lava is pretty

This past Sunday (2/11) Tyler, Jamal, Emma, Loren (computer geek at HVO) and I went out late afternoon/early evening to the Kilauea lava flows. Tyler's job/internship at HVO is to go out in to the lava flows 2-3 times a week to map the current eruptions, so he was able to take us directly to active flows. It was about a hour hike out to the flows and then blam! We could see the heat shimmer off the flows and with strong winds, it felt like we were in a huge hair dryer. The steam vents were rather active, so we had to watch where we stood to avoid inhaling toxic fumes. We got lucky and saw a small lava fall break out. Long sleeves and pants are recommended when standing close to the lava - I learned that the hard way when my arm hair was singed while video taping some lava.

Earlier that day, Emma and I went to Macy's to buy new lava flow pants because we both had inappropriate pairs. Mine were made of synthetic materials and hers were ripped. My new cotton/linen pants would not flash melt to my body if I got too close to the lava!


We crossed over a "cooled" section of the lava tube to see what was happening on the other side, which is always an exciting and risky adventure. You judge the relative age and temperature of tubes by their color - the more silver it is, the less stable it is to walk on. Even with the "stable" sections, we could see red lava in the cracks 2' below our feet. At one point Tyler (the leader) called a retreat and we carefully backtracked to safety.
For videos of lava, go on to YouTube and search for "kaitlin lava". The videos are processing, so cross your fingers that it works!