Nāpau Crater

From Nāulu Trailhead on Chain of Craters Road, the crater is 5.2 miles one way; from Maunaulu parking it’s 6.2. Budget about 30 minutes per mile, plus stops. Rough lava slows the hike, and the stone cairns (ahu) can be hard to pick out from the rock in mist or rain. Bring enough water for the whole route and keep an eye on the markers.

The trail crosses Maunaulu’s 1969–1974 flows, with lava channels, pit craters and lava trees, then enters tree-fern rainforest. Nāpau sits in Kīlauea’s East Rift Zone, along the underground path magma once traveled from the summit toward Puʻuʻōʻō. The contrast between young lava and dense forest makes this more than a long walk to a crater.

Stone walls from the 19th-century Nāpau pulu-processing station remain beside the route. Pulu, a soft fiber harvested from hāpuʻu tree ferns, was used as mattress stuffing. The station was likely abandoned around 1867 as overharvesting depleted the ferns.

A small campsite near the overlook has room for two tents, and overnight camping requires a backcountry permit. The September 2024 eruption buried most former campsites and the pit toilet; the surviving camp has no pit toilet; waste disposal is cathole only. There’s no drinking water at the crater or along the trail.