March 16 - Puna

We head up the coast on a narrow roller-coaster road. Forest, lava, ocean cliffs, forest.

We stopped at MacKenzie State Park, a forest of wispy trees and no undergrowth, right to the cliffs over the sea. A local, who asked us if we were lost, said she knew nothing of the lava tube mentioned in the guide book. The book only has vague directions to the cave, so we just went to the cliffs instead.

Some fool was down by the water as huge waves crashed into the rocks.

Back driving, we turned off the paved highway onto a washboard and pothole dirt road to the Kumukahi Lighthouse.

The tower was spared (but barely) by Pele when the lava came rolling down the hill. There’s a vast expanse of rough a‘a lava. And the ocean all around.

Inland we went next, to the Lava Tree State Park.

The towering forest canopy was more interesting to me than the small monoliths.

The name "lava tree" refers to the 8'-high tubes of lava that remain after lava flowed through the forest and cooled around trees, as the trees burned. They just look like lumpy rocks now.

Nice place for a walk, though, even in the rain.

We then headed to Pahoa for a late lunch at Kaleo’s. Dark inside. I guess the food tastes better that way.

We ordered pork wontons and mahi tempura. A few minutes after ordering, Chunlin wanted the fish special...

The rain didn’t let up, so after eating we didn’t head back to Kalapana for the lava viewing hike. Wimps, right?