Lava Tree State Monument, State park near Pahoa, United States.

Lava Tree State Monument is a state park near Pahoa that displays hollow molds left when molten lava swept through a forest and hardened around the trees. These stone forms dot the landscape and mark where tree trunks once stood surrounded by burning lava.

The 1790 lava flow that created the molds came from Kīlauea, on whose eastern rift zone the park sits. The land later belonged to the large ranch of William Herbert Shipman. Ancient Hawaiians already knew the molds came from a lava flow, and Rufus Anderson Lyman was among the first to propose they were casts of former trees. The park closed in May 2018 when Kīlauea lava flows approached it.

The molds were long known to Native Hawaiians as products of a lava flow; Rufus Anderson Lyman was among the first to argue they were casts of former trees. The land later belonged to the ranch of William Herbert Shipman. The park was closed in May 2018 when Kīlauea lava flows approached it.

A short walking path of roughly 1 kilometer (0.7 miles) guides you through the main formations with shaded rest spots along the way. The trail is easy to navigate and restroom facilities plus picnic areas are available near the parking area.

The molds were long read as evidence of a lava flow through forest, but it was Rufus Anderson Lyman who early argued they were casts of former trees. The land once belonged to William Herbert Shipman's ranch, and the park closed in May 2018 when Kīlauea lava approached.