This portion of Crater Rim Drive is closed to automobiles, but the park service allows foot traffic all the way to Keanakāko'i Crater.
This hike follows the closed Crater Rim Drive for its entire length.
Bamboo orchid.
The noxious fumes in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park make life a challenge.
Stopping to search for Pele's hair at a nēnē crossing.
Pele's hair is fine strands of lava that drift in the wind like spider's webs. Pele is the Hawaiian goddess of the volcanoes and the creator of the Hawaiian islands.
A view across the Kīlauea Caldera toward the Jaggar Museum from the Crater Rim Drive.
The terrain on both sides of the road is off limits.
The park service built Crater Rim Drive right on the edge of Keanakāko'i Crater.
Keanakāko'i Crater, Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.
Keanakāko'i Crater, Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.
Keanakāko'i Crater, Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.
This section of Crater Rim Drive is closed to all traffic due to the presence of noxious volcanic fumes that waft over from Halemaʻumaʻu Crater in the Kīlauea Caldera.
A sign at the site describes the dramatic eruption in 1974 that closed the road.
An off-road walking area on the Kīlauea side of the road allows for a closer look at the landscape.
An off-road walking area on the Kīlauea side of the road allows for a closer look at the landscape.
A tenacious fern considers the jagged lava and toxic air a home.
The steaming Halemaʻumaʻu Crater in the Kīlauea Caldera.