Back to: Fall 2007, Trips, Home
 September 2007
We brought flashlights, warm coats and a rented lantern then set off into the entrance to the lava tunnel. We passed a large school group who were leaving as we entered, after which we only passed two other families on the way in and two more on the way out, so for the majority of the hike we were totally alone.
Lava tubes are formed when a lava flow crusts over and later drains out, leaving an empty tube. This one is just over a mile long, so it is a two mile hike only slightly sloped. Walking with a flashlight in a cave, though, is a much slower process than zipping down a forest trail so it takes a bit longer.
This is a typical section of the tube. It was so dark that my camera wouldn't focus so I had to use manual focus but it was too dark to tell if I had it right or not.
They rent visitors a glassless camping lantern but inside the tunnel it didn't seem to make as much light as we would have liked. This section is fairly narrow and low so the camera flash worked okay.
This shot is near the end where the tube has been filled with sand. My built in flash was able to reach the walls but failed to reach very far into the tunnel.
Increasing the exposure via Photoshop provides a deeper view. The tunnel soon became too filled with sand to allow walking and we chose not to try crawling the last 100 feet or so.
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