Hilo Shore Excursion: Lava Forest and Falls
Hilo, Hawaii
Trip Type: Ports of Call Tours
Duration: 6 hours
Explore the Nanawale Rainforest and surrounding lush, tropical settings located on the Eastern Rift Zone of the most active Volcano on Earth, Kilauea. This tour takes you to the back roads of this Hawaii Volcano showing hidden volcanic treasures in the Hawaiian rainforest.
- Volcanic hot pools
- Volcanic Sea Cliffs
- Recent lava flows that wiped out the town of Kalapana
- See Rainbow Falls
- Tour a Macadamia Nut Farm
- Learn how the unique Lava Trees were formed
- Stroll down a Black Sand Beach
- Drive down the Scenic 'Red Road' & Mango Grove
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Explore the Nanawale Rainforest and surrounding lush, tropical settings located on the Eastern Rift Zone of the most active Volcano on Earth, Kilauea. This tour takes you to the back roads of this Hawaii Volcano showing hidden volcanic treasures in the Hawaiian rainforest.
Rainbow Falls is our first stop on this adventure. Known in the Hawaiian language as Wainuenue ("rainbow water"), the falls flows over a natural lava cave, and on sunny mornings around 10 a.m., rainbows can be seen in the mist thrown up by the waterfall.
Next, go down onto the older back roads of Hawaii that wind along mango groves and trees of the Nanawale Rainforest. Our new stop added to this tour is the lava flow that has just caused evacuations to the town of Pahoa. The lava crept into the town just burning a few homes and oozing up against a few other commercial buildings. Along the way and during brief stops, view the dramatic and beautiful scenery formed when hot lava met the cool sea. Kaimu was once the site of a Queen bath, famous black sand beach and a small town, both destroyed by a 1990 lava flow. Walk on the old lava flows and view the active volcanic vent in the distance. View a photo exhibit and see how the area looked prior to 1990 and the rainforest that is now taking it back. To reach Kaimu Black Sand Beach is about a 15 min walk over old lava flows. Afterward, you’ll go into Lava Tree State Park, where long ago lava burst out of fissures onto Ohia trees, leaving incredible and indelible lava molds. Visit Ahalanui’s warm springs, and see how water is heated and travels through lava tubes to become volcanically heated.There is no swimming in this pond due to its high bacteria. We then pull into an area full of salt cedar pine trees that over look the sea cliffs and host large crashing waves and hidden among all the pine needles on the ground is and old Kings Trails that was used for travel.Your tour ends with a drive through a macadamia nut orchard and a sampling of the multiple combinations of flavored mac nuts.The macadamia nut farm also has a great parlor to purchase sandwiches, hot dogs and best of all, Coconut Macadamia nut Ice Cream!
- Volcanic hot pools
- Volcanic Sea Cliffs
- Recent lava flows that wiped out the town of Kalapana
- See Rainbow Falls
- Tour a Macadamia Nut Farm
- Learn how the unique Lava Trees were formed
- Stroll down a Black Sand Beach
- Drive down the Scenic 'Red Road' & Mango Grove
Rainbow Falls is our first stop on this adventure. Known in the Hawaiian language as Wainuenue ("rainbow water"), the falls flows over a natural lava cave, and on sunny mornings around 10 a.m., rainbows can be seen in the mist thrown up by the waterfall.
Next, go down onto the older back roads of Hawaii that wind along mango groves and trees of the Nanawale Rainforest. Our new stop added to this tour is the lava flow that has just caused evacuations to the town of Pahoa. The lava crept into the town just burning a few homes and oozing up against a few other commercial buildings. Along the way and during brief stops, view the dramatic and beautiful scenery formed when hot lava met the cool sea. Kaimu was once the site of a Queen bath, famous black sand beach and a small town, both destroyed by a 1990 lava flow. Walk on the old lava flows and view the active volcanic vent in the distance. View a photo exhibit and see how the area looked prior to 1990 and the rainforest that is now taking it back. To reach Kaimu Black Sand Beach is about a 15 min walk over old lava flows. Afterward, you’ll go into Lava Tree State Park, where long ago lava burst out of fissures onto Ohia trees, leaving incredible and indelible lava molds. Visit Ahalanui’s warm springs, and see how water is heated and travels through lava tubes to become volcanically heated.There is no swimming in this pond due to its high bacteria. We then pull into an area full of salt cedar pine trees that over look the sea cliffs and host large crashing waves and hidden among all the pine needles on the ground is and old Kings Trails that was used for travel.Your tour ends with a drive through a macadamia nut orchard and a sampling of the multiple combinations of flavored mac nuts.The macadamia nut farm also has a great parlor to purchase sandwiches, hot dogs and best of all, Coconut Macadamia nut Ice Cream!
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