Haleakala National Park

Volcanic landscape in Haleakala National Park, Maui (S. Alden/PhotoLink/Photodisc/Getty)

Haleakala National Park

Established: 1961
Acreage: 29,830
Average Yearly Visitors: 1,502,000
Location: In east Maui

Contact Details
Haleakala National Park
P.O. Box 369
Makawao, HI 96768
Phone: 808-248-7375

Haleakala National Park slices up volcanic Mt. Haleakala, a dramatic scurry to the clouds from sea level to 10,000 feet over a distance of 35 miles. The environment changes rapidly and dramatically with the altitude, from subtropical rainforest at sea level to subalpine desert in the crater.
At this park on the island of Hawaii, you can see rare Hawaiian forest birds. Haleakala is the Hawaiian name for the "house of the sun." Many visitors do no realize that this park is also a part of the East Maui volcano. The summit area of Haleakala is where the demigod, Maui, snared the sun and forced it to a slow journey across the sky.
Haleakala National Park has wilderness campsites and cabins located on strenuous trails at high elevations. All require permits, and some require an additional fee and reservation lottery. There are also two drive-up campgrounds in Hosmer Grove and Kipahulu areas of the park. Take a minute to consider how your experience in Maui could be enhanced by even one night here, away from your beach resort. It's quite an amazing experience, actually.
The magnificent summit area can be experienced by car. This is the only place in the world where you can drive on a paved road from sea level to higher than 10,000 feet in less than 38 miles. Switchbacks on the map of the Summit District give a sense of the steepness of this climb. You can make it in an hour and a half, but you'll want to stop, and stop, and stop.

By Travel Expert: Kim Lipker

Haleakala National Park slices up volcanic Mt. Haleakala, a dramatic scurry to the clouds from sea level to 10,000 feet over a distance of 35 miles.
Miles of hiking trails wind through the rain forest. A prime destination is the park's nearly 20,000 acres of wilderness, where you'll find vegetation that grows nowhere else in the world.
An easy, half-mile stroll on the Kaloa Point Trail offers scenic waterfalls and a view of Oheo Gulch. A Lau Hala thatched building demonstrates the native architecture of the past.
Several hikes lead to opportunities for swimming, but you should heed warnings at the ranger station. Flash flooding is a common occurrence.
You could camp in one of the park's developed campgrounds, but won't you sleep a lot better after a grueling ten-mile hike through Hawaiian rain forest? That's what you'll need to do to get to Paliku, a primitive wilderness campground located at the base of a rain forest cliff.

By Travel Expert: Karen Kefauver

Published: 23 Oct 2008 | Last Updated: 15 Sep 2010
Details mentioned in this article were accurate at the time of publication

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