https://www.nps.gov/hale/planyourvisit/haleakala-sunrise-reservations.htm
Reservations are accepted up to 2 months ahead and cost $1.50. This is in addition to the park entrance fee of $25. The entrance fee is also good at Oheo Gulch and is good for 3 days.
We didn't make it early enough for sunrise. We had planned on driving the Road to Hana but ran into a traffic jam. We changed our plans, turned back and drove to Haleakala instead. We started the road to Haleakala around 10 am.
We stopped at Pukulani Superette, located at 15 Makawao Ave. to pick up lunch before we headed to the summit.
There are 2 visitor's centers: the first visitor's center is found at 7000 feet not far from Hosmer Grove; the 2nd is at 9740 feet at House of the Sun.
It's 2 hours, 38 miles and 10,023 feet to the summit. Bring a jacket. It can be 30 degrees cooler at the summit than at sea level.
Nearby is Science City, an off-limits research and communications center. The University of Hawaii maintains an observatory here and the Department of Defense tracks satellites.
There are numerous trails in the park. The Sliding Sands Trail is 5 miles roundtrip and can be accessed from the summit.
The volcano's "crater" looks like a moonscape. It's technically not a crater but an erosional valley
.
At the summit, you'll find silversword plants. They start life as a rosette and reach maturity between 7 to 17 years when it sends forth a 3 to 8 foot tall stalk. It blooms once then dies.
Those who don't make it up for sunrise try to stay for sunset.
2017 10 30
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