The tallest peak on the island of Maui is the peak of the volcano, Haleakala.  The guide books recommend getting to the summit to watch the sunrise.  Even in Hawaii, the sunrise occurs early in the morning (can’t they reschedule it?).  We couldn’t muster a 4am wakeup, but got up at the still early time of 6am.  It took a little more than an maui409hour and a half to get to the summit.  We brought plenty of extra layers so we stayed warm at the summit where it is windy and around 40 degrees.  We take in the view from the top, including Science City which houses the scientists that are studying the sun and stars from this vantage point.

We then return to the visitor center that is just below the summit (just below 10,000 feet of elevation).  From here we pick up the Sliding Sands trail which will take us down about 1500ft over 2.5 miles to the base of a cinder cone.  Technically the "crater" we are hiking in is a valley because it was formed by erosion, not the volcano itself.

The hike begins downhill which make the first half easy, despite the elevation.  We get to the cinder cone which is neat to see.  After taking in the view, we start our trek up.  It’s strenuous because of the altitude, but we eventually make it back.  Fortunately it remains cool at this altitude so it’s not too unpleasant.

maui472Once we are back in the car, we stop at a couple overlooks on our way down and walk a short nature trail (which is neat because we see some bright red birds).  We finally depart the park and return to the hotel.  We’ll sleep well tonight after all this exercise.

View all the trip photos here:

http://sanjoseabrams.com/photos/MauiDecember2010/