Devastation Trail, Paved trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, US

The Devastation Trail is a paved route about 1 mile (1.6 km) long in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park that winds through an area recovering from volcanic burial. The path crosses volcanic cinder and ash deposits where vegetation gradually reestablishes itself after being buried by past eruptions.

The trail takes its form from the 1959 Kilauea Iki eruption, which buried large sections of forest and landscape under thick volcanic deposits. The path was later developed as a way to walk through this transformed terrain and witness how the land naturally heals itself.

The trail crosses the site of the 1959 Kīlauea Iki eruption, where sixteen explosive episodes built the cinder cone Puʻu Puaʻi, meaning "gushing hill" in Hawaiian. Pele's hair, threads of volcanic glass spun by the wind, and Pele's tears, teardrop-shaped glass particles, lie among the cinders, named after Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes.

The route is completely flat and paved, making it accessible for wheelchair users and manageable for most fitness levels without difficulty. Plan for about an hour to walk the full route and bring water, as shade is minimal along the path through open volcanic terrain.

Tree molds along the trail are hollow cylinders left when fluid lava surrounded trunks and cooled; the wood burned away, leaving the trunk's shape in the rock. The 1959 eruption also scattered Pele's hair, threads of volcanic glass spun by the wind, and Pele's tears, teardrop-shaped glass particles, which lie among the cinders.