Around Hilo

Rainbow Falls...and then some

I can't think right now so I'm just going to post my photos. I'll come back later to write more information.

Rainbow Falls

Rainbow Falls - One week later after heavy rain.

Rainbow Falls is one of the many waterfalls you'll see in Hilo. Access to the viewing area is not far from the parking lot and there are public restrooms available and a gift shop across the street. Tour buses frequent Rainbow Falls and can get busy at times. Bring bug spray as a precaution. Depending on the weather, the bugs especially mosquitoes and be annoying.

The flow of the water can easily change depending on the weather. It is not recommended to go in the waterfall. The before and after photos above is the perfect example of why you shouldn't go near the fall. Enjoy from a distance and take in its beauty.

The best time to view Rainbow Falls is early in the morning when the sun is rising behind you as you're facing the waterfall. At the right angle, you will see a rainbow in the water flow. Hence the name Rainbow Falls.

Boiling Pots

Up the road from Rainbow Falls is Boiling Pots. Below is a video of what Boiling Pots looks like after heavy rain.

Wai'ale Falls

Piihonua Bridge

Piihonua Bridge - One week later after heavy rain

Before and after shots of the bridge.

After the rain comes the sun!

Kilauea Iki Trail - Valcano National Park

Kilauea Iki Trail is located inside the Volcano National Park. The hike going down into the crater is easy. Walking across the crater is a great experience. There very little vegetation on the crater floor. But if you get a chance to hike this trail, take in nature because in a few years, the crater floor will be covered with lush vegetation and eventually turn into a forest area.

Pace yourself hiking back up from the crater floor. The walls of the crater is steep and the switchback is short. The weather in the park is cooler than most parts of the island and the breeze really helps on the hike up.

 View on the hike going down to Kilauea Iki Crater. The plume in the background is from an active lave flow from Halema'uma'u Crater. The best place to view this is from the Jagger Museum inside the Valocano National Park. It's a short drive from this trail. 

 Start of the trail at the bottom of the crater wall.

 View of the trail as I'm crossing across the crater. It may look deserted now but in a few years, this too will be overgrown with plants.

Opposite view of the crater after crossing the crater wall.

Hike To A Mile-Long Lava Cave - Emesine Cave

This was an unexpected hike. The weather was great especially after we just missed tropical storm Flossie earlier that week. The hike going in was about 3.5 miles on loose gravel. Be careful and take your time. The only shade you get is when you pass through patches of forest areas where the lava flow did not touch.


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It was clear enough to see the observatories on top of Mauna Kea that day.

 Inside the cave