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HAWAII NATURE NOTES
YOUR VACATION Anticipate a restful, invigorating interlude. Islanders consider vacation on the cool mountain an inexpensive, pleasant variant from a mainland trip. Silversword Inn at an elevation of 6,800 feet is popular with luncheon guests and with those staying overnight to view sunset or sunrise from the summit of the great mountain. Attractive, friendly, comfortable, it is the loftiest hostelry in the islands. There is no formal atmosphere: warm, casual clothing is worn; it is strictly "come in as you are." Hiking and riding in the vicinity of the inn are favorite pastimes. Adjacent groves of trees of the Temperate Zone impart an aspect novel to the islands. A visit is highlighted by trips into the crater and to the summit, less than thirty minutes distant by car. The cup runneth over for photographers and nature enthusiasts. You can enjoy cool, restful nights between daytime drives to the many points of interest on Maui. For further details, reservations, and rates, consult the Manager, Silversword Inn, R.R. 53, Waiakoa, Maui, Hawaii, or Mr. William S. Ellis, Jr., 900 Nuuanu Aye,, Honolulu 17, Hawaii.
ACCESS The Haleakala road climbs through plantations and ranchland from Kahului Harbor and Kahului Airport to the park entrance at an elevation of 6,740 feet. The distance by the shortest route is thirty miles. The highway continues eleven miles further to the Park Observatory on the western rim of Haleakala Crater and to the 10,025-foot summit. No bus service exists, but taxis and U-drive cars are hired at the airport and in the towns of Kahului and Wailuku. The sole access into the crater is over good trails for travel on foot or by horse.
The start of a drive to the park is made by one of three paved routes. The shortest is Pukalani Road. The other two turn inland at Paia or Haiku and traverse more interesting country. The three routes converge at Pukalani Junction ten miles up the mountain. PUKALANI means a hole in heaven, which picturesquely describes the fact that the sun breaks through at this place despite a general overcast elsewhere. As the road rises up and ever up, it unfolds distant views of fields of sugar cane and pineapple, of West Maui Range, 6,000 feet high, and of Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, and Molokini Islands beyond channels of blue sea. 100 miles southward, the tops of the snowy volcanoes on the Island of Hawaii float on billowy clouds. 10,000 feet below, the aquamarine Pacific fringes Maui with white surf. Three viewpoints along the road overlook the great crater: Leleiwi, at the 9,000-foot switchback; Kalahaku, two miles below the summit; and the Park Observatory, near the top. The roadway extends along the crest one mile southwestward to a scenic point beyond the park boundary and a communication station of the Civil Aeronautics Administration. Just above the park entrance, Silversword Inn, a National Park concession, offers meals, rooms, souvenirs, horseback riding and guided horseback trips into the crater. Across from the inn, a paved spur road leads a half mile to Hosmer Grove Campground and Picnic Area. Haleakala Crater is a favorite with those who like the back-country; its inspiring scenery and restful solitude are great reward for time and effort. The National Park Service maintains three cabins on the crater floor and 30 miles of well-marked trails for hikers and horseback parties.
HOSMER GROVE CAMPGROUND AND PICNIC AREA A quarter mile above the park entrance, opposite the driveway to the inn, a paved lane, one-half mile long, leads to the Hosmer Grove Campground and Picnic Area. It has a shelter for rainy weather that contains two tables and two charcoal burners. Four additional tables with adjacent charcoal burners are in an open site below the road. Running water, parking space for eight cars, and sites for pitching tents are provided. Charcoal may be purchased at the inn. A self-guiding nature trail leads through the grove. The grove was named for the first Territorial forester, Dr. Ralph S. Hosmer, who experimented with planting temperate trees at high altitudes on Haleakala and Mauna Kea. Trees, planted here in 1910, include the deodar, Cedrus deodara from the Himalayas; the tsugi, Cryptomeria japonica from Japan; eucalypti from Australia; and from the mainland a cypress, Cupressus arizonica; a juniper, Juniperus virginiana; Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga taxifolia; incense cedar, Libocedrus decurrens; two spruces, Picea canadensis, P. excelsa; and seven pines: lodgepole, Pinus contorta, Coulter or big-cone, P. coulteri, Jeffrey, P. jeffreyi, longleaf, P. palustris, ponderosa or western yellow, P. ponderosa, white, P. strobus, and Scotch, P. sylvestris. Many of these have survived and have borne fruits. The huge keeled cones of Coulter pines are cherished as ornaments in some homes. Native plants associated with the area are the shrubs: Haleakala sandalwood, mamane, pukiawe, aalii, mountain pilo, ohelo, silver geranium, kupaoa; two or three ferns; two sedges; and three native grasses. Two thirds of the distance to the grove, the crater trail from the inn starts up the mountain to the left. This is a connecting link, 1-3/4 miles long, to the Halemauu Trail which it joins a half mile below its start on the highway. See Numbered Points of Interest, No. 9.
