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Route of our hike, looking northeast. We went out about 3.6 miles before starting back.
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This tour bus in the parking lot near the trailhead looks like it's full of bikes at the back...
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... but it's really just an illusion!
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The road we drove to get here
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We'll see the other end of the park when we drive the road to Hana and keep going all the way around the southeast part of the island.
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A silversword. When I first visited here in the late 1960's, these endagered plants were enclosed by chain link fences to protect them from the wild pigs, and probably the wild tourists, too.
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Isn't the silversword a beautiful plant?
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Our first look into the crater. The weather is unsettled on the far side.
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We're not going as far as Kapalaoa
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Looking down into the crater, there are lots of people hiking the Sliding Sands Trail. We'll be joining them in a couple of minutes.
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On the left is the crater rim; Ko'olau Gap is on the right.
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The trail is broad and firm here. Lower down it gets pretty sandy.
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The trail switchbacks several times below us. This isn't a real crater; it's the result of erosion of the original crater. The cinder cones formed afterthe original crater was washed away.
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It's pretty stark, but there are a few plants growing.
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There's a cluster of silverswords in the rocks
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That trail to the cinder cone is closed, but some people hike out there anyway.
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Lots of silverswords here. I guess the efforts to protect this endangered species have been successful.
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Silverswords die after they bloom
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Looking back up the trail
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There are a few other plants besides silverswords here, but not many
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The original, wider trail on the right is very sandy. People now take the firmer but narrower trail to it's left.
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They remind me of sea urchins!
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