Inferno

Kilauea, HI (Nov 4, 2005)

The visit to Kilauea ended with the spectacular sight of a lava river falling into the ocean. From the South rim of the Kilauea crater there is the so-called “Chains of Craters” road, that winds down the slope of the volcano, towards the sea. Until a few years ago, the road was connecting a few villages along the coast, ending up in the highway at the other side of the volcano. With the last eruption of Kilauea, however, lava flows descending from the volcano had destroyed the villages, and covered the road with a thick layer of dark, glassy material. We drove along the road to the hut of the park rangers. Then we walked for a few hundred feet along the road, until the road itself suddenly disappeared, covered by the thick, molassa-like, solidified lava that is relentlessly reshaping this part of the island.

From the end of the road we hiked for a couple miles on the solidified lava, following an uncertain track leading to the end of the “safe” zone, after which the lava is still flowing and people are advised by the park rangers not to go. We were too timid to proceed (and we didn’t have the proper boots to do more hike on the harsh terrain) but apparently the prohibition to stop is not very firm, and the next day we met people that walked until they reached the actual glowing river, and felt the heat of the molten rocks under their feet.

From the place where we stopped, still, the view was quite spectacular. We waited until sunset. In the darkness, the river of lava falling into the sea was indeed glowing in the distance. Its glare illuminating fumes and vapours: the epic fight between earth’s fire, and ocean’s water.