Honaunau Off The Beaten Path Tips by BlueCollar

Lava Tube near Pu`uhonua `o Honaunau

On the Big Island

On the west side of the island just south of Pu`uhonua `o Honaunau, you will find this lava tube. It's just south of the park along the coastal trail.

What's a lava tube, you ask? As large lava rivers flow across the ground, the outer portion cools and hardens. On larger, high volume flows, this 'shell' insulates the molten lava inside and it keeps flowing downhill. We have read that the insulation is so good that the 2000 degree Fahrenheit lava loses minimal temperature even after a couple miles of flowing. The floor of the tube is eaten away by the flowing molten rock (click on the picture above and look at the previous rock layers on the lower wall) and the tube grows downwards. Then when and if the lava flow is abruptly cut off, the lava drains away just like a garden hose after the water is turned off and leaves these caverns.

This particular tube was large enough for us to stand up inside. However, the center section required us to almost crawl to get through. But you cannot crawl on your hands and knees very easily because of the sharp `a`a lava floor (very coarse, sharp rock). Be sure to click on the photo for the larger view. There is a close up of the ceiling, which is rather unique, in my Travel Logue. You'll see how the molten rock just dripped away from the ceiling and left little whips like you'd find on a meringue pie. This particular tube abruptly ends about 20' above the water where it was deep enough for us to jump in. However, we did not see an easy exit point from the water had we done so. We did not indulge, but others apparently have.

While we stood at the end of the tube over the water, a boat entered another tube below us. Here is my video of our encounter: http://youtube.com/watch?v=g3eLLdK0vPQ

Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historic Park

Pronounced: pooh-ooh-ho-nooh-uh o ho-now-now. Translated, it means: place of refuge at Honaunau. It's located on the coast in the South Kona district. It is one of the most complete restorations of an ancient Hawaiian religious sanctuary in the State of Hawaii. Centuries ago kapu-breakers and defeated warriors were granted refuge here, if they made it, and were absolved of all their wrong-doing.

By 1820, King Kamehameha II had abolished the kapu system and the place was soon abandoned.

The grounds of the oceanside park are beautiful. You must be respectful since this area is considered sacred.

For fun, stand by the water's edge and count the sea turtles feeding here. Also, see my other listing about a lava tube that exits over the ocean that you can explore near here.

Admission is not always collected but you can still donate.

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Phone: 808-328-2288

Website: http://www.nps.gov/puho/index.htm