Top 5 Caves ハワイ郡

impressive waterfall in front of a huge cave

impressive 500-meter-long tunnel in the lava flow

The water on the upstream side runs through an old lava tube. I'm told (but haven't seen myself) that when the water isn't too rough, you can carefully hike upstream through the tube to see two waterfalls. There's good parking for several cars just past the bridge in the direction away from Hilo (towards Pepeekeo).

You can see the spectacle that nature creates

Exciting insight.

Never seen anything like this before

This 500-year-old lava tube was created by a river of lava. Nowadays the lava tube is lit for visitors from 8am-8pm, and the National Park Service urges you to be avoid touching the tube's walls and any hanging roots, as they support entire ecosystems of very delicate organisms. Parking around the lava tube is extremely scarce, but you can hike here along the Crater Rim Trail, which offers many more parking opportunities.

The Kawainui Stream Bridge has become a little attraction around this rainforest because some people like to jump from the bridge into the water. Warning: Jumping off the bridge can be dangerous, as the river level can change and it can become too shallow. Jumping is not recommended.