Madame Pele has re-awakened on the the Big Island of Hawaii this week. The floor of the Pu‘u ‘O‘o crater in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park collapsed and a fissure opened up on the flanks of Kilauea sending lava high into the air. For more than a quarter century the goddess of fire has let her temperament be known on this island creating one of the most active volcanoes in the world, and once again she is feeling uneasy.

This image taken a few years ago of the lava flowing into the Pacific Ocean at night shows the raw force of fire and water combining to form new land. It is an incredible spectacle to witness and one of the most challenging subjects I have ever photographed. Walking across miles of a’a lava fields (the sharp brittle variety) in the dark and carefully setting up a tripod on a newly formed shelf above the sea is a stark contrast to shooting the lush forests and beautiful beaches on the opposite side of this same island. But the experience is intoxicating and Madame Pele’s pull will keep me coming back again and again.

After nearly 25 years the lava on Hawaii’s Big Island continues to flow from the Pu’u O’o vent on the flanks of Kilauea down into the Pacific Ocean. In the early 90′s I was there to witness the slow destruction of Kalapana and watched in amazement as they rolled the historic painted church down the road to safety, while the palms on the famous black sand beach went up in flames.

I’ve been back many times over the years and I’m always in awe of Pele’s powerful hand in shaping these Islands. Will Rogers once said “buy real estate, they don’t make it any more”, but clearly he had never been to this part of the world!