HILO (AP) - A professional surfer says his up-close encounter with Kilauea was thrilling but he wouldn't recommend trying to copy it.
With a photographer overhead in a helicopter, C.J. Kanuha stood on an 11-foot-6-inch board and paddled to within 20 feet of where the lava from the volcano meets the boiling water crashing onshore.
Photos of the stunt were recently published in Outside Magazine.
The 24-year-old Kanuha, of Kailua-Kona, says he planned the ride for years and was culturally respectful, saying a prayer to volcano goddess Pele when he got onto the nearby black sand shore. Kanuha says he may go back someday.
County Civil Defense Director Quince Mento says it's very dangerous in the area and called Kanuha's visit ''really not smart.''