Kilauea Iki Trail, Hawaii, United States

5Terry S 5:00 PM Mar 8, 2023

It's all about attitude!
The trek into the crater went rather quickly. The trails had some improvements like an occasional railroad tie or large log embedded, but be aware of where you are placing your feet. The trail was muddy with protruding roots. The walk across the caldera was well marked with NPS cairns placed to guide you. The official cairns are large and obvious with plenty of area to frolic. Please do not build your own little cairns; they could lead hikers into unsafe areas! The caldera walk was challenging towards the end. The climb out of the crater was a bit more difficult. Rain again made the path slick, carved steps were of inconsistent heights with a few at 18 inches or more; thank goodness for hand rails! The ascent seemed to be much steeper and longer (or it may have just seemed that way as this group of senior citizens were starting to tire!). We actually danced like Rocky on the stairs when we reached the top! Just a few words of advice - wear decent shoes that have good grip; allow at least 2 hours, more if you like to stop and observe your surroundings; bring a good attitude.

5Stephanie F 5:00 PM Jan 14, 2023

Walk across what's left of the 1959 lava lake
This travel can be circumnavigated in either direction. We read its best to hike counter-clockwise, and yet we were disoriented and followed the trail clockwise. Doesn't matter. Coming from Colorado, hiking a nearly 4-mile trail at 4000 ft through forest and caldera was not particularly difficult. There are somewhat steep, but shaded steps carved into the first mile or so of the trail, with 15 markers (be sure to grab the corresponding booklet at the visitor center) along the path describing flora, fauna, and volcano attributes (e.g., crater rim, steam vents, lava lake migrations). The center mile takes you into and eventually out of the caldera, which is hot, dusty and often uneven. The final mile or so returns you to the shaded forest area above the 1959 lava lake (it took 30 years to cool!) with railroad tie steps and exposed root pathways. When I visited in 2017, it was cool, raining and wet. January of 2023 was hot, full-on sun and dry. Be prepared for either with water. Both visits were hiked in tennis shoes.