Info
In the Puna District, drive beyond Pahoa Town toward the coast and you’ll find the end of the road is covered in lava. In 1990, lava from Kilauea volcano engulfed Kalapana, a historic Hawaiian fishing village and residential area, as well as the famous black sand beach at Kaimu. Pele, the volcano goddess, also destroyed Hawaii’s oldest heiau (temple), two subdivisions and several miles of public highway. No lives were lost, but 182 homes were swallowed by lava. Today there’s an entirely new coastline here with a few poignant traces of the town that once thrived here. A visit to Kalapana is a sobering reminder of the raw power of Pele.
Located just east of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Kalapana offers a good view of activity from Kilauea’s Puu Oo vent, the source of the volcano’s most recent activity. In March of 2009, federal, state and Hawaii county leaders officially opened the Kalapana viewing area to provide safe viewing of the current lava flow by foot. This was the first time lava has reached the sea since June 2007. The conditions change from day to day, so lava-viewing experiences can vary.
Visitors on foot must obey all warning signs and are required to stay within permitted areas for safety purposes. A newly formed black sand beach and land area is extremely unstable, and could collapse into the ocean at any time. There is also the threat of acidic laze, a hazardous chemical reaction of hydrochloric acid (HCl) and seawater, that occurs when the extreme heat of the lava enters the sea, rapidly boils and vaporizes the seawater into visible white plumes. Because of the unpredictable nature of the lava flow, the area is subject to closure at any time. The Kalapana viewing area offers a chance of a lifetime, allowing you to see the birth of new life and to witness Pele’s awesome powers of creation.
