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Big Island of Hawaii State Park
Lave Tree Park
Just outside Pahoa take a left onto Highway 132 (Pahoa-Kapoho Road) to head to our next stop. As you get closer to the park the road will become gradually more enclosed by a majestic tree tunnel that shades the road in jungle beauty.
Take a left into the park just past mile marker two. The parking lot will be on your right. A loop trail will guide you through an impressive jungle of vining plants, orchids, and bamboo. Along the trail are bulbous black stumps partially covered in small green plants. These are the lava trees. In 1790 a deep pāhoehoe (smooth) lava flow from Kīlauea engulfed this rainforest. As the fast-flowing lava moved through the forest it completely surrounded the moist ʻōhiʻa trees. The lava cooled on the outside as the tree was incinerated on the inside, leaving a lava shell in the shape of the tree. While some of the molds reach several feet high, others are merely stumps or depressions. The park has restroom facilities and a picnic pavilion. Mosquitoes are abundant, so be generous with the bug spray, and never leave valuables visible in a parked vehicle.






