Ins & Outs: Hawaii's Big Island
There is so much to see on Hawaii's Big Island that a week is hardly enough. For such a small island (smaller than Connecticut), it's amazingly varied, with everything from rain forests to deserts to mountain fields. If you get too hot at the beach, you can just drive 2,000 feet up the mountain to cool off in a cloud forest.
The easiest gateway to the island is the sunny resort town of Kona, which receives direct flights from several cities on the West Coast and Chicago. For the kind of beaches Hawaii is best known for, look north of Kona on the Kohala coast. But for touring the Kilauea Volcano, the choices are more limited. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is about a two-hour drive from Kona, making it a very long day trip. It's a much shorter drive from the frontier-like town of Hilo on the other side of the island (but bring an umbrella–it's one of the rainiest towns in the United States). Perhaps the best option is to plan a night or two in the town of Volcano, just outside the park. Try the 15-room Kilauea Lodge, especially for its fantastic dinners.
The volcano itself is unpredictable, changing daily or even hourly. Sometimes, you can get pretty close to the lava. Other times, the flows are distant and inaccessible. Either way, there are plenty of things to see. But to get a sense of what the eruption looks on any given day, check out the U.S. Geological Survey's webcam.
My guides, Lee and Betty Meyerson, no longer give tours, but Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is a great do-it-yourself site, which you can visit in a rental car. It takes at least a full day to see all the sights. And if you want to make the strenuous hike out to the active lava flows, you'll probably need a second. The park has several different climatic zones, meaning that parts of it are hot and dry, while others are cool and wet. We brought several layers–including raincoats and hats–and lots of sunscreen.
Hiking out to the lava itself is an unforgettable experience but does have risks. The lava cliffs near the ocean have often been hollowed out by the waves, meaning they can collapse. Volcanic gases are toxic. And lava flows and mini-eruptions can break out in unexpected places. The park rangers have a long set of instructions about how to view lava safely: www.nps.gov/havo/visitor/lava.htm.
We found that the lava viewing is best at night, when the red glows are most visible. By hiking out in the late afternoon, we avoided the hottest part of the day and still had some light to guide our way over the jagged terrain. It's almost impossible to bring too much water along; the rangers recommend a quart per person. We also brought flashlights and extra batteries. (And I was particularly grateful for a first-aid kit after tripping and slicing my arm on the sharp rocks. Lava rock has lots of silica, basically glass, making the path much like a field of broken glass.) Wear sturdy shoes but not expensive ones. (Our soles were cut repeatedly by the sharp rocks.)
The submarine tour is mostly about the fish. And while snorkeling might be more personal, the trip to a coral reef 65 feet under the sea is still interesting. Atlantis Adventures runs the $80 tour from the Kona pier, right in the center of town.
We drove across the island to Hilo for the helicopter flight, because the tours are much cheaper there. There are several choices, but Tropical Helicopters flies four-seater Hughes choppers with two-way headsets so everyone can talk to the pilot. The 35-minute aerial tour costs about $115 per person.
For tips on what else to do on the Big Island, most visitors look to a guidebook written by residents of the state. Hawaii: The Big Island Revealed by Andrew Doughty and Harriett Friedman is published by Wizard Publications. -Kevin Whitelaw
advertisement
