Photo: Christoph Strässler, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Haleakalā is two parks in one. The summit district climbs to 10,023 feet above Maui, where a vast, colorful crater of cinder cones sits above the clouds and the sunrise draws people up in the dark. Far below on the rainy east coast, the Kīpahulu district holds bamboo forest, waterfalls and the pools of ʻOheʻo. The two are not connected by road inside the park, so plan them as separate days. Both are deeply sacred in Native Hawaiian tradition; treat them that way, and you will be welcome.
TRAILS
1 OF 7
Summit sunrise and Pā Kaʻoao
Difficulty
Easy
Length
0.4 mi
Elevation gain
100 ft
Summit District · Haleakalā Visitor Center — Watch the sun come up over a sea of clouds, then walk the short trail up Pā Kaʻoao (White Hill) beside the visitor center for a view across the whole crater. The thin air at nearly 10,000 feet makes even this short climb feel harder. Bring a winter jacket, hat and gloves; sunrise temperatures often sit near freezing.
⚠︎ Sunrise reservation required for vehicles entering 3 to 7 a.m.
Photo: National Park Service, public domain, Wikimedia Commons
2 OF 7
Keoneheʻeheʻe (Sliding Sands) to Ka Luʻu o ka ʻŌʻō
Difficulty
Hard
Length
5.5 mi
Elevation gain
1,600 ft
Summit District · Keoneheʻeheʻe trailhead — The trail drops from the summit lot down loose red and gray cinder into the crater, past silverswords, to the rim of the cinder cone Ka Luʻu o ka ʻŌʻō. It feels like walking on another planet. Remember that every step down is a step back up at high altitude, and plan on the climb out taking twice as long. For a shorter taste, turn around at the natural overlook about a mile in.
⚠︎ No water on the trail. Altitude sickness is possible; turn back if you feel dizzy or sick.
Photo: C. Fukushima/ NPS Photo, public domain, Wikimedia Commons
3 OF 7
Pīpīwai Trail to Waimoku Falls
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
4 mi
Elevation gain
800 ft
Kīpahulu District · Kīpahulu Visitor Center — The best hike on the Hāna side. The trail climbs past an overlook of Makahiku Falls and a huge banyan tree, then runs on boardwalk through a dense bamboo forest that knocks and creaks in the wind. It ends below Waimoku Falls, a 400-foot ribbon of water down a sheer rock wall. Go early, before the day-trippers from the Road to Hāna arrive.
⚠︎ Flash floods and falling rocks happen here. Do not enter the streams or pools.
Photo: Christoph Strässler, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
4 OF 7
Halemauʻu Trail to the rim overlook
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
2.2 mi
Elevation gain
400 ft
Summit District · Halemauʻu trailhead — A short walk through native shrubland to the edge of the crater wall, where you look down a thousand feet of switchbacks to the crater floor. Clouds often pour through the Koʻolau Gap below you like a slow waterfall. It's a great afternoon option when the summit lot is full.
Photo: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 US, Wikimedia Commons
5 OF 7
Crater traverse
Difficulty
Strenuous
Length
11 mi one way
Elevation gain
About 1,400 ft up, 2,800 ft down
Summit District · Keoneheʻeheʻe to Halemauʻu — The big day at Haleakalā: down Keoneheʻeheʻe, across the crater floor past cinder cones and lava flows, and out the Halemauʻu switchbacks. You see the full range of colors and the quiet of the crater wilderness. Leave a car at the Halemauʻu trailhead or arrange a ride, because the park does not run shuttles. Start early; it is a full, hard day at altitude.
⚠︎ No shuttle. Plan your ride back from the Halemauʻu trailhead before you start.
Photo: Maurice Chédel, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
6 OF 7
Kūloa Point Trail
Difficulty
Easy
Length
0.5 mi loop
Elevation gain
80 ft
Kīpahulu District · Kīpahulu Visitor Center — A short loop down to where ʻOheʻo Stream tumbles through a chain of pools into the ocean. Along the way you pass sites of the Hawaiian families who farmed and fished this valley for centuries. It is the safe way to see the pools: view them from the trail and stay out of the water.
⚠︎ The Pools of ʻOheʻo are closed to entry for safety.
Photo: Christoph Strässler, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
7 OF 7
Hosmer Grove
Difficulty
Easy
Length
0.5 mi loop
Elevation gain
50 ft
Summit District · Hosmer Grove campground — A gentle loop through a grove of trees planted in the early 1900s and into native shrubland. Stand still at the overlook and listen: this is one of the easiest places on Maui to hear and see native honeycreepers like the red ʻiʻiwi and ʻapapane. Bring binoculars and come in the morning.
Photo: Kanalu Chock, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Plan your Haleakalā trip
The Nova Bound app builds the whole trip around these trails: where to stay, where to charge, and what to see each day. Coming soon to the App Store.
Distances are round trip unless noted, from NPS.gov and rounded. Trails, permits and road openings change; always check nps.gov before you go. Trail write-ups by Nova Bound.