Day 7
May 15, 2000

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To save an extra beach day for us all, we elect to do the Haleakala sunrise and the road to Hana in the same day. 

For the uninitiated, this would involve waking up at 1:30 a.m., leaving the condo by 2:30 a.m. in order to drive up Mt. Haleakala (elev. 10300 ft) in order to watch the sun rise above the clouds. Its about a 2-1/2 hr drive each way. The sun rises about 7 a.m. each day and you have to be up there early in order to get a good viewing spot. Plus, its cold by Maui standards (about 40degrees) until the sun comes up.

The viewing station atop Mt. Haleakala

The photos to the right give you some idea of the sensation but cannot compare to actually experiencing it personally. 

You feel like you are walking on the clouds. 

We arrive to the summit about 4:30 a.m. Apparently I have been driving pretty fast up the twisty curving mountain road. (I liken it to a video game) so we are quite a bit ahead of schedule.

Unfortunately, there is no place to get coffee and donuts. And its very dark - darker than I have ever seen. The stars in the sky look like you could reach out and touch them and they are everywhere. 

The park itself is very huge and contains a couple of craters from former volcanoes that are supposed to be the size of Manhattan. Its difficult to really get a sense of scale for this place. 

Check out the time lapse series of pics below to watch the sun rise. Because I didn't bring my tripod, its hard to hold the camera still enough to allow for the proper exposure so some of the images appear a little blurry. But you get the idea.

The actual process from the time we saw the first sparks of sunlight to the full roundness of the sun was about 10 minutes. 

It really was a sight to behold. 

As we watch the sun come up, I still say someone should bring a jambox and crank out some Pink Floyd as a soundtrack. I'll remember that for next time. (mental note: Dark Side CD)

Here's a couple more photos of Carol and I enjoying the park. The sun has obviously risen. 

Inside the Haleakala Crater

We are ready to leave the Haleakala Park by 7:30 a.m. but our day is not even half over.  Onward to the Northern tip of Maui, the long and scenic road to Hana.