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ragman and rodman
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Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics
Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
An 11.2 mile hike through the Haleakala Crater... starting out from the Haleakala visitor center (~9800') on the Sliding Sands Trail... which we hiked for 3.9 miles to the floor (~7400') of the crater... then connected with the Halemau'u Trail that we hiked for 3.5 miles to the Houla Cabin (~6900')... then a mile or so further downhill to our low point (~6600') before finishing up the hike by gaining 1400 feet of elevation in ~3 miles up to the Halemau'u Trailhead (~8000').
Beautiful terrain and colors all day long... and if you don't have the use of two cars for this hike, park at the Halemau'u Trailhead (~8000') and then hitchhike up to the visitor center (~9800') to begin the thru-hike.
Select the link below for a play-by-play pictorial of this adventure.
Photos, trailhead directions and downloadable GPS track of our hike through the Haleakala Crater.
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awilsondc
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Joined: 03 Apr 2016
Posts: 1324 | TRs | Pics
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Awesome! I'm definitely going to keep this in mind for my next trip to Maui. Thanks! Looks like a great hike. 
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BarbE
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Joined: 28 Jul 2006
Posts: 1153 | TRs | Pics
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BarbE
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 Thu Dec 12, 2019 3:22 pm |
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A fun hike through interesting terrain.
My favorite being the amazingly steep Halemau’u trail leading out of the crater.
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FiveNines
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Joined: 01 Oct 2010
Posts: 526 | TRs | Pics
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Cool trip. Thanks for sharing. I wanted to copy your routing when I was out there last May, but could not get away from my companions for long enough. Leleiwi Overlook at the penultimate switchback is good car tourism too.
Looking down on Halemau’u trail climbing out of crater from Leleiwi Overlook. Switchbacks visible in full res.
 Looking down on Halemau'u Trail  Crater
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neek
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Joined: 12 Sep 2011
Posts: 2337 | TRs | Pics
Location: Seattle, WA |
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neek
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Thu Dec 12, 2019 7:27 pm |
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Did you see any nēnē? There were lots in the crater when I was there...January 10 years ago
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BarbE
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Joined: 28 Jul 2006
Posts: 1153 | TRs | Pics
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BarbE
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Fri Dec 13, 2019 9:38 am |
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Yes, these were hanging out at Houla Cabin.
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RichP
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Joined: 13 Jul 2006
Posts: 5634 | TRs | Pics
Location: here |
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RichP
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Fri Dec 13, 2019 10:02 am |
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Sweet! Hoping to make it over there one day. Your hikes will serve as inspiration.
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ragman and rodman
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Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics
Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
| FiveNines wrote: | Looking down on Halemau’u trail climbing out of crater from Leleiwi Overlook. Switchbacks visible in full res.
Looking down on Halemau'u Trail |
This is the first time that I've seen the switchbacks leading back up to the Halemau'u Trailhead from the crater floor.
We also did this hike in 2012... and just like on our 2019 hike, by the time we got to the Houla Cabin and the switchbacks in the far left of your photo, the clouds had come up through Ko'olau Gap and covered them... which pretty much seems to be a daily occurrence on Haleakala.
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ragman and rodman
Member
Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics
Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
| neek wrote: | | Did you see any nēnē? There were lots in the crater when I was there...January 10 years ago |
BarbE's photo shows two at the Houla Cabin... I couldn't remember seeing any, but Denali Girl said that there was a herd of them at the cabin... and that we had to watch where to step to avoid stepping on them and their droppings. I do remember having to slow down on the road a couple times to let some finish crossing the road on our drive up to the visitor center.
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Midnight Slogger
'Schwack Job
Joined: 04 Aug 2017
Posts: 96 | TRs | Pics
Location: Greater Cascadia |
We were there about four days before you. Backpacked and overnighted in a shitstorm at Palikū, while also getting threatened by some territorial nene. Absolutely amazing though. There's practically a jungle over there, standing in bright contrast to the Mars-like terrain on the south side of the crater. In case anyone backpacks there and needs stove fuel, Target is the only place on Maui that carries it now. Cheers!
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ragman and rodman
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Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics
Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
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joker
seeker
Joined: 12 Aug 2006
Posts: 7953 | TRs | Pics
Location: state of confusion |
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joker
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Sat Dec 14, 2019 3:37 pm |
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Nice. We spent two nights camped near the cabin that's close to where the Halemau'u trail drops into the "crater floor" (really the high valley since it's not technical a crater as I understand it, but is often called one) back in '91. On the middle day we did a nice chunk of hiking around in there. It was fun to watch the daily cloud patterns for sure, and they do have their way with that place!
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FiveNines
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Joined: 01 Oct 2010
Posts: 526 | TRs | Pics
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| ragman and rodman wrote: | | more hikes on Maui:
A 2.4 mile roundtrip hike to the Kanahua summit (8727') near the SW end of the Skyline Trail. |
Can't figure out how to make your TH directions app work? Guessing you access this by driving up paved switchbacks on Waipoli road, then through Polipoli State Park?
Waihee Ridge Trail, NW coast near airport was fun and popular. 2+miles and 1+k ft? Go early to avoid crowds. I left TH just before 7 and had a pleasant climb in solitude. Passed ~80 people on the way down.
 Waihee Ridge Trail  Nakalele Point  Acid War Zone
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ragman and rodman
Member
Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics
Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
| FiveNines wrote: | | Can't figure out how to make your TH directions app work? Guessing you access this by driving up paved switchbacks on Waipoli road, then through Polipoli State Park?
Waihee Ridge Trail, NW coast near airport was fun and popular. 2+miles and 1+k ft? Go early to avoid crowds. I left TH just before 7 and had a pleasant climb in solitude. Passed ~80 people on the way down. |
You are correct on how to access the SW end of the Skyline Trail... but well before reaching the turnoff for Polipoli State Park the paved road turns to dirt and gravel. The road is in reasonable condition to the Polipoli turnoff, but it does deteriorate from the park up to the closed gate at 8200 feet... recommend 4WD or AWD with several inches of clearance... of course a person could drive the road until they felt the need to park... and then hike the road up to the closed gate.
Like you, we also took the Waihee Ridge Trail up to the summit of Lanilili before driving on up to the Nakalele Blowhole... however, like 99.9 percent of the tourists, we stayed up above it instead of hiking down to it.
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