I decided to sleep in a little bit but I ended up getting awake at around 6 a.m. I decided to go out and try to find a beach to swim at and then take a shower afterwards. I asked the lady at the front desk if she could recommend a beach based on my Google search results. She said the most popular Beach was not a part of the Google search results. She recommended Robinson Beach. I decided to drive there. Unfortunately I found out that beaches in Hilo are not the sandy beaches you picture whenever you think of a beach. Instead they have a rocky Coastline from the volcano eruptions. Since the land is relatively new it has not had a chance to be broken down into sand. I drove along the coast trying to find a beach that would fit my expectations but of course I was not able to find it.

I was getting hungry so I decided to head out to McDonald’s and try to get an authentic spam mail. Google Maps led me to a Walmart which had a McDonald’s inside of it. I do believe it was the same Walmart that I visited 8 years ago. I got the spam and eggs and rice. There’s nothing particularly amazing about the meal except for the fact that one could brag but they are spam in Hawaii.

While I was in Walmart I decided to check out there souvenir section. There wasn’t anything particularly that caught my eye in the souvenir section. However I would recommend Walmart for reasonably priced souvenirs for any vacation in Hawaii.

As I was walking out I asked a manager about the beaches and he explained how the beaches were all Rocky in Hilo. He suggested I drive to Kona which was a good 2 hours away. I decided not to because it would have eaten up most of my time getting there and then getting back.

I went back to the hotel and rest a little bit before checking out. The hotel had fruit including bananas and a citrus fruit and citrus flavored water available in the lobby. I wish I had known this before I had checked out and I would have taken advantage of it.

Yesterday my car’s tires showed being low so I decided to go to the airport to get more air in the tires Budget Rent a Car. I explained to the sales attendant to my situation and she told me where to go to get more air in the tires. Apparently in the back part of the airport there is a car wash and gas filling station for the rental car companies. I met Arthur the guy who was supposed to help fix it. He put air in my tires. The tower which was causing problems with the left driver side Tire. He also washed my car and remarks that my car was quite dirty. I did not reveal that I had driven down several miles of gravel road in order to see the telescopes.

I headed toward Subway to get a sandwich to go to eat while in volcanoes National Park. As I said before the restaurant options are very limited and I did not want to be stuck Hana hi Bill for food that I did not enjoy. I would highly recommend getting as an Ozark can cooler to keep your ice cold.

As I made my way to Volcanoes National Park I called my family to ask how things were and try to find gas. The first gas station that I went to must have been some sort of private membership only type gas station as my credit cards did not work. I ended up stopping at Phillips 76 station and filled up. I had went down to half a tank of gas on my way to both volcanoes yesterday.

I arrived at Volcanoes National Park and went to the visitor center.  I asked about the Kilauea Iki crater Trail which I had previously missed. She gave me good directions. How could shorten my walk by half a mile if I was able to actually Park in the lava tube parking lot. However this parking lot is always full. So instead I drove towards the trailhead.

I arrived at the trailhead and started walking. This time I started walking clockwise instead of counterclockwise as I had done yesterday. Throughout the trail they were signs indicating to stay on the trail rather than make a shortcut by cutting through the forested section of the trail.

It took awhile to get to the bottom of the trail. I saw many out of breath people climbing back up.
The bottom of the trail looks like the surface of the Moon. In order to keep the trail visible there are stacks of rocks along the sides. It looks like the setting for a Planet of the Apes type movie. I managed to get someone to take my photo at the bottom of it. This is an ongoing problem when you travel alone there’s not enough opportunity to take selfies for good photos of yourself. The people who took my photo mentioned that there was a steam opening but I was unable to find it. I walked over halfway to the other side and decided it would be best for me to head on back.

It took awhile for me to walk back up and by the time I got back up it was 1:30 p.m. I hadn’t had lunch and decided it would be best for me to go ahead and eat. I drove back to the visitor station and grabbed a picnic table and begin my lunch. As expected there was still ice in my Ozark cup  cooler.

A couple from Montreal sat down beside me after asking permission.  I finished up my lunch and offered them a “Bon Voyage” before leaving to travel to Jagger Museum.
As I drove to Jagger Museum I saw a parking area for the steam vents.  I made a mental note to myself to stop by after I got through the Jagger Museum.  The Jagger Museum is built within viewing distance of the smoking Halema’uma’u crater.  This is the most active volcano in the world as explained by the enthusiastic park ranger giving an impromptu lesson on the history of Hawaiian volcanoes….or more specifically Halema’uma’u.  Did you know visitors used to hold their postcards to be singed before mailing them to prove they were at the volcanos? Did you know the volcanos are considered sacred by the native Hawaiians and point to Pele, the goddess of volcanos?

I took some photos of the smoking volcano.  I almost bought a 50s style poster, but decided against it, after all it was $39 without framing, overpriced…and I’m not sure I had room for it in transport and on my walls back home.

Next I drove to the steam vents and smelt the slight sulfur smell fuming from them.  Afterwards I decided to hike the devastation trail.  There was a hill with gravel rock near the entrance to it, and later on the path to an overlook of Kilauea Iki.  I took photos of plants along the way.

I really wanted to go on the chain of craters tour, but unfortunately there was not enough time. It was already 3:30PM, and one way was 37 minutes.  I would like to stop quite a bit to get out and take photos, so it could have easily been a 90 minutes round trip.  I decided against it, opting to do some shopping on my way back to Hilo.

I decided to try out Hilo Burger Joint in downtown Hilo.  Parking was very limited.  I parked on the street in front of a music store.  I halfway expected to see my car broken into when I got back.  That’s what I do, expect the worst and be surprised when nothing happens.

I got a burger with cheese loading inside the patty.  There is a food truck, Hoss Burger in Nashville, that does it, and seems to be slightly better than Hilo Burgers, which seemed to have less cheese.  My waiter kinda forsook me and didn’t give me a refill of water.  I think another patron was asking him too many questions for him to pay attention to me.

After paying my bill I headed off to my car to pack up my stuff.  Have you ever tried to change from shorts to jeans in a parked car in downtown Hilo?  I takes some maneuvering. I do this because jeans take up so much space in my backpack, which was already full with Ozark water containers, a beach tow, electronics, among several other things.

Returning my car posed some issues as I couldn’t initially find a parking space for Budget cars, eventually I found one, but I did have to go back and write down the mileage on my car to give to the attendant.

TSA was no problem at Hilo airport.  I think there was one couple in front of me.  Hilo airport appears to be an open airport, like most Hawaiian airports.  I wonder what happens when a hurricane comes through?  There are no door to close to keep the rain out.

My flight left late possibly due to a late incoming flight.  I wish I had planned for it, otherwise I might have been able to do the chain of craters tour.

Tomorrow I pack up and leave for the mainland, but not without some much needed beach time.