GEOGRAPHY CAPSTONE
OCTOBER 23, 2005 ~ DAY 3

  Day 3 Home Page

  Field Stop 11:   Southwest Rift

  Field Stop 12:   Halemaumau Crater

  Field Stop 13:
  Napau Trail

  Field Stop 14:
  Ocean Entry @ Holei   Sea Arch

  Lava Hike!

  Funky Photo Gallery

  Hawaii Capstone
  Home Page

  FIELD STOP 13: NAPAU TRAIL

     We began our hike in hopes of seeing the active Pu'u O'o Cone, but with rainy    weather all morning we did not see much at the top of Pu'u Huluhulu. The following    pictures show the features we saw during the hike.

         Fig.1: Napau Trail. Blue dots mark the trailhead (975 m) and Pu'u Huluhulu (1049 m). The    red line marks the 1 mile hike. The blue circles highlight the three features we wanted to see.    Mauna Ulu was the only visible feature (Fig 6).

  ALONG THE TRAIL . . .

   
     Fig 2: Our guide Tom Mcauliffe, University of Hilo-Hawaii graduate, begins to lead the    way. Note the aa flow, characterized by angular, jagged blocks, in the background.    Pahoehoe flow, a Hawaiian term, is lava with a smooth or ropy surface. See lava hike    pictures for a comparison.

   
     Fig. 3: Tumulus. Ashley Wong for scale. Tumulus are formed in two ways. One, fast    flowing lava gets clogged and bunched up by trees and other vegetation, much like debris is    held up by vegetation during a flood. Two, a bulge can inflate from lava flowing into an area    that is blocked by something on one or more sides from behind. The clumps solidify and the    ground around them subside. There were numerous tumuli in varying sizes along the trail.

   
     Fig. 4: Napau Trail. Capstone class hiking in the rain on the lava!

   
     Fig. 5: The northeast side of the Pu'u Huluhulu Cone viewing what should be the active    Pu'u O'o vent about 2.5 miles away. The Pu'u O'o Cone's continuous activity is unusal for a    shield volcano. It has been flowing continuously since 1978 and holds the longest recorded    eruption in history.

   
   Fig. 6: View of Mauna Ulu from atop Pu'u Huluhulu facing east. Refer to Fig. 1 for    orientation. The red line marks an active (lava) lake rim, held up by spatter ramparts, at the    base of Mauna Ulu. Blue arrow shows the direction to where the Pu'u O'o vent should be    visible.

  ADDITIONAL LINKS    

• Guide to Napau Crater Trail
   
• Maunu Ulu eruption information, impacts on surrounding landscape and comparison to current vent activity.

[Day 3 Home Page] [FS 11: Southwest Rift] [FS12: Halemaumau Crater]
[FS 13: Napau Trail] [FS 14: Holei Sea Arch] [Lava Hike!] [Capstone Home Page]