Monday, September 13, 2010

Getting a Close Eye View of an Active Lava Flow



As you can see this part of the island is alive and active with lava continuously flowing down from the Kilauea Volcano down to the ocean.  Even recently, just a few weeks ago this area you are seeing had an active flow spreading through this virgin forest and torching all the beauty around this wilderness. Its sad to see but Pele ( the goddess of Fire) does not spare anything in her pathway to the ocean even through vast areas of untouched beauty. In spite of this singed area, we are constantly reminded that this island is still alive and growing new lands and new beaches. 







Fortunately the tradewinds here are blowing all the smoke and what we call vog down southwest and off to the other islands. The vog is quite toxic to alot of people and whole agricultural industries have been devastated in our own county alone because of this recent phenomena.

Walking through the torched forest is not only eery but the ground is still very hot and soft to walk on, making me feel a little aware that I might still be walking on very tender crust that may easily collapse at any moment. Even though the active flow has moved further down to a new ocean entry, the ground closeby is still fragile and quite dangerous.



I decided to keep on hiking all the way to the lava entry since I saw quite a few hikers continuing towards the lava " I know blind, leading the blind ", despite the fact that the ground was still warm in this area where the lava entered recently.  But since I was following behind a hundred yards, it was a good indicator that things looked relatively safe. Here's a photo of me at least a few hundred feet away from the entry.




It is getting close to dusk and there's still alot of light but I really wanted to stay later and see the red glow and embers from the lava entering the water so I decided to stay a bit and walk around to see some more amazing discoveries along the way...here's a preview of what I'll be showing you on the next installment - Fireworks!




Unfortunately, I forgot my tripod again so the shot is a little blurry with the reduction of light, but stay tuned for some amazing captures that I was able to get in my next post.

For more views around the world come and visit http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

24 comments:

  1. Oh Noel,
    queste foto sono stupefacenti in questa forza distruttiva della natura...
    Ciao :)

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  2. Fantastic images Noel, I never got to see lava flow when I was in Hawaii but I can almost feel Pele's power from your photos. It's also very nice to see that you have included one of yourself. Have a great week.
    An English Girl Rambles

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  3. Dramatic shots. The first and last ones are superb!

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  4. I never saw lava. I liked the last picture. Great images Noel, have a great week.

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  5. Fantastic captures, Noel!! I, too, love the first and last ones and they are indeed superb! Have a great week!

    Sylvia

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  6. Aloha to you. Awesome images. An interesting and very dramatic scenery. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. Hi Noel, glad to see you alive and well after that hot walk. These volcano posts are really awesome!!

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  8. Interesting post, Noel. I'm glad you are adventurous enough to check the area out so we can see what it's like. But please be careful!

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  9. Wow just to have the opportunity to get photos like that. Great job I will be looking for more

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  10. Hi Noel, wow, this is as close as I can see of embers and lava. Nice shots! I hope you put on some thick/heavy duty hiking shoes! Be careful....

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  11. These are all fantastic shots. I get a sense of what it would be like. Very beautiful as well as destructive.

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  12. it's so pretty and amazing to look at but the destruction it creates is unspeakable.

    have a lovely week.

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  13. What an adventure it must be. Please have a good Tuesday.

    daily athens

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  14. Wow, glorious photos and I know the feeling of walking on newly formed earth crust from Iceland where you had to be very careful not to step into a fumarole and go sailing to the centre of the earth.

    I look forward to the next exciting instalment.

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  15. Thank you for sharing these fantastic shots.
    What an adventure it must be.

    Have a nice week,
    Greetings, Bram

    My Word Tuesday post

    Seen on My World Tuesday

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  16. Maganda, your shots, Noel! Even if they are of a risky hike... But you lived to tell the story, and well.

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  17. Stunning and spectacular photos, Noel and they answer my question of last week: the lava flow stops from time to time! Thanks for your visit. I cannot answer your question about the four toilets on the vessel. It's a luxury yacht so every cabin has a toilet I think.;)

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  18. Oh my word. Looks amazing! I would be a bit nervous though.

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  19. Great shots. A little spooky to see you walking so near a lava flow.

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  20. fantastic shots! i've seen a documentary about Kilauea Volcano on NatGeo, very interesting. it must scary and exciting to see this in person.

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  21. Great shots, Noel. I really like the eerie neon glow of the lava in the last photo.

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  22. did you watch that Man verses wild in Hawaii? I watched with my students, and it was good.

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  23. You get some amazing pics!! I love that last pic with the glow from the lava!!
    ~Randy

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  24. Your photographs are real good and worth a second look.

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