Hawaii -- Day 4 afternoon

When we got to Volcanoes NP, the first thing we went to see (after the visitor center), was the steam vents.  It was pretty crazy to see steam just coming up from the ground!

What was really crazy is that it was coming up all over the place... which really made you feel like you were right on top of a volcano (which of course we were). 

Looking out at the crater within the caldera.

Walking along the edge of the steam.

We went to the Jaggar museum, where they had a seismograph.  It was pretty cool to see the seismic activity, and you could even see footsteps recorded too!

Here you could really see the steam coming from the crater below.  Apparently the lava is just low enough below the surface that you can't see it from the rim.  Bummer!

Next stop was a walk through a lava tube, a cave left behind where lava once flowed. 

Dark and drippy!

Then we drove to the edge of the park, where the lava flows into the sea.  There were some big cracks that we all stopped to see, apparently. 

And a dramatic sea arch.

And Calvin and Eli got stuck in the lava!

No, not really.  We continued walking to where the most recent lava flow covered the road.  Supposedly you can see the lava flowing into the sea farther on ahead, but it was too much of a hike for us. 

So we walked to the end of the road. 

The road at this point, obviously, was closed. 

We climbed over the lava fields for a while...

...took lots of pictures...

...and walked back.  The kiddos needed a lift at this point!  It was getting late, so we drove back up to the museum to see the glow of the lava in the crater.  It was pretty cool!

 

 

Then we drove back in the dark, which was an adventure in and of itself!