Kilauea Loop Trail, Volcanoes National Park, Hawai'i

Date	Distance	Time	Elevation Gain	Average Moving Time	Year to Date Miles
4/14/2026	3.3 miles	2 hours 13 minutes	454'	1.5 mph	93.5

Parking: 

• Thurston Lava Tube, Crater Rim Drive. Note - this is NOT the correct place to park for this hike. We saw signs later that said this is 30-minute parking only (for those doing the lava tube hike). We should have parked at the Kilauea Iki Overlook parking lot.

Map:

• Gaia GPS app
• National Park map 

Directions:

• Take the Kilauea Iki Trail on the same side of the street as the parking lot. Descend to the crater. Hike across the crater. Ascend up the other side of the crater, staying on the Kilauea Iki Trail. Keep straight on the Crater Rim Trail. Arrive at the Kilauea Iki Overlook parking lot (where there is a bathroom). Continue along the Crater Rim Trail back to the Thurston Lava Tube parking lot.

This morning we wanted to do the 4-mile hike across the crater that we saw yesterday that had an eruption in 1959. It has full sun exposure, so we wanted to get out early before it got too hot. We encountered a lot of people huffing and puffing climbing out of the crater. Bring lots of water! This crater is part of the same volcano that erupts regularly - but this crater last erupted in 1959.

Lava, with us in the background lol

The start of our walk across the crater (this isn't an active one)

Cairns show the way

A few small plants manage to grow in the cracks

Reticulite

View of the trail from above.

View from above, people hiking across the trail.