The last few days—while eyes have been on the shifting plume of steam and toxic gas at the 4,000-foot summit of Kilauea volcano—the fire goddess Pele has been creating the world’s newest beach an hour’s drive away.
 
On Wednesday, I headed from my home near the summit to the end of Highway 130 to watch the spectacle of lava flowing into the sea.
 
The parking area is overseen by Hawaii County workers, who have got to be the world’s friendliest civil servants. From there I could see three huge plumes of steam gushing into the air. It’s a 10-minute walk with a stream of other lava seekers to the taped-off viewing area.
 
A few hundred yards away, the spectacle is there before you: the ocean roiling as molten lava oozes in, huge plumes of white steam furiously unfolding and pushing up to the sky. After dark, fingers of red-orange lava glow against the black rock.
 
Just beyond the viewing area, some visitors leave ho'okupu (offerings)—flower lei and other gifts wrapped in ti leaves. These are to honor Pele.

Also just beyond where I stood was Pele's newest creation—a tiny apron of black sand growing beside a rivulet of molten lava. As the lava meets the ocean, it sends up a plume of steam peppered with tiny flecks of flash-cooled lava rock. Then the ocean current pushes these little shards of rock back up on shore to create new little beaches like this one.
 
It’s beautiful, but definitely not suitable for swimming just yet.
 
The viewing area at the end of Highway 130 is open daily from 2 p.m. Cars may park until 8 p.m., and the area is cleared around 9 p.m.  

 

Wish you were here?

Can’t blame you.

Here’s almost the next best thing. We’ve collected links to a handful of Webcams around the state offering live views of our beaches and—well, pretty much just our beaches.

Want to see the sun set over Hanalei Bay on Kauai? Click the Sheraton Princeville’s beach-roving camera below.

Got friends staying in Waikiki? Tell 'em to stand in front of the Duke Kahanamoku statue fronting Kuhio Beach and then give you a call, while you click the “Waikiki Beach” cam.

It’s almost sunset here as I’m posting this. Click now and you won’t miss it.


Kuhio Beach, Oahu: A view of the folks wading in the surf off Waikiki.

Click here.


Waikiki Beach, Oahu: More a view of the Duke Kahanamoku statue than a beach view, but, oh well.

Click here.


Waikiki Beach from the sky, Oahu: Point a camera at the top of the 31-story Sheraton Waikiki towards Diamond Head or the surf below, mix a mai tai, enjoy.

Click here.


Sunset Beach and North Shore of Oahu surf spots: Check the wave action at some of the best surf spots.

Click here.


Hanalei Bay, Kauai: The sunsets are terrific from this Webcam at the Sheraton Princeville Resort.

Click here.


Kaanapali Beach, Maui: The weather and ocean action on one of West Maui’s best beaches, fronting the Sheraton Kaanapali Resort.

Click here.


Hilo Bay, Big Island: A so-so view of the bayfront. At least you’ll be able to tell if it’s a sunny or rainy day in Hilo town.

Click here.


The South Kohala Coast, Big Island: From the rooftop of the Mauna Lani  Resort.

Click here.
 

Have a favorite Hawaii Webcam we missed? Leave us a comment below.
 

The Merrie Monarch Hula Festival—for many practitioners, the World Series of hula—opened on the Big Island this weekend.

Hula troupes from around the state and worldwide are still arriving daily in Hilo, to compete.

Yesterday, Hilo’s Civic Auditorium saw the festival’s traditional opening hoolaulea (celebration).

But yesterday afternoon, our friends at Kilauea, photographers Stephen and Donna O’Meara, shot this photo of Halau Hula Keolu Makani O Mauna Loa.

This halau—as hula troupes are called in Hawaii—made a pilgrimage to Kilauea caldera to pay respect, by dancing for volcano fire goddess Pele.

Traditionally, this halau would go all the way to 300-foot-deep Halemaumau crater to dance—often right on its edge. That’s not possible this year. Conditions are uncertain and hazardous. The crater’s erupting with steam and ash, ejecting toxic fumes and occasional rocks and lava particles.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park rangers escorted the dancers to this spot, called Steaming Bluff, within sight of Halemaumau. 

Other dancers are expected to congregate both at Steaming Bluff and also at the spot where the current Kilauea flow pours molten lava into the sea.

We’ll post winners once hula competition begins on Thursday night. All three nights of competition will be streamed live on TheHawaiiChannel.com.

A schedule of Merrie Monarch Festival events is here.

 

Yesterday was not just another day in the office at HAWAII Magazine.

I hopped on a boat with the staff of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, as they went out on a routine research and rescue mission in the waters off Maui.

This wasn’t like my commercial whale watching cruise last year. These were the scientists who watch over the humpback whales and I needed authorization under a federal permit to join them.

Fortunately, we didn’t have to rescue any whales entangled in debris. However, we found ourselves surrounded by humpbacks, breaching, slapping the water with pectoral fins (pictured above), and singing as they glided underneath us, big as buses.

The sanctuary is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), dedicated to help protect Hawaii’s humpback whales. As many as 10,000 humpback whales travel from Alaska to Hawaii every year.

