Volcano watch

I just went wandering through Denise's photo galleries, and I found an image of flow-y rock from our visit way back in 2003. Oh! I'd so like to see this again.

We've only seen flow-y volcano rocks (that) one time. I'm hoping that we can find lava flowing on this trip. Even if we don't, Volcanoes National Park is just amazing - so I'm sure that Denise will find plenty of sights for her camera to capture.

I've been keeping an eye on the USGS Hawaii Volcano Observatory Kilauea status page though, just out of curiosity. Kilauea continues to be quietly active; (oh! that's a funny combination of words, isn't it?).

Oops! I just looked at the web cams linked from that site. It looks quite gray and gloomy. I also checked the weather forecast for Volcano for the upcoming week; it's showing a chance of rain each day. Denise is planning on wandering down to the coast while we're in the park, and the weather is different at sea level than it is higher up on the mountain. In case you're as curious as I am, here's some info on the weather in Volcano:

Local weather at Kilauea's summit (4000' elevation) varies daily and may be rainy and chilly any time of the year. Temperature varies by elevation. At the summit of the volcano, temperatures may be 12 to 15 degrees cooler than at sealevel. The coastal plain at the end of Chain of Craters Road, where lava crossed the road in 2003, is often hot, dry, and windy with the possibility of passing showers. Information courtesy of the Volcanoes National Park web site.

I'm chatting with the weather wizard, asking for a day or two with blue skies, or at least some partially dry days.

Don't tell Denise about the weather forecast. Oh, you're right - she was probably looking over my shoulder while I was borrowing her computer. No matter, I know that we're going to have a good trip anyway.

--- Rover