Land of Fire, Fountains and Waterfalls - February 2019

Donna, Jo & Steve by the sea

Place of Refuge

The carved tree

Following our winter wonderland trip with pals Leigh and Franck in Arizona, Jo and I flew on to the big island of Hawaii for the last part of our holiday break.

We were greeted by sunshine, a warm breeze, lapping ocean waves and friendly people, handing us flowers and shell necklaces, with the sleepy lagoon sound of the ukulele playing in the background...

Of course, being the way we are, we didn't sit around in hammocks with our pina coladas under a coconut tree for long. As soon as we met up with our pal Donna, the three of us planned our adventures...

We took a tour to gaze at the stars amidst the observatories on a high Hawaiian volcanic mountain. Unfortunately clouds rolled in, the road was closed and the tour was aborted mid-flow, but we travelled through some amazingly dramatic scenery, black lava flows stretching out to the horizon amidst cones created from fountains of fire.

We were equally keen to visit the mystical Place of Refuge, an important spiritual centre for the original inhabitants of the island on the coast. The carved deities overlooking the ocean and standing before the temple looked both forbidding and intriguing, possessing a hypnotic, dreamlike energy. Close by was an extraordinary totem pole, cut into beautiful images from a dead tree. These people had a powerful culture and religion, at the centre of which was Pele, goddess of the volcanic heart of the island...

Visiting the volcano Kilauea was a high point in more ways than one! Until last year it had been active with virtually constant flows of molten lava for years. At this time, its huge craters were still exuding steam, biding time before the next gigantic outpouring... Soon after leaving this desolate place reminiscent of the land of Mordor in Lord of the Rings, we entered a tropical paradise... a lush zone of rain forest, with rivers and waterfalls tumbling over cliffs. Travelling around the island, the scenery contrasts dramatically, from arid lava fields to jungle and from rolling green Alpine hills to coffee plantations.

The sea is always close by. We all took the opportunity of a boat ride along the coast to see the spot where Captain Cook first landed on Hawaii. From the boat we saw whales and dolphins leaping through the water. We also enjoyed watching those huge manta rays from our hotel at night, where boats with lights encourage them to come near the shore to feed.

The miles we traveled to visit this fantastic place were well worth it. It is uniquely special and we hope to have the chance to explore another of these islands soon...

Palms by the sea

Lava and cones

The steaming volcano

Steve, Jo & Donna in the rain forest

Manta ray at night

Sunset from the boat