprung from the ground and sea water intermingle, forming a natural, warm sea bath, as it were, which is very popular with the locals. Many believe it has healing properties and bathe there every day. Of course here the sand is really crushed lava - very black. It was a most interesting place to visit. 

As we drove further along the coast we saw other black beaches, including places where people were enjoying some quite gentle surf. Finally we arrived at a beach that is yet to be formally named, where in about 1990 the lava flow from a volcanic eruption created a new coastline. This has been an idyllic, popular spot with palm trees and lovely sands. Now it is rather like a wide moonscape. It was several hundred metres to the newly formed coastline.

And yet, Hawaiians have covered it with many little kinds of altars to their gods and works of art, and Nature has done her bit too. Flowers are springing up out of the dark grey, hard swirls of lava, a metaphor for the hope that always conquers even the harshest, toughest of times in our lives. 

The thermal 'bath'.

Looking back at the park from the thermal 'bath'. The trees there were simply beautiful.

In this photo you can just see the sea beyond this thermal 'bath'.

We hiked over a wide expanse of lava. You could see all the little altars and symbols from the native Hawaiians  placed across this landscape.

Flowers and plants were starting to grow everywhere.

We saw quite a few piles of stones and rocks placed in perfect balance, a monument to harmony. 

The new coastline.

Already rocks were being smoothed by the sea.

Some of the rock art along the path back from the sea.

The native Hawaiians have created a natural art gallery full of their messages. 

The original shoreline. No doubt the new one will look like this one day.