The Sliding Sands Trail, the popular route into the crater, starts from the parking area at the Observatory. It is constructed along the south side of the crater to Kapalaoa Cabin six miles away. Connecting trails go to Paliku Cabin, four miles farther. The Halemauu Trail has two upper ends, at the 8,000-foot elevation on the highway and on the Hosmer Grove Campground Spur near Silversword Inn. Halemauu Trail goes down Leleiwi Pali, the west wall, to Holua Cabin, four miles from the road or six miles from the lodge. The trail continues easterly from Holua for six miles along the north side of the crater floor to Paliku. Branch trails are built to points of interest. The Kaupo Trail through Kaupo Gap leaves Paliku Cabin and the crater to make a rapid descent of the southern, sun-drenched slope.
Each of the three visitor cabins within the crater, Kapalaoa, Paliku, and Holua, is equipped with running water, a wood-burning cookstove, firewood, kerosene lamps, cooking and eating utensils. twelve bunks, mattresses, and blankets. Use of these cabins by hikers on a priority reservation basis is granted free of charge by the Park. In consideration for their use cabins should be left clean and in order by each party. The following arrangements are necessary: write the Park, giving an outline of your proposed trip, number in the party, exact calendar dates, and names of specific cabins which you wish to use each night. The address is: "Hawaii National Park, Haleakala Section, P. O. Box 456, Kahului, Maui, Hawaii." Cabin reservations can also be made by telephoning the Park. When you arrive in the Park, stop at the Administration Building for your permit, cabin key, and orientation.
For safety reasons, all visitors are required to obtain permits from the rangers for all trips into the crater, other than those with Silversword Inn guides. Short Walks for the Day Visitor: (1) Along Halemauu Trail from the highway to the Crater Rim, three-quarters of a mile. Views down Keanae Valley, across Koolau Gap to Hanakauhi, and of Halemauu Trail. (2) A short distance down the Sliding Sands Trail. Be careful not to travel too far down. The return climb is exhausting at this high altitude. (3) To the top of White Hill. The trail winds among ancient Hawaiian stonewalled encampment sites. One-day hikes into crater: (1) Down Halemauu Trail to Holua Cabin and return to the highway, a scenic trip of eight miles that can be taken by any reasonably good hiker. It is not recommended when clouds blanket the pali and Koolau Gap. Allow a half-day for hiking. (2) Down Sliding Sands Trail to the crater floor, across Ka Moa o Pele Trail to Halemauu Trail at Pele's Paint Pot or Bottomless Pit, and return to the highway via Holua and the Halemauu Trail. This colorful, spectacular twelve-mile trip is recommended only for good hikers. Allow eight hours of hiking time. At your risk, rangers cant often arrange to move your car for you to the place at which the Halemauu Trail emerges on the highway. Overnight crater hikes: Hike down Sliding Sands Trail; spend the night at either Paliku, Kapalaoa, or Holua Cabin; return via Halemauu Trail. The choice overnight hike to Paliku, a 20-mile round-trip, is recommended for good hikers only. The trip with an overnight stop at Kapalaoa is 14 miles long. The shortest route from the foot of Sliding Sands Trail to Holua via Ka Moa o Pele leaves only the four-mile climb via Halemauu Trail for the second day. The Sliding Sands Trail is not recommended for return from a crater trip. The long climb to an elevation of 10,000 feet is too exhausting for most people. Two and three day crater hikes: Entry via the Sliding Sands and return via Halemauu Trail is recommended. A three-night trip stopping at Kapalaoa, Paliku, and Holua allows leisurely enjoyment of the crater. Good health and fair walking ability are all that are required for these longer trips. No guide service is available or necessary for parties hiking or riding their own stock into the crater. However, a permit is required before you start your trip within the crater. For details, consult the section labelled "Park Cabins."
AN OUTFIT FOR HIKING IN HALEAKALA CRATER Clothing should consist of hiking shoes, slacks, shirt, jacket, hat, and preferably a light raincoat. Basketball shoes or keds are preferred by some. Because of the chill climate at elevations of seven to ten thousand feet, warm clothing is advisable. In climbing, temperature goes down as you go up. The top of Haleakala averages thirty degrees cooler than sea level. You should bring your food for the trip, a knapsack, sunburn lotion, soap, hand towel, dish towel, matches, and simple first aid, As cooking facilities in the cabins are adequate, food need not be precooked.
Silversword Inn provides horseback trips on good stock with a competent guide. Food is provided, cooking is done by the guide, and sleeping accommodations are arranged by the management. A guest need only concern himself about personal effects and clothing suitable for riding in a cool climate. For rates and trip reservations, telephone or write to the Manager, Silversword Inn, R.R. 53, Waiakoa, Maui, Hawaii, or to Mr. William S. Ellis, Jr., 900 Nuuanu Ave., Honolulu 17, Hawaii. If you have your own horses make the same arrangements as hikers for entry into the crater and for cabin use. You may travel on any of the crater trails. Fenced horse pastures are adjacent to each of the cabins. |
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http://www.nps.gov/hawaii-notes/vol6-59d.htm
24-Mar-2006
