Lustrous Flow

Big Island, Hawai'i

Happy Aloha Friday! I'm continuing to get through a backlog of photographs. Much like the duration and delay of road construction on the island, this image is a year overdue. This image is from a most memorable night--exploring the 61G lava flow just after a new breakout was reported.

We started our morning at 3am, serendipitously obtaining bike rentals in the parking lot. Riding briskly through the night along the emergency access road we reached the area to to head off on the lava field. Hiking across the pahoehoe field for 2hrs, guided only by our primal instincts for hot lava, and by that I mean the bright glowing light we could see off in the distance. In some respects it's easier to find at night than the day! We made it just in time to see the spirit of Pele, oozing along the surface, glowing and radiating in the dark of night.

This of course is a magical experience, or as two hikers who were coming off the trail proclaimed a "spiritual experience". I lack a diverse enough vocabulary to add more color to my description. Suffice it to say, if you ever have a chance to do this, just go! (be safe too).
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