Today was moving day: from Oahu to Hilo on the northeast coast of the Big Island. But that was just an interlude in the main events of the day.

First up, after breakfast, was a second surfing lesson for the grandkids. Same deal as before. One hour in the water with an instructor who’s main job seemed to be to propel each student into an appropriate wave. Esme said it became more of a hindrance. She’d rather do it herself. I took more pictures with my telephoto lens, cropped significantly to bring the surfers closer up. There’s a professional photographer floating around on a surfboard taking pictures but for $50 for a stick I’m going with my shots.

After landing, we got in the bus and drove maybe 30 minutes “up mountain” to the Kaumana Caves State Park. In November, 1880 the Muana Loa Volcano had one of its frequent eruptions. Rather than traveling on top of the ground as you see in all the magazine pictures, the lava in this one traveled underground. Flowing downhill, naturally, it took dead aim for the town of Hilo.By June 1881 the lava flow was within 5 miles of Hilo. Legend has it that Princess Ruth, Royal Governor of the island, went up on the mountain to pray to Pele, the goddess of fire, asking for deliverance. Sure enough, the lava flow stopped by August just 1.5 miles from town.

The tube is actually several miles long but we explored only maybe a quarter of a mile. We entered via a “window;” a point where the roof of the tube caved in, granting access. The ground is rough rocks, loose under foot at first then solid but still quite uneven. It’s home to a number of unique insect and plant species. The roots of trees above the tube have penetrated the rock and dangle into the tube, looking much like stalagmites. Judy elected to turn around early on. I, the bragging rights junkie that I am, went on in with the kids and a few other intrepid foolish kapunas.

Our hotel on the bay in Hilo is a beautiful setting and we have a beautiful room overlooking it all. We walked from here to Ken’s Pancake House for dinner. Along the way are a number of Banyon trees planted by visiting celebrities, mostly in the mid 1930s. Babe Ruth’s tree is directly in front of the hotel. Amelia Earhart’s is a little further on. It’s hard to believe that these trees, only 10 or so years older than I am, have grown to such enormous size. The pictures will show you what I mean.

Tomorrow, we drive to the other side of the island to Kona, visiting the Muana Loa volcano on the way. You’ve surely seen pictures of the eruption that occurred last November. Hopefully it will remain dormant for tomorrow.