Volcano!

Today's adventure was to Volcano!  We left the house a bit early to make sure we were there before the crowds and we were!  It was a little bit drizzly which meant the trees would gather the water and when the breeze would pick up they would rain on us.  This also meant it was a lot cooler and we were all glad to have our sweatshirts!  

Our first stop was a lava tube!  We were thinking it would take longer and when we realized how short it was we did it again!  This is Olivier at the entrance!  No longer in fear of lava!  

There was a lot of flowers along the paths we walked and it made it smell so good!  

A cool mossy green wall, which oddly made us look a bit orange!  

We then went along the Kilauea Iki Overlook trail which had breathtaking views of the all the lava!  

There were lots of holes like this in the areas just off the path that were holes to what seemed to be nothing.  A stark reminder of how the surroundings were formed.

Next we decided to take the Kilauea Iki trail to the lava bed.  It was over a mile of path just going down with stairs and switchbacks along the way.  It was a little intimidating knowing we were going to have to go back up but we didn't let that stop us.  Or this sign!  

And this is what it looked like when we got to the lava bed!  

Crazy to see the ripples up close.  

And the cracks!  

We did not cross the lava bed.  That was too much for us!  

We could see some steam vents in the distance and could smell the sulfur!  

Then we went back up.  We took it slow but thankfully it really wasn't bad.  

After making it back up, we took the car over to the visitors center.  We learned about the giant raspberries!  

We watched a short movie and relaxed for a bit and had lunch.  Then it was off to check out the steam vents.  Check out this warning!  

And this hole...

was next to this sign!  Yikes!

We could see steam coming from the vents and the smell was strong!  

We saw this interesting flower (?) along the way too.  It was a stem that went straight up and into a spiral that looked like it was going to have some kind of flower.  

We went to other scenic points and you could see the steam coming from the lava bed.

We also saw a number of markers from USGS.  

We had all done over 15,000 steps and were ready for some time off our feet.  We headed back to the house but before we got there we stopped at a sweet bread factory and had some ice cream!  
 

Black Sand Beach!

Today we headed to the black sand beach!  It was really breathtaking!  

The beach is home to hawksbill sea turtle.  They are on the critically endangered list.  

It is a bit tricky but you can see turtle heads popping out of the water periodically.  

The water was nice and warm and while we figured out where we might settle the kids enjoyed getting their feet wet.  Then the camera went away so I could enjoy the beach too!

Yes, the sand is really black.  It is a bit rough but sparkly.  

And while we were there, one of the turtles came up onto the beach.  Thankfully, the lifeguards set up a rope barrier to give it some protection but there are a number of people who just didn't seem to listen.  

They have an area where they have nests protected.  

Matt was able to get a photo of me holding the turtle!  :-)  I love turtles!

After visiting the black sand beach, we went to the southern most point of the United States.  And the sand there reminds me of the photos of the surface of the moon, super fine sand, more like dust.  And boy did it make a mess but it was worth it!  The sea was rough so no swimming but we were there!

There is also lots of coral on the shore which makes shoes a must!  

The road to South Point looked to have some kind of satellite station.  Interesting!

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and watching a movie!  And yes, Olivier still has his eyes on the gecko!  

Oh, and at 11:45 a.m., while at the beach, we heard the emergency alert system blare. After a quick internet search, we found out it was only the monthly test (happens the 1st of each month at the same time).  It was a bit alarming not knowing what it meant, thankfully nothing!  
 

Up and away to Hawaii!

Today we left the hotel at 5 a.m. and made our way to the airport.  It went smoothly and, after a five hour flight, we arrived in Kona just after 9 a.m. and had a quick process to get our bags and the rental car.  With our stomachs telling us it was lunch time, we headed to a super easy lunch, Costco!  We shared a full Costco pizza at 10:30 a.m. Yes, silly we know but it worked out well.  We then headed to a regular store to load up on groceries before making the drive to the rental house on the south end of the island.  It was roughly a 90 minute drive from the airport to the house.  

We unloaded and got things settled and explored around the house a bit.  We had to laugh at this sign because it reminded us of streets from a long-ago Alabama trip. You better know if you need the "Street" or "Place" because they cross paths.  Seems extra confusing!  

It was a windy day!  It was nice to be outside and feel a little bit more settled!  

After dinner we noticed a gecko on the patio and Olivier did some crawling to try and get it but it was just too fast for him!