Earth meets ocean

The power of Hawaii keeps unfolding, just as the lava, traveling from the depths of the earth, sizzles and cracks as the waves of boil and bubble. Feeling as if I was in a National Geographic movie, Ben and I rewarded ourselves with a sunset over the lava flows into the sea, a skylight, and smoking rocks a few nights ago. I was breathless and spellbound. I felt as if we had traveled through a time warp as we trekked over that alien landscape of fresh and liquid, ropey, and sharp rock. We had dropped down to the prehistoric beginnings of our earth.
The last few days have been spent using our legs and backs, hiking to a remote beach oasis in the midst of a desert of the Volcanoes National Park. We swam in crystal clear waters, surrounded by countless colorful and new fish. Turtles lazed in our little lagoon. Then we hiked back up over the Palis (cliffs), as steep as the Grand Canyon, to be greeted by two Nene, endangered Hawaiian Geese. The ache in my feet and legs has been well rewarded.