On our last day in Maui, we drove to the top of Haleakala. This is a large volcano that makes up most of the island. The last eruption was approximately 500 years ago.
One of the downloads I got from Shaka guide had this drive on it. We got a lot of information from this as well as learning what stops were coming up.
We started by driving through a very pretty forest that was too close for good pictures but was nice all the same. There was a small town soon after we started up. We filled up with gas here, as there were no other towns on the way.
Soon we drove above the treeline and there were some great spots to pull over for photos. these presented some incredible views. It was surprising how quickly the treeline ended and we were in just grass.
As we drove higher, everyone in the car yelled at me and told me to keep my eyes on the road. It was a little curvy but was uphill all of the way. The road was very well maintained and well kept.
Then we drove through the clouds where visibility was limited until we got above the clouds. At that point, the air cleared up and we could stop and get more pics. It was there that I got a photo of a really pretty flower. We also got some cool pics of the clouds.
From there, we went to the visitors center near the top. There were some great views of the crater. You can hike into the crater, but we didn’t have time. The crater is miles across and looks like you are on Mars. The air was also much thinner up there and gave me a little headache.
There aren’t many plants that live that high up, but neat little spikey plants that look pretty cool. From there we went to the top. There was also an observatory you could see but wasn’t open to the public.
On the way up we kept passing bicycles on the way down. We discovered there were companies that would take you near the top and let you coast all the way down. That looked like fun.
When we came back down, I wanted to stop at a lavender farm near there, but the internet said they were closed at that time. Hopefully another time.
Leave a reply