07/27/21 – Volcano Day!

Let me begin by saying the Start Hostel is amazing! The room we booked was huge, with a small kitchen area and private bath. They offer a free breakfast that starts super early and unlimited coffee that is available anytime. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with some time to read and journal, all while keeping one eye on the volcano web cams to see if the weather conditions were clearing at all. We were going even if it was pouring rain but we figured there might be a better time to try. The forecast was most promising from around 2 – 7 pm so we decided to cook our last packages of rice at the hostel for lunch to save some money and time. We packed the Jetboil and coffee since afternoon coffee while hiking is life! The volcano area is sort of touristy but given how freaking cool it is, totally worth braving the crowds. They even had a food truck in the parking lot but it was closed for the day. There are several trails that lead to different views of the fissure. Based on updates, we went with the more eastern trail that mostly paralleled the flow to the north. We got to what we assumed was the end of the trail and decided to just sit and chill with our coffee for a while to see if the weather cleared or anything new happened. I mean, even cold and still, this view is great!

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Just as we had settled in with the our coffee, a group emerged out of the mist, coming from the north. They asked if we’d hiked all the way down to see the new lava. NOPE!! But we immediately broke camp and hauled butt down to see what they were talking about. The trial essentially continued along the old flow for a bit farther, then turned and went in and up over the next ridge. From there, on a clear day, you could see the entire basin! We could make out some orange glow in the distance. I found the trail leading back down and around and man, this is what we came for!

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We had timed it just perfectly that a new flow was causing the whole basin to move forward. The wind was from the east, meaning the dangerous gasses weren’t an issue for us. We stayed and watched and listened for almost two hours. It was like watching fireworks! Each of us would yell out when we spotted something new! “Wow, look over there”, “did you see THAT??”, “Oh man, that was cool!” The sound of the cooled lava cracking and heaving was similar to ice doing the same on a lake. We watched as the flow steadily covered the ground, slowly inching forward like the Blob. The heat that would increase when one of the tendrils cracked open to expose the bright orange inside was intense! 10/10 would sit and watch lava again! All told, it was a 7.69 mile hike out and back.