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UNITED STATES | Big Island, Hawaii Travel Guide
Monday, December 30, 2024
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Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is a 207,643- acre preserve that has in it the Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes, Hawaii’s only active volcanoes. Kilauea actually boasts the longest, continuous eruptions (along its east rift zone) in Hawaii’s documented history, averaging approximately 300,000 cubic feet of lava per day, covering more than 30 square miles and adding over 350 acres of land mass to the island. The park itself lies in the southern part of the island, between the Puna and Kau districts, extending south to the ocean, with the snow-capped Mauna Kea looming farther to the north of it.
Exploring Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
The Kilauea Visitor Center, located near the park entrance on Crater Rim Road (which circles the Kilauea Caldera), at an elevation of 4,200 feet, is a good place to orient oneself. It has information on the park’s eruption sites, hiking trails and campsites, and also houses a natural history museum.
Other places of interest at the park include the rustic, 42- room Volcano House and the adjacent Volcano Art Center, the latter housed in a 19th-century historic structure, displaying works of local artists and photographers. Both the art center and the lodge are located near the visitor center on Crater Rim Road. From here you can also see the Kilauea Caldera, a mammoth, 2,600-acre volcanic crater with a 12-mile diameter, which is the centerpiece of the park.
Also of interest, and located on Crater Rim Road, are the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, established in 1912 to observe and investigate seismic and volcanic activity, and the adjacent Thomas A. Jaggar Museum, which houses several informative exhibits centered around the geology of the earth, eruption history, and the present seismic activity in the area.
There are several good hiking trails in the park, including some leading into the craters, as well as vista points that offer good views of the craters and parts of the park. Near the south end of the park you can also see the current eruption site, where lava is presently flowing into the ocean.
Last updated December 25, 2010
Posted in United States | Big Island
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