I was walking down the main road in Kapoho on the Island of Hilo; and there is probably about twenty minutes of daylight left. Beside the road they call the red road are these huge black fields of lava where years ago the volcano erupted and covered the whole town. So it's getting darker and I'm walking on the road that runs next to the lava plains. Every so often a pick up truck drives by with their headlights on and I'm forced to move a little way off the road. American's aren't used to people walking on the roads and don't quite know how to deal with it. I count myself lucky every time a truck drives by and i'm not stuck in the front grill like a bug.
After I'd been walking about ten minutes I come to an old rusty gate just off the side of the road. It was open and lead to a old dirt road that ran down through the black porous fields. You could see that people dumped a lot of old rubbish there as it was littered with old bottles and bits of old washing machine in amongst the lava. I decided to walk down this interesting new road that lead through the lava field. It went on and on in a straight line.
I walk through the gate. Next to the gate is a dead tree that hangs over the road. As I get opposite the tree I'm startled by a dog going through the rubbish. After my initial apprehension I see he's a quite nice looking dog; part hound part something else; but he's terribly thin and sad looking-he has a handmade collar on; and hanging from the collar is some electrical wire. He looks as out of place as the bottles and bits of machinery and I'm certain he has been abandoned as well. I'm not sure what he might do as I walk past so I just look ahead and keep walking.
He runs over to me and I pat him. He is a nice but starving dog who i christen Rufus. I've only been on Hilo for less than a day and already i've adopted a dog called Rufus. Where I'm staying is in the middle of nowhere and can't even get to a shop to buy food for myself let alone for my new dog.
Anyway,
I thought I'd keep walking down the road and see where it lead. The dog; or Rufus; padded along in front of me. He deliberately kept swerving and cutting me off so that I would have to stop and pat him; so I pat him and follow him down the spooky road in the lava fields as it's getting dark -and there is rubbish and broken bottles in amongst the lava. I thought I might stumble across a dead body hidden between the mounds of old lava. Hilo is not like Maui-the local young Hawaiian men want sovereignty and independence and to be removed from the US. They hate tourists and beat them up. It can get pretty nasty.
So-
I'm following this dog as it gets darker; the dog is now like my spirit guide along the long road going deeper and deeper into the darkening black fields.
It was pretty slow going. Rufus kept his head down and kept gamely plodding on. As his paws got more and more battered by the sharp lava on the road he got slower and slower. I would stop and pat him and once or twice tried to go back but he would only look at me and stay where he was. It was only as I continued down the road that Rufus followed me.
Every time I go to turn back to the main road he stops and he won't turn around and he leads me further into the lava.
His paws are getting more and more sore and he goes slower and slower but still he takes me deeper into the darkening lava fields.
There are a line of trees in the distance and I figure i'll walk as far as those then turn around and take the dog home-not only will my hosts have an Australian tourist staying; they'll have to welcome a new stray dog called Rufus into their house as well.
The landscape is getting more and more sinister; then
suddenly from the horizon where the line of trees are comes the beginnings of a shape growing in the distance; which turns out to be a truck with no lights; which as it gets closer is shown to be a very old and beat up grey pick up truck driving very slowly towards me and my new dog.
Remembering what I was told here about being careful around the locals I was a little anxious-
vast barren landscape; dark; no witnesses; loads of places to hide a body
you still with me?
The truck drives slowly towards me.
It pulls up alongside me-there's two men and a woman in the truck; The windows are open and they lean out towards me. Before they speak I put on my best Australia accent and asked them
"Do you guys know who's dog this is?"
They reply"yeah-it's our dog" in a slightly accusatory voice.
So now i'm in a Larva field at night blocked by two guys and a girl in a beat up pick truck who think I'm trying to steal their starving dog.
"I found the dog down the road and came up here looking for the owners."
"We left him tied to the tree. "Rufus had the remnants of old electrical wire around his neck but he must have gotten free. Clever Rufus.
One guy gets out of the truck and comes over. He gets Rufus and puts him in the truck-and they ask me what I'm doing out "jogging." I tell them i'm checking out the lava which i've never seen. I'm kind of waiting on the guy driving to get out of the truck as well and then I know I'll have a problem. He doesn't move but neither do they drive on. I tell them I'm here for a few days; tell them they have a really cool dog; wave goodbye and walk off very calmly and slowly.
I walk off for about five minutes back toward the main road and the truck does not follow.
I think I might get to the road before they start driving again when I hear the truck's wheels slowly crunching on the road; coming up slowly behind me.
Then they drive past and wave; and I wave back-
ta - da
