About 20 people spent their Saturday morning hiking back in time to explore the 5-year-long Maunaulu eruption as part of Volcano Awareness Month at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
To commemorate the month, U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaii Volcano Observatory, in coorporation with HVNP and the University of Hawaii at Hilo, has been hosting community events, hikes and talks to promote the importance of understanding volcanoes.
UH-Hilo professor Dr. Lis Gallant led the guided walk along the fissure that started the Maunaulu eruption on May 24, 1969, which lasted until July 22, 1974. The hike can be accessed inside HVNP along the Chain of Craters Road.
Maunaulu changed much of the terrain around Chain of Craters Road and the upper East Rift Zone of Kilauea as the various phases of the eruption sent 350 million cubic meters of lava toward the sea.
“From a teaching perspective, I like touring Maunaulu for the people who haven’t seen an active eruption,” Gallant said. “It’s easier to imagine an eruption here with the very dynamic landscape in such a short distance.”
Visitors and residents walked and explored the terrain that is a great example of how drastically an eruption can change a landscape.
During the guided hike, Gallant answered questions about how fissures form, how different lava fountains erupt, how eruptions create the present environment and how responses to the past eruption inform geologists working today.
New Zealanders Holly and Jessica Seath decided to plan their trip to Hawaii Island specifically during Volcano Awareness Month since Jessica is a geology student in college.
“This trip has been four years in the making since COVID-19 slowed down our travel plans,” Holly Seath said. “(Jessica) has known that January is Volcano Awareness Month for years, and since it’s our summer back home, this was the perfect time to come.”
The sisters spent about two weeks on the island and attended many of HVO’s events to learn as much about the volcanic activity in Hawaii as possible. The hike through Maunaulu was their last volcano outing.
“We have our eyes on all the websites, because we wanted to do as much as we can while we’re here,” Seath said.
HVO has hosted talk stories, After Dark in the Park programs, lectures and guided hikes at HVNP, UH-Hilo, Kailua-Kona, Na‘alehu, Pahala and Pahoa.
“Geologist Katie Mullikin has done an amazing job planning all these events, and they have been very well-attended,” said David Phillips, HVO’s deputy scientist-in-charge. “We had events every day this past week and still have a lot of great things planned for the month.”
Monica Szubra was planning on coming to at least one event during Volcano Awareness Month, and the guided hike along Maunaulu was the perfect fit.
“Living in Paauilo, it’s hard to get to some of the later activities, so this worked out perfectly,” Szubra said. “It’s been a few months since I last visited the park, and it’s great to come out here and take time to explore, not just hike. My goal this year is to come to the park more often.”
Evelyn Wight and Jill Briggs are frequent visitors to the park, and never hesitate to take the opportunity to learn more about volcanoes.
“No matter how many times I come to the park, I’m always interested and learn more with each visit,” Wight said. ”I think it’s so important to know about the land we live on and how special this island is.“
Wight and Briggs said they often take visiting family and friends to the Maunaulu eruption site since the landscape is so interesting and easy to access.
“This area is great, because it allows more people to experience a landscape that is usually much harder to access in the park,” Gallant said. “It’s not treacherous, or far from the road, so the accessibility is great.”
HVO will be hosting events for the next two weeks beginning at 7 p.m. on Tuesday with an After Dark in the Park program about Kilauea’s Southwest Rift Zone at HVNP’s Visitor Center Auditorium.
HVO earthquake specialist Arthur Jolly will host a talk story about the past 30 years of earthquake monitoring at volcanoes at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Kailua-Kona Public Library.
On Saturday, HVO geologist Katie Mullikan will host a coffee talk about the 1868 Mauna Loa eruption at 9:30 a.m. at the Kahuku Unit Visitor Station. There also will be a guided hike through the Sulphur Banks at 10 a.m. at HVNP.
There will be another guided hike along the Pu‘u o Lokuana trail in the Kahuku Unit at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.
The last events will be an After Dark in the Park program on measuring Mauna Loa at the HVNP Visitor Center Auditorium at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 30, and a talk story about the volcanoes of American Samoa at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 31.
For more information about Volcano Awareness Month and programs with HVO, visit tinyurl.com/mzk3c6wm.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.