Thurston Lava Tube
add photosAs you drive the 1.3 miles from the Pu'u Pua'i Overlook, the forest becomes increasingly lush. Soon you arrive at the Thurston Lava Tube on your right.
A 20 minute 1/3 mile walk though a tree fern forest and lighted prehistoric cavelike lava tube awaits you. This is an excellent place to stop and listen to the birds. Watch carefully and you may see the red apapane feeding among the equally red ohi'a blossoms.
This lava tube was discovered in 1913 by Lorrin Thurston, a local newspaper publisher. At that time the roof of the tube was covered with lava stalactites, but those soon disappeared to souvenir collectors.
As you walk through the tube consider that several hundred years ago a river of red lava rushed through. And that lava currently travels from Pu'u O'o to the ocean in a labyrinth of lava tubes much like the tube you are walking through. Watch your head in the tube - there are some spots with a low ceiling!
Kilauea Visitor Center is open daily from 7:45 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
3 Reviews for Thurston Lava Tube
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81 family found this helpful
"easy with kids"
When we visited the volcano, our kids were a bit wiped out and weren't up for much in the way of hiking. But this was a great little walk down a path (very jungly - so different from where we'd just been at the caldera) and they loved going through the tunnel. The main tunnel is lighted and there is a shorter tunnel just after it that the kids used their flashlights for. They all (ages 7-12) loved it.
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1 family found this helpful
"A Fun Stop"
Climbing down the steps to get to the Thurston Lava Tubes means a short hike into the rainforest. It is lush and green, and so beautiful. The walk to get there is about 15-20 minutes. The tubes themselves are really quite neat to see. They are really large and it's fun to imagine the lava flowing through them hundreds of years ago. :)
0 families found this helpful
"Very neat! "
The Thurston Lava Tube is an amazing, 450-foot-long cave. The plant life surrounding the cave’s entrance is vibrantly green and lush, its very existence a testimony to the tenacity of regenerating plant life. If you bring flashlights, you can walk far into the cave; for the first 50 feet the cave is illuminated with electric lights and is quite spacious. The remainder of the cave is about 15 feet in height and width. Be sure to wear sturdy, closed toe shoes, as the lava is rocky and uneven in many sections, guaranteed to stub a sandal footed toe! Explore with the utmost of caution, because getting lost in these caves means getting lost in a place that never sees the light of day.
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