Pu’u Wa’awa’a Summit

The first official day of vacation and I’m officially worn out. In a good way, at least.

We left our condo by 7 am to head to the Pu’u Wa’awa’a cinder cone. Cinder cones are “large mounds that develop around volcanic vents” (x) . . . and they really can be quite large.

The Pu’u Wa’awa’a cinder cone is over 100,000 years old and the older land feature on Hualālai (one of the Big Island’s five volcanos). There is a hiking trail you can take to the top, a ~ six-and-a-half mile round trip with 1,900 feet of elevation gain. Essentially you’re hiking uphill for three miles and then coming back down.

But wow is it a gorgeous trail.

From the parking lot it takes nearly two miles to get to the base of the cone, and then you begin a trek around the back of it before going on the steepest incline to the top. There’s a reason we did this hike early before it got too warm outside. We got lucky, too, it was better weather than planned. Not too windy, the sun was out but it wasn’t sweltering hot. The hike was hard enough without those extra elements.

It’s one of those places that’s hard to capture in photographs. It’s . . . expansive. Views of volcanos. Open sky. The dynamic landscape of the cinder cone itself. I found a meditative rhythm as I climbed the final stretch to the summit.

We paused at the top to take in the view (well, we paused as needed on the hike up . . . three miles up nearly two thousand feet of elevation is no joke). The hike down was considerably easier, though we had to navigate it on sore legs that we’re still feeling tonight (and I’m sure tomorrow as well).

We were rewarded for our effort with a delicious lunch at The Fish & The Hog in Waimea, followed by downtime the rest of the day (I went to hang out by the pool and finish my book).

I’m guessing I’ll sleep well tonight.

With Love,
Natalie