When we were walking around in the Volcano national park, we stopped in the restrooms at some part of the park. YES, I KNOW. SHOCK.

After using the toilets (what? everybody does, we're not special there), I went to wash my hands. I turned on the water, wetted my hands, squeezed out soap, lathered up my hands, the went to rinse.

I happened to have turned on the water at the precise flow necessary for the water to come out of the faucet as a tube. The temperature was close enough to skin temperature and the water flow so smooth that, hands in the water, I couldn't feel the water. I could feel the pressure of the water, but could not discern by touch that I had water flowing over my hands. It was a fascinating sensation, almost like a glass rod pressing on my hands. After toying in the water for a bit and rinsing my hands, I called Mom over and suggested she do the same.

Turns out, when you're at the top of the crater looking out towards the active caldera, you can see the trail that exists at the bottom of the extinct caldera. And there's a path. That you can walk.

That's right, there are people at the bottom of that hill.

We had parked at the Lava Tubes overflow parking, so saw this view on the hike over to the Lava Tubes entrance and main parking lot. The path down to the bottom of the crater was near that entrance, we think, across from the Lava Tubes entrance sign. Unsure about that.

What we are sure about is that the hike down, across, and back up was not the journey we wanted to make so underprepared. Or maybe not at all, given the hike back up for Mom.

So, we just looked at it. Maybe next time.