Big Island Volcano Day - Day 6

Woke up in the middle of the night with the crud, I was definitely running a fever so I got very little sleep. On any normal Marigold Ct. day I would have stayed in bed, but there was no way I was going to miss seeing an active volcano!  The only thing we cancelled from our todo list was a 2 hour / 4 mile hike. What a shame....... So I got out my emergency stash of travel drugs and took my first dose of a 2 yr expired z-pak. I am not sure that is the right drug for my crud but I figure if it killed some bad bugs - my immune system would be able to tackle the other ones. Logical, right?
Cynthia had breakfast at one of the local stands where she ate her rice/egg bowl and I drank a little orange juice.
It was just a short drive to the Volcano NPS, where, to save 5 bucks, I purchased my THIRD senior citizen card. It's a great deal, just remember to carry your card with you. We put our day in the hands of one of the most helpful NPS guides. He told us exactly what to do and where to do it but with no attitude. We followed most of his suggestions and had a wonderful day.

The weather was beautiful, sunny and cool. The actual volcano looked a little like I felt - weak and pitiful. No fire and brimstone but lots of steam.  Maybe it needed a little blue pill to get things going good.

Which is another point.... The volcano's god is female in gender - it just doesn't fit. It should be a male god. Think about it - eruptions - spewing forth lava - ?

We started our 20 mile drive down the Chain of Craters Rd with our first stop being the recommended Lava tube. Really interesting smooth walled cave.

There were so many types of lava flows that covered everything. Interesting shapes and sizes. It was a shock to see that plants actually grew out of it.

At the bottom of the drive was the Arch made out of volcanic lava flow.

We finished up about 2:30 and at lunch at the Lava Rock Cafe. I ate a little soup and it liked me! Nap time.

We did not follow the NPS guide's directions on waiting till 11 pm to see the volcano at night - we went early with all the crowds.

Couldn't get into any restaurant except the Thai restaurant - ate my first almost full meal of chicken noodle soup