Loose Gems
Maka ‘Ike
A few years ago I had plans to travel to the Big Island of Hawaii with a photographer friend of mine to shoot the lava fields. They had just had an active run from Kilauea and much of the lava was above the surface and could be seen clearly even during the day. We booked our flights and packed our gear.
Then a couple days before our trip over a hurricane formed in the eastern Pacific and was bearing down on Hilo, Hawaii, right where we were about to fly into. The next day it was noted that behind that hurricane another had begun to form and would likely follow with a one-two punch on the Big Island.
Not usually someone to shy away from some action like that, this time it felt like we should postpone our trip. So we did. We waited a couple weeks until the storms were gone and we had the time to get back over there.
When we got there the lava had stopped its above ground flow and was no longer visible except for where it reached the ocean several miles from any sort of access point. My buddy John and I had hiked for miles trying to find any sign of the glowing red lava with no luck at all.
Our legs ached as it became dark and we were so far off any marked path we both looked at each other and knew it was time to head back. Defeated. I took my bag off and laid it down on a lava rock in the vast field that surrounded us and took a sip of water from my Nalgene. It was then that I noticed my feet were not just sore and aching, but they were HOT!
I looked down and found this crack in the rock. Lava flowing directly below us. Before making like Wiley E. Coyote and booking it out of there I snapped a few pictures. This was the best I got. Although not what we were hoping to shoot, I really do like this little crack and the impressive glow of red magma below my feet.
By the way, I did melt the soles off my shoes from this hike. It was worth it though...
