Host: The Island of Hawaii, also known as the “Big Island” is the largest and youngest in archipelago. That is our 58th State. Admitted to the Union, August 21, 1959. When Mark Twain, a.k.a. Samuel Clemens visited the Sandwich Islands in 1863, he described them as the loveliest fleet of islands anchored in any ocean. It’s just as true today as it was nearly 150 years ago, though the Sandwich Islands are now Hawaii, a unique formation of volcanic islands unequaled in their unique beauty. It’s a tropical paradise, teeming with rainforest, waterfalls and exotic plants, it’s an enchanting escape.
Sharron Faff: Well, this is a display that we have here in the Visitor Center that shows us how the Hawaiian Islands look above water and below water. So right now, the big island of Hawaii is sitting over the hot spot or the place where all the magma comes out off the bottom of the ocean where there is a big crack or a big hole that all these lava comes out that has been making the islands for 80 million years but because the Pacific crust or plate moves, that’s as fast as your fingernails grow, about 4 inches a year. That Pacific crust moves off of the hot spot but the magma keeps coming out of the hot spot, so it keeps growing more islands. So right now, the island over the hot spot is the Island of Hawaii, the Big Island and it has five volcanoes that make up this island.
Host: A series of ancient and modern, violent and colorful eruptions draw millions of visitors from around the world to the volcanoes National Park. The magnificence of nature is nowhere more exemplary than in the fire breathing lava spewing dragon of Hawaii’s volcanoes.
BG Horvat: Okay. So, the lava flows are incredible, walking the lava flows down below it where the eruption is hitting the sea from the—2000° lava flow. If you’re a visitor, you can do the hike out there. That’s your own risk of course because it’s very dangerous but it’s possible to actually go out there and experience and surrealism of 2000° heat. You just can’t begin to describe what that is like. You have to do it in order to really enjoy it. You know, lava when it’s flowing, when you get a chance to experience it, it’s like a siren that just draws you in. You can’t explain why. I mean you know it’s very hot. You know it’s deadly for that matter but for some reason, you just want to get closer to it. Does that make sense? But it’s a dangerous hike, so you got to be very careful if you ever decide to take something like that on.
Pahoehoe lava is typically what comes out of these volcanoes first. It is anywhere from 2000 to 2400° F. It’s got a lot of gas in it. So, it’s real highly viscous, it just flows nice and smooth. When it looses its gas and cools down a little bit, it turns into all lava and that’s when the flow is basically just tripping over itself and chunking out in these sharp, jagged rocks that you see all around. After the flows are done, if you’re driving amongst the area, often times you see areas that look like vast areas of Oreo cookie crumbs all crumbled across the earth, well that’s aa flows. The pahoehoe flows are usually nice and smooth flows, real—looking.
Host: An indelible and continuous reminder of this islands volcanic origin is part and parcel to Hawaii’s landscape. Mauna Kea at nearly 14000 feet defines the Big Island’s north side. In the foot hills, large cattle ranches occupy much of the real estate. Further east around the island’s north shore Fjord Hilo, waterfalls cascade hundreds of feet through the island’s unique Flora and Fauna.
Hilo is in the historic settlement on Hawaii’s eastern shore a deep water port and without question, one of the rainiest places in the United States. Quaint villages punctuate the landscape between major population centers of Hilo and Kailua-Kona.
Kona is the tourist and crew ship destination on the Island of Hawaii. From here, one can take a variety of the excursions to the volcanoes, blue water fishing, snorkeling, surfing or to the islands unique black sand beach.
There are numerous lave form, tide pools like this at the Outrigger Hotel where live a variety of reef fishes and sea turtles.
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