Kilauea was erupting and had some major movement during Justin’s & my visit to the Big Island of Hawaii. My dad is a Professor of Geology at the University of Hawaii at Hilo and offered to take us out to see the lava flow. So my dad, my sisters Bethany & Caitlin, Justin and I made the late-night trek together. It was about 4 miles round trip, over rugged terrain (old lava flows), in pitch blackness… but it was definitely worth it.

The lava flow was huge – the biggest one I have ever seen. There were literally rivers of lava flowing down the mountain! And we got to stand right next to it – we took samples of the molten lava using a geology pick! Even my 8 year old sister Caitlin did it! I was very impressed, as the heat was almost unbearable at that range.

The experience was incredible. The pictures do not do it justice.

Thank you, dad!

If you’re interested, you can visit the USGS website for Kilauea status reports.

– Justin