Overlaying roughly 75% of Maui and towering 10,023 toes excessive, Haleakala is one in every of Maui’s most sought-after locations because of its lovely trails.
Whereas most guests merely enterprise to the summit to catch a glimpse of the solar greeting the day, Haleakala is dwelling to a community of trails, good for day hikes or backpacking. As somebody who prefers to flee the crowds, I made a decision one of the best ways to discover Haleakala was with a pack on my again. I hopped on a puddle hopper with a number of buddies from my dwelling on Oahu — with my sights set on the volcano.
Backpacking Haleakala Crater
Crater Formation
Based on legend, Haleakala, aka “Home of the Solar,” was the situation the place the demigod Maui trapped the solar, agreeing to launch it solely after it promised to linger longer within the sky.
Based on science, the Pacific Plate drifted over a scorching spot over 1,000,000 years in the past, and over time, the buildup of lava produced the mountainous Haleakala. As lava hardened to create the mountain, erosion and volcanic exercise labored to create canyons, finally forming the “crater” as it’s as we speak.
Information About Haleakala
Haleakala Nationwide Park was initially established in 1916 in correlation with Hawaii Volcanoes Nationwide Park. It grew to become unbiased in 1961. Spanning 33,265 acres, the park is dwelling to 6 of the world’s 14 local weather zones.
The park hosts 103 endangered species, greater than another nationwide park. The record consists of 81 flowering vegetation, 10 birds, six non-flowering vegetation, three bugs, two mammals, and one reptile.
Measuring from the bottom of the Pacific plate, the dormant Haleakala volcano rings in at 28,000 toes, making it 675 toes taller than Mt. Everest. Every year, 1.5 million individuals go to the volcano.
Haleakala Crater Itinerary
The place some journeys take quite a lot of planning, Haleakala is easy. After planning our route, we hopped on the NPS web site to ebook permits. There are a restricted variety of websites, so it’s greatest to ebook early if you happen to can. At $8 per evening, they’re a steal.
An alternative choice is to remain in a wilderness cabin, which can be booked by way of the NPS. From there, we merely needed to pay a $30 entry price into the nationwide park, which was good for 3 days, the precise size of our journey.
In our analysis, we had a tough time determining the water state of affairs. After numerous looking on-line and a remaining check-in with the ranger, we confirmed that there was a water spigot at every of the campgrounds. The accessible water is non-potable, so plan forward with a air purifier or filter system.
Day 1: Customer Middle to Palikū
To start our journey, we parked on the customer heart at 10,000 toes and adopted the Sliding Sands path to the Palikū campground. The hike was somewhat over 9 miles, however was largely downhill, into the crater.
Temperatures have been chilly within the car parking zone, so we started our journey bundled up, shedding layers as we descended into the crater. Based on a park ranger, Palikū is likely one of the wettest areas on the planet, and true to his promise, it started to rain as we neared the campsite. By the point we arrived on the campground, the rain was coming down in sheets.
Day 2: Palikū to Holua
We awoke to sunshine and marveled on the lush mountains surrounding us as we cooked up a pot of oatmeal. After a sluggish morning exploring Palikū and letting our issues dry out, we packed up and started the 7-mile journey to Holua, our second wilderness campsite.
A mile or two into the trek and we felt like we have been in a post-apocalyptic world: there have been barren lava fields so far as the attention may see and never a soul in sight. It was eerily beautiful.
After we reached Holua, we pitched our tents and have been handled to one of many dreamiest sunsets I’ve ever seen. As soon as it grew darkish, we laid out our sleeping pads and stared on the unbelievable spattering of stars earlier than drifting off to sleep.
Day 3: Holua to Customer Middle
We woke early on our third and remaining day in preparation for the journey forward. The plan was to hike 8 miles, with over 3,000 toes of elevation acquire, again to the customer heart. The primary few miles have been mellow, and we took a lunch break after mile 4 in preparation for the ultimate climb.
There isn’t a different phrase to make use of to explain that remaining climb than brutal. We climbed 2,000 toes over 3.5 miles and whereas the views have been unbelievable, we have been retracing our steps from the primary day, so we merely put our heads down and powered up the ultimate hill.
After car parking zone excessive fives, we piled into the automobile and cruised again right down to sea stage.
Conclusion: Why You Ought to Go
If you go to Haleakala, you’ll overlook you’re in Hawaii. The surroundings is extremely distinctive and various and is spectacular in a manner that’s tough to explain. The place Hawaii is crowded, the backcountry trails of Haleakala are empty, offering a much-needed escape from the busy cities.
Over the course of your trek, you’ll expertise rain, altitude, chilly temperatures, sweltering sunshine, and quite a lot of totally different sights and ecosystems. When you’re on the lookout for a problem and a singular approach to expertise Hawaii, add Haleakala to your record.
This 3-day backpacking itinerary can also be only a pattern: there are a plethora of wilderness campsites, campgrounds, trails, and distances to select from. Common, can’t-miss trails embody the Keonehe‘ehe‘e (Sliding Sands) Path, Halemau‘u Path, and path throughout the crater ground.
Important Gear Gadgets
Haleakala was quite a bit colder and wetter than I had anticipated. Whereas I had all the everyday backpacking necessities, these have been standout items of substances for this journey.
