Go East, Young Woman (& Young Boy)!

We did it! 137 miles. So, the riding's all pau (finished) for the Envirobuggy's first official tour, and no better place to end such a tremendous journey on the Big Island - home of Pele, Goddess of the Volcano - than at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

The huge plume billowing out of Halema'uma'u Crater on Sunday was astounding, and so innocent looking. Puffy and white, one doesn't imagine the noxious gases that are affecting people's health and crops. Shawn loved Jaggar Museum (where he jumped about to have his very own earthquake recorded on a seismograph and looked through the binoculars to get an even more up close view of the plume) and the Visitor Information Center, where the short safety and highlights films they show fascinated him ... lots of lava explosions!

A huge thank you to Jim & Celeste for sharing this last part of the adventure with me and Shawn on the east side of the island. Sure, we couldn't have done it without you, but it also was just a lot of fun doing it with you!

Our last day was a pleasant ride of 15.9 miles along Crater Rim Drive and Devastation Trail , with stops at Kilauea caldera, Kilauea Iki (where a lake of molten lava could be seen as late as 1959), and the steam vents. We pedaled through rain forest on sun-dappled roads and stopped to walk through Thurston Lava Tube. I once was told that walking through the tube is a re-birth. It felt like it ... and this ride certainly was. I thought after 137 miles (actually, the final odometer reading came in at 139.9) I'd be done with biking. Me? Sit on a bike? Never again! Actually, though, I'm refreshed and excited we did this. And, as always, looking forward to more!

Check back soon to find out which organization will receive 25% of the proceeds raised and what's coming next.