The Pu'u Loa Petroglyph field in the lower elevations of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park is the largest collection of petroglyphs in the state. Most the petroglyphs are concentrated in a small area amongst the past lava flows.
The trail is marked by a couple small signs along Chain of Craters Road, from which point, a path marked by a line of rock piles traces its way across the flat-ish lava stone for about .7 miles before eventually reaching a boardwalk loop path that encircles many of the visible rock carvings.
Translated as "hill of long life,", Pu'uLloa has about 23,000 petroglyphs representing stages of life, amongst other pieces. It is believed the carvings in the stone also represent human travel throughout the islands upon stone dated from a lava flow between 1200 and 1450 AD.
With the abundance of carvings in this area, walking the boardwalk in the opposite direction after completing a loop tends to make visible more examples that you may have missed the first time around.
The hike itself can be a little bit technical as there is minimal change in elevation, however the surface of the lava tends to roll and undulate.
There is no water or bathrooms at the trailhead, and there is no shade at any point on the hike.
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