Articles by Dean Kellio
I wanted to see into the Kilauea caldera so off we went. We walked for miles across the old caldera floor that was completely void of all plant life. It was like walking on new earth in a primordial time when God was first creating. We found ourselves having to jump over large cracks, bubbles and broken lava tubes. This desolate landscape was leading to a new erupting vent that was now only a fraction of the size of the Kilauea caldera that we were walking across.
The morning air was sweet smelling filled with the aroma of saw grass as I stepped out of the car and into the path of several Nenes. We had made it our goal to get up early and into the park before hordes of other people who were packed into tour busses like sardines in a tin can showed up. Mornings are the best time to do anything around Volcano, Hawaii as the sun is warm and shining through a partially clouded sky.
The toddler’s feet kept kicking the tray table attached to the back of my seat. We were only half way to the big Island of Hawaii and now I was worried if the kid would even stop before we landed. The cycle went like this, I would just about doze off when I would awake to tap, tap, tap as the vibrations went through my seat, neck pillow and brain. I understand that kids will be kids and don’t usually think things through or particularly care about others around them but surly one of the parents accompanying them would say something.