Sunrise at Haleakala
Haleakala is Maui's dormant volcano and sits about 9200 feet above sea level. The highest points in the park are over 10,000 feet high. We loved the sunrise tour of the volcano, but have a few recommendations. If you take this tour, make sure to pack warm clothes! It was about 40 degrees when standing on the edge of the crater and the blustering winds made it feel even colder, so warm clothes are a must. You'll even see people bundled in their blankets from the hotel!
Also, definitely do this tour early in your trip, when you are still operating on a different time. It makes it much easier to wake up for the 2:45 am pickup (it felt like 8 am our time, which was much more reasonable). The trip up to Haleakala from West Maui took a good two hours and you want to be there for sunrise, so the early wake-up is necessary.
This trip is a must-do! How many times can you say you stood at the edge of a dormant volcano?
Also, definitely do this tour early in your trip, when you are still operating on a different time. It makes it much easier to wake up for the 2:45 am pickup (it felt like 8 am our time, which was much more reasonable). The trip up to Haleakala from West Maui took a good two hours and you want to be there for sunrise, so the early wake-up is necessary.
This trip is a must-do! How many times can you say you stood at the edge of a dormant volcano?
We wrapped ourselves in towels for extra warmth, but the wind was so powerful, it kept blowing them off of us.
The moon was still bright when we got there.
Yes, those are tears on my face. It was THAT cold.
Sunrise starts. It was an amazing view.
Sunrise! It was totally worth it!
Then we trekked up to the summit. The air was so thin up there and you could definitely feel it as you walked up.
We're so high up! Nathan was in the clouds.
We were wide awake after all that---or so we thought. We crashed when we got back to the hotel and then got dressed for dinner.