LORQUINIA 
59 
THE TRIP TO THE LAVA FLOW 
My father and I left Waiochinu at 8 A. M., May 25th, 1916, to 
see the lava flow. We followed a ranch trail up the slope of Mauna 
Loa, crossing an old lava flow for six miles, and then travelled 
another six miles through forests. The trail was poor, it rained 
considerably, and the high elevation was noticeable by the chilly air. 
The forest was interesting, being composed of great koa trees, often 
ten feet in diameter, and numerous smaller trees and undergrowth. 
We arrived at the flow about 4 P. M. It was a barren waste of 
indescribably rough aa lava. It was not flowing, but there were 
numerous cracks, showing molten lava beneath the cooler crust. 
The flow was from 6 to 12 feet above the level of the solid ground, 
and pieces were continually falling down from the top, covering 
more ground all the time. There were no trees standing in it except 
at the . edge, and most of these were burning. The flow was com- 
posed of separate chunks of the roughest sort of lava known, ranging 
in size from fine dust to five ton pieces, and the heat was intense. 
When night came we made a fire by putting large sticks into the 
fiery cracks,, where they immediately began to burn. We made such 
a large fire that the dead tree that sheltered us caught fire and we 
had to leave it. 
The scene was one of awful desolation. Just in front of us the 
glowing cracks showed wierdly through the black lava, and here 
and there a flaming tree trunk. Farther up the slope was a line of 
trees and above that a lurid red glow, surmounted by a black sky. 
The only sounds were the wind and the occasional clink of falling 
pieces of lava. 
We lay down and slept close to the lava, where a large smoulder- 
ing log at the edge of the flow protected us from the falling pieces. 
We were scorched on one side by the heat, while on the other we 
were chilled by the cold wind, and sometimes were choked by the 
gas coming from the burning log. At 4:30 A. M. we arose and, 
taking a final look at the fiery scene, started for civilization. The 
trip seemed endless, but we finally arrived at Waiohinu, very tired 
and mighty glad to get back. 
THEODORE DRANGA, 
Hilo, Hawaii. 
