Volcano Hideaways

Kilauea Volcano's Episode 55 progresses through dawn to early morning, in the rising sun of 17 Oct 2026 in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. With summit reinflation steadily on the rise, the USGS has released a preliminary forecast for Episode 56 to occur between 28 October and 5 November.
I will be going off-island until early November, so I'll take a break now and hope to be back before the next eruption! 👋

Colors and textures of Kilauea's Episode 55 eruption on 17 Oct 2026

These are some more of my shots from Kilauea Volcano's Episode 55 on 17 Oct 2026 -- marking the 55th time that the volcano has fountained since this series began on 23 Dec 2024 here in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The fountaining episodes had been fairly regular, appearing about every 2 weeks, up until the end of Episode 54 on 25 Aug 2026 when unexpected events disrupted the cycle (like elevated pressure, magma intrusion, earthquake swarms, cracks appearing, new vents opening). We waited almost 2 months (!) for Episode 55, which is why we are all posting so many photos and videos -- we didn't know if we would ever see this phenomenon again -- and we are so happy that we did!! It is truly the Greatest Show on Earth 😍! Whether the fountaining will continue again on a regular basis is uncertain, but the ongoing re-pressurization of the volcano's underground magma chamber following the end of Episode 55 exhibits the normal, predictable pattern that (so far) suggests another episode is likely. 🤞

Oh my gosh this is so fun! My buddy Warren Gilbert (of “Warren’s Crack” fame) took this photo of me during yesterday’s Episode 55 of the Kīlauea eruption series, and volcano chaser Janice Norman turned it into this fun AI photo as a gift for me! I love it so much you guys! 🥰 Thank you!!

Kilauea's Episode 55 eruption at 7:12am on 17 Oct 2026 -- on a beautiful Hawaiian morning 🌞 🌋 ❤️‍🔥

I arrived at the edge of Kilauea Caldera at 4:30am to witness the long-awaited Episode 55 in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on 17 Oct 2026. The early morning starts are my favorite times, as the sunrise always adds drama and color to the already spectacular scene. The viewing areas along the southern rim were closed, so I wandered along the north side of the caldera in the dark, with just enough glow from the lava to light the way. I stayed for 3.5 hours, until my camera battery was exhausted, and an hour later, at 9:03am, the eruption was already over. Here are some of my early morning shots.

Kilauea's Episode 55 started early this morning, 17 Oct 2026 -- quite unexpectedly for me -- even though I'd been expecting it for months... Luckily we have our coffee maker set for 4am, as we are early risers, so I didn't miss too much of the start as I drank my coffee and got ready to go. The morning was gorgeous, though big puddles all around indicated that it had been raining all night. The volume of the lava was enormous, and it spread out around the ample fountain like a Christmas tree skirt. The wind was right, the lighting was beautiful, the parking was plentiful, and it was everything I could have hoped for.