8/21/18: The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park set a goal to reopen parts of the park by September 22, as long as the current pause in earthquakes and collapse-explosion events at the summit of Kilauea continues. 8/20/18: The lava pond at Fissure 8 has crusted over, so the only lava visible now is at the […]
It’s 4:30 a.m. and I’m sitting in the second row aboard the Ohana, a covered aluminum catamaran, en route to see 2,000-degree lava plunging into cool seawater. We’ve been bouncing along the choppy ocean for about 30 minutes when, in the distance, the sky transforms from inky black to a radiating reddish-orange. A collective “Whoa”
The Kahuku Unit of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is perhaps one of the park’s most underrated areas. Open to the public Wednesday through Sunday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., this grassy section was once a historic ranch and spans 116,000 acres. Guests can expect to see remnants of ohia lehua forests, unique plant and
The waterfall is incredible. Up the mountain a few short miles past Rainbow Falls and downtown Hilo, The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls is spread across 22 acres on a cliff overlooking a 120-foot waterfall. It didn’t take a two-hour hike through a forest to see this—instead, it was a short, scenic drive—and the best part
The tiny island off of Hawaii Island’s eastern coastline has lost its island-hood. According to a tweet released by the US Geological Survey, a small strip of land now connects the landmass to the Big Island, making it a peninsula. The small island was first spotted on a morning flight last Friday by a Hawaii
The sign on the post office calls it Kamuela, but the 8,500 people who live there call it Waimea. The Big Island town, nestled between the Kohala Mountains and the slopes of Mauna Kea, is easy to confuse with other places in Hawaii. Kauai’s fabled Waimea Canyon and Oahu’s equally legendary Waimea Bay, while nowhere
With the ongoing eruptions occurring on the Island of Hawaii, specifically in the Puna district, a large quantity of vog, hazy air pollution created by volcanic activity, is being produced on the Big Island. While mostly harmless, it can cause respiratory problems, headaches and watery eyes if there’s a high concentration of vog in the
The Big Island resort that was formerly the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel has been rebranded to The Westin Hapuna Beach Resort, following a multi-million dollar renovation project. From the pools to the lobby to the guest rooms, the hotel has undergone an almost complete makeover, and it looks better than ever. Aside from the new rooms
Governor David Ige has signed the long-awaited bill that will not allow sunscreen that is deemed toxic for coral reefs to be sold in the state of Hawaii. Senate Bill 2571, initially proposed by Senator Mike Gabbard, seeks to prohibit the sale of sunscreens that contain oxybenzone and octinoxate, two chemicals that have been scientifically proven
The past few months have been busy for the Hawaiian Islands, with national and international attention focused on Kauai and the Big Island—in many cases, sensationalized. April brought a rainstorm to the north shore of Kauai unlike any that’s been recorded in the past. More than 27 inches of rain caused many parts of the
Although the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park may be closed due to the ongoing volcanic activity on the Island of Hawaii, it’s still possible to see the Halemaumau Crater in real-time. Set up by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the Hawaii Volcano Observatory, an ongoing livestream of the Halemaumau Crater can be found here, and seen below. Regularly
From my cottage at Puakea Ranch, near the northern tip of the island of Hawaii, I can see a rainbow arching through the pale blue sky over the bright green hills, the wind gently rippling the deep blue ocean below. Native white hibiscus with jaunty pink stamens and fragrant white plumeria blossom all around me,
