Mahalo, Hawai'i!

View of the crater trail from the Crater Rim Trail.
Can you find the tiny people?

High on our list of things to see in Hawai’i was an active volcano. Even though the locals assured us that our expectations of volcanic explosions and lava geysers were woefully inaccurate, we still decided to take a few days off and camp at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park. Tane generously offered to drive us the two hours to the park, and even stopped in at the Southernmost Bakery in the United States to let us try their famous malasadas (a Portuguese doughnut). On the way to the park we were amazed at the variety of terrains we drove through. We had heard that the earth has 12 distinct biomes, and the Big Island of Hawai’i has 10 of them, but driving a third of the way around the island really showcased that fact. We passed grasslands with stunted trees reminiscent of the African savanna, rolling green hills dotted with farms that looked like the Scottish highlands, rocky desolate lava fields that looked like a black moonscape, and rainy forests that reminded one of the Pacific Northwest. 

Fur from the giant tree fern, used to be cultivated and
exported for mattress stuffing

Giant tree fern

Once we arrived at the park, Tane gave us a quick tour. First, we went right to the active crater, and saw what lava there was to see, which was none. The crater was billowing sulfur dioxide, but the molten lava as 300 feet down in a pit and impossible to see. Inside the nearby museum we learned about the geologic history of the area, saw beautiful paintings of Pele, the Hawai’ian goddes of fire, and jumped to see our weight affect a seismograph. The next stop was the Thurston lava tube, which seemed like a good place to check out since it had started raining. The hike down to the tube entrance plunged us into a tropical rain forest, complete with tree ferns 30 ft tall. The tube itself was roughly 12' in diameter. 

Lava field

As active as the volcano was

Randy was prepared for a caving adventure with his headlamp at the ready, but there was a paved path with overhead lights leading the way. A lava tube forms when a lava flow travels underground. Lava frequently travels in underground "rivers," but for a tube to form a "skylight" needs to occur. This direct opening between the tube and the outside allows the lava to drain out of the tube rather than simply solidifying where it is. After our trip through the tube, Tane dropped us off at the backcountry camping office, and wished us well before heading home. At the office we picked up a map, a permit, some water, and a sense of the enormity of the park. 

We realized we wouldn't be able to get to any of the backcountry sites that night on foot, so we just headed for a campground in the middle of the park. The Crater Rim Trail was a beautiful hike through lush rain forest, which occasionally gave way to vistas of barren rock-strewn plains in the Kilauea crater. Five hours later, when we finally arrived, exhausted and hungry, to the campsite, we couldn't get our stove to work. So, we ate cold canned beans, rice, and avocado, and went to bed. While staring up at the crystal clear night sky, we realized how complete the silence was, without the familiar coqui frog obnoxiously serenading us to sleep.

'Ohi'a Lehua tree, one of the first
plants to grow out of new lava 

Sea arch

Holly embracing her dorky homeschooler heritage

The next morning we woke up slightly sore from our hiking expedition the day before, and were perfectly ready to sacrifice a few sights for the sake of our legs. Luckily fate had other plans, and we ended up catching a ride with a friendly family of Wisconsonites, who let us tag along as they toured the park. First we got to see a fissure from a fifty-year-old eruption, which was a yonic, deep, narrow chasm with pink and purple walls dotted with ferns. Our inner geology nerd was further excited by our next stop, where we hiked out onto a lava field and saw "tree molds," these are the formations left behind when lava flows around a tree killing it, and it later decomposes, leaving a hole, sometimes several feet deep. Then our impromptu tour guides went all the way down the Crater Rim Drive to the ocean, where for centuries lava flows have terminated at the sea. We saw a pretty impressive sea arch and caves, both formed by the waves eating away at the lava cliffs. While we were watching the sea, we turned around and saw some of the elusive nene, Hawai'i's endangered state bird. The nene are a naturalized relative of the Canadian goose, who have lost the ability to fly through cushy island living. There are many signs around the park explaining that the nene are wild animals that should not be given handouts, proclaiming that "a fed nene is a dead nene." Holly thought that this was unnecessarily macabre "propagander." 

Crazy lava colors and formations

After a long day we thanked our Wisconsin friends, and got dropped off near the campsite. Holly relaxed and read while Randy roamed around the nearby lava fields. That night we enjoyed our rice, beans, and avocado while watching the glow of the crater in the distance.

Cutting down the
cinnamon trees

The next morning we woke up, broke camp, and started our epic hitchhike home. Some of our neighbors at the campsite kindly drove us to the park entrance, where we started walking down the highway. Four rides and six hours later, we finally arrived at the mile-long hill up to Tane's. We dreaded walking up the steep incline, but luckily a friendly neighbor picked us up. He worked at a B&B next door, which was started by the artist whose paintings of Pele we had admired the day before at the volcano museum! He dropped us at Tane's just in time for us to grab a quick shower before heading to the beach for a barbecue. While enjoying a potluck sunset dinner, a whale graced us with its presence, only about 100 feet off shore.

Scraping off the outer bark

Ceylon cinnamon drying

Pounding the inner bark to
loosen it

Tane has a few cinnamon groves, and is beginning to expand the production and marketing of delicious organic cinnamon. On a few occasions we were able to help harvest and process the cinnamon. First, Tane would choose a good branch and cut it into foot-long pieces. Then we used a knife at a 90 degree angle to the log to scrape off the thin outer bark. 

Raw inner bark

Next we pounded the inner bark with a hammer to help it separate from the wood, which enabled us to peel off the cinnamon bark with a knife. Then the cinnamon was dried, and shipped to the mainland to be ground up and packaged. The rhythmic tones of people pounding on wood coupled with the sweet cinnamon aroma was reminiscent of some forgotten primal communal handicraft.
One day Tane and Maureen were heading south to check out a friend's new farm, and they kindly invited us to tag along. The farm happened to have the distinction of being the "southernmost organic farm in the US." The farmer had only had the land for nine months, and already had an incredible amount of produce growing. He was even planning on implementing an impressive aquaculture system. After our visit wrapped up, we all decided to go check out the southernmost point in the US, since it was so close. As we approached the coast, we noticed that all the trees were bent almost double from decades of relentless wind. The spot was marked with an official sign, and a platform positioned over the cliff's edge for daring jumpers.

Southernmost point in the US

Once you've seen one southernmost point in the US, you've seen them all.

Holly and Mary

Honey the puppy enjoys watching
Scrabble from a comfy vantage point

When we weren't gallivanting around the island, we enjoyed relaxing evenings of dinner and board games with fellow farm worker Mary and her husband Jared. It's always exciting to find other board game enthusiasts to play games with. Their game of choice was Scrabble, and many nights were spent joyously reviewing the two-letter words of the English language while eating bowls and bowls of guacamole.
On March 31st, we said goodbye to our big-hearted Big Island friends, and set off for our next stop: New Zealand.
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Bak choi with oyster shell and sand

The rainforest in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Tane and Maureen, our super kind and knowledgeable hosts