Haleakala Sunrise and/or Sunset ??

I just did it last week. We were scared to death. The visibility was close to zero because of the heavy cloud, and it was dark and we could barely see the road. If we missed the turn, we might just fall of the cliff. The sunrise was bad because of the cloud, and we were so disappointed what we risked our life for. I wouldn't recommend.

Mau'i

Luanne said:

I've seen the crater from a helicopter. That was enough.

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Haleakala is not a crater volcano.

geist1223 said:

Haleakala is not a crater volcano.

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Whatever. I saw the top of Haleakala.

And if it's not a crater volcano why do they offer crater tours? If you Google Haleakala Crater there are all kinds of references.

DaveNW said:

Study in contrasts: I don't own on Maui. I've been there only once. And I HAVE been up Haleakala.

Dave

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When you own someplace and go back every year there isn't the sense of urgengy of "having" to do something. We started coming to Maui when our daughters were very young. The idea of getting up really early and being in a car for several hours on a winding road wasn't very appealing. It took a long time before we did the road to Hana.

DeniseM said:

Personally, I think the sunrise/sunset thing is over-rated........I'd go in the morning, after daylight, and take a lunch, and be prepared to make a day of it.

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I totally agree. This is what we do whenever we go to Haleakala, except we have lunch in Makawao and then drive up the mountain.

iconnections said:

This makes me smile. If you had a car and a blanket, you were OK, I am sure.

On our first sunrise trip to the top, we were dressed accordingly but we saw a few people up there too with a blanket around them but in shorts and flip-flops like someone else posted here.

Woolen socks will save you we learned when we took the moutaineering course with the Sierra Club. I forgot to take my boots or closed shoes going up to the top of Mauna Kea in HI but had woolen socks on with my open sandals and wasn't cold.

The tour operator handed out warm parkas there with hoods to protect our ears and head which is also very important. They know that a lot of tourists are not aware of how cold it gets on top of a mountain no matter where it is.

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I don't really remember now what we were wearing. I don't think we brought jackets on the trip, but we may have brought the comforter off the bed. We did have long pants on. I remember it being cold, but we weren't uncomfortable. I found the sunrise far from over rated. If anything, the road to Hana is over rated IMO.

Luanne said:

Whatever. I saw the top of Haleakala.

And if it's not a crater volcano why do they offer crater tours? If you Google Haleakala Crater there are all kinds of references.

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Fun fact, it's a shield volcano. I didn't know this until I looked it up and, didn't even know there was such a thing as a shield volcano.
http://www.universetoday.com/50277/haleakala/

and here's the explanation for why they have "crater" tours:

Like all shield volcanoes, Haleakala was formed from a series of highly fluid magma flows. This is the reason for its general appearance, as well as the designation – i.e. it resembles a broad shield lying on the ground. It’s tallest peak, which is named is Pu’u ‘Ula’ula (“Red Hill”) in native Hawaiian, measures 3,055 m (10,023 ft) tall.

At Haleakala’s summit lies a massive depression (crater) that measures some 11.25 km (7 miles) in diameter and nearly 800 m (2,600 ft) deep. The name Haleakala means literally “House of the Sun”, which was given to the general mountain area by the early Hawaiian people.


Like I said, I didn't know this. I just had assumed like you that it had a crater, it was a crater volcano. Obviously my education in volcanism was lacking.

Chuckle. You learn the most wonderful things on TUG!

I agree with the others: especially if you're an east-coaster (close enough), get up the 1st or 2nd day and do sun-rise; it makes the transition easier. If the weather isn't cooperating, then go some afternoon or evening. You only live once.

BTW: I've seen mountains, oceans, deserts, canyons etc... while staring out of a jet plane for many, many years. Nothing ever comes close to standing on the top of a mountain or foot of cliff and feeling insignificant under the big blue sky/stars. Otherwise, why not just stay home and watch it on the travel channel?

Of course, a man's got to know his limits (ladies too).

BocaBoy said:

I totally agree. This is what we do whenever we go to Haleakala, except we have lunch in Makawao and then drive up the mountain.

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I agree too - I've done sunrise (fine) sunset (fine) and many trips during the day (much better) and we always stop at Kula Lodge for breakfast then head up the hill.

The road is just a mountain road. It goes uphill on the way up and has switchbacks, then goes downhill with switchbacks on the way down. It is not that steep. The top speed is about 30mph (I could be wrong - but it's not fast). If you go up for sunrise you will have lots of company so no one will be moving fast, and you won't have headlights in your eyes because no one is coming down at that point. Go slow, take it easy and it will be fine.

At sunrise you freeze your okole off, sunset is a bit better in that respect. We were *those* people without jackets or sweaters (which were packed the night before and left at the condo ). Luckily we had grabbed a couple of blankets just before we left. Those blanket pictures are the best though.

Haleakala sunrise on a good day:




Haleakala on a cloudy day:

I just figured out another reason we've probably never done Haleakala at sunrise. I'm just not a huge fan of sunrises.

When we went to the Grand Canyon we were told to be sure to get up and watch the sunrise, it was an amazing experience. So we got up, froze, and....not impressed. And we didn't even have to drive to get there. It was fun being out there all alone for awhile, just us and the deer, and then elk.

I'm much more of a sunset girl.

Forget the sunset. Take a dinner cruise, with drinks, and hopefully with a clear horizon, the green flash.

Sterling

That road is captured nicely in DeniseM's photo for sure!!! Taterhed makes a great point, it really is a unique experience to stand on top of the world above most everything else within sight. I feel it is worth the drive, and prefer to drive both up and down that mountain during daytime hours. The sunrise and sunset can be enjoyed in so many other parts of the island, on any of the islands. Kauai Kid's cruise suggestion sounds fun, that is one thing I have not done in Hawaii. Yet.

DeniseM said:

Are you fond of long drives on narrow and steep mountain roads in the pitch dark? Then I would not do either.

Personally, I think the sunrise/sunset thing is over-rated, because of the drive involved, and the fact that you may have cloud cover and not be able to see anything.

I'd go in the morning, after daylight, and take a lunch, and be prepared to make a day of it.

Here is an aerial view of the road - in the daylight:

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Okay I know the road to Haleakala Sunrise is bad, but the picture is one of Stelvio Pass in Italy, the 2nd highest pass in the Alps.