For the July/August issue of HAWAII Magazine, I’ll write a story about the NOAA heroes who work with these amazing creatures.  

But till then, here’s my video of a humpback whale breaching in the blue waters of the Pacific, between Lanai and Molokai. (In Hawaii, it's illegal to approach a humpback whale closer than 100 yards by sea. The photo and video may look close, but I've got a camera with a great zoom function).

It was better than sitting at my desk all day.



 

Lava was still flowing into the ocean today at four locations off the Big Island’s Puna Coastline.

Due to another shift in flow direction, Hawaii County officials moved a visitor viewing area to a new location, this one with views of lava entering the ocean. The viewing area has been moved daily since county officials opened it on Saturday. Thousands of Hawaii residents and visitors have flocked to site daily since.

Access to the viewing area is still at the end of Highway 130 on the Kalapana side of the flow, from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily—click here for more information.

Here are some photos of current lava activity, courtesy of the USGS.

	Lava entering the ocean yesterday at Waikupanaha on the Big Island’s Puna coastline.
	What remains of Royal Gardens subdivision is visible in the background as lava enters the ocean yesterday at Waikupanaha. Steam from the eruption vent farther upslope is visible on the horizon.
	A two yards wide flow moves over older Royal Gardens subdivision flows on March 7.
	An active `a`a (or rough and brittle) flow covers a recent pahoehoe (or smooth and ropy) flow in Royal Gardens on March 7.

For larger versions of the USGS photos, click here.
  

It’s always a good month to visit Maui. But, if you love aquariums, this is an especially good month.

Hawaii’s finest private aquarium, the Maui Ocean Center, celebrates its 10th birthday all month with events, activities and entertainment.

Some highlights:

March 13 @ 10:30 a.m.: Happy Birthday
The Maui Ocean Center’s actual anniversary date. There’ll be entertainment, crafts for kids and birthday cake. Admission for the day is only $10 if you purchase tickets here.

March 13 @ 6 p.m.: A Night at the Reef
The aquarium reopens for evening views of its Living Reef exhibits, presentations on Hawaii’s coral reefs and video of live coral spawning. Admission is $18. Reservations recommended, 808-270-7088.

March 17-26, from 9:30 a.m.: “Only in Hawaii” Naturalist Tours and Presentations
10 days of educational workshops and tours on different aspects of Hawaii’s marine environment. Click here for tour and presentations schedules.

March 28 @ 5:30 p.m.: “Sleep with the Sharks” Aquarium Sleepover
Spend the night at the aquarium and learn about what happens to the coral reefs and marine life after hours. Feed sea turtles and hammerhead sharks. Watch movies, and enjoy pizza for dinner and pancakes for breakfast! Bummer alert: It’s only for kids in grades three through eight. Reservations recommended, 808-270-7075.

Click here to find out about other Maui Ocean Center 10th birthday events this month.

  

County officials are hoping to open an access road that will allow visitors to safely view a Big Island lava flow by Saturday.

A lava flow from Kilauea Volcano that has been slowly passing through the mostly vacated subdivision of Royal Gardens since January finally reached the ocean early this morning. County officials hope that opening an access road for visitors near the current flow will prevent the curious from wandering unsupervised into Royal Gardens or the Puna brush to see the flow up close.

The current flow from Kilauea has generated great interest because it is largely visible above ground as it moves through brush and over older flows. Lava from the eruption has been entering the ocean near Puna for much of the current eruption’s quarter-century of life mostly through underground tube systems.

More than 1,000 visitors are expected to visit the new viewing site when it is opened.

Updates, maps and photos of the current flow are available here from the United States Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. Look for an update on this post when more information on the access road becomes available.

And if you haven't checked it out already, click here for a comprehensive feature on the history of Kilauea's current eruption from the Jan./Feb. issue of HAWAII Magazine. Written by globetrotting volcano investigator Donna O’Meara, the cover story starts on page 34 with a terrific photo spread by the author and her equally well-traveled volcano watcher husband Stephen.

UPDATE, 3/7/2008: Hawaii County officials will open the public viewing site at 2 p.m., Saturday, March 8, at the end of Highway 130 on the Kalapana side of the flow. Public access to the site will be allowed daily from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Cars will not be allowed into the public access area after 8 p.m. The hike from the parking area to the viewing site is about a half-mile. Flashlights are recommended after dark.

 

Check out the YouTube video below of Hexanchus griseus.

Talk about living large. It’s an 18-foot six-gill shark that University of Hawaii professors Jeff Drazen and Craig Smith caught on video off the coast of Molokai in 2006.

After it hit their submersible!

The duo was anchored more than 3,000 feet below the ocean surface in pitch-black waters when Hex paid them a visit. You can hear their surprised and animated reactions in the video.

Drazen estimates the width of the shark’s head alone as three feet—about the same distance it moved the submersible.

Also known as the blunt-nose six-gill shark, males of the species mature to an average length of 14 feet, while females average 11 feet. The largest observed sharks of the species have averaged 16 feet in length, so the oceanography professors' video capture is significant.

Hexanchus griseus sharks can live up to 80 years in the wild.