“It was unbelievable” one visitor said. “It was unbelievably cold” said another. “We never even saw the sun” said yet another. Mark Twain called it "the sublimest spectacle I ever saw." Indeed, the sunrise from atop Maui's 10,000 foot Haleakala has taken on mythic proportions. And, on a good day the mountain can live up to the hype. On a less than good day it can be, well to say the least, disappointing.
According to the National Park Service there were over 1.4 million recreational visits to Haleakala's summit in 2006. According to a 2004 Visitor Study, over two thirds of all visitors to the Haleakala Visitor Center visit during the sunrise period.
Haleakala is a dormant volcano that rises more than 28,000 feet from the seafloor, the last 2 miles of which are above the level of the sea. It last erupted around 1790. This eruption was not from the caldera at the top of the mountain, but from a cinder cone along the southern flank forming the finger of lava jutting into the ocean at La Perouse Bay.
Legend says that Haleakala was named from a clever trick the demigod Maui played on the sun. Maui’s mother complained that the sun sped by so quickly each day that her tapa cloth would not dry. Maui went to the top of the mountain and waited for the sun to rise then lassoed it, stopping it’s journey across the sky. The sun pleaded with Maui to let it go. Maui agree to let the sun go if it would slow it’s journey across the sky and make the days longer. The sun relented. In honor of this Hawaiians call the mountain Haleakala, or “house of the sun.”
If you decide to go you’re going to have to get up early to make it to the top of the mountain before sunrise. Dress warmly, bring a flashlight, and hope for good weather.
The National Park Services Haleakala Sunrise and Sunset page is here. Be sure to check out their FAQ.
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