Haleakala National Park on Maui first began in 1916 as the Hawaii National Park which at the time included the volcanoes Mauna Loa and Kilauea located on the island of Hawaii. In 1961, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park was created as a separate park for the big island. The Maui park today features the dormant Haleakala volcano that last erupted between1480 and 1600 AD. When we were in Maui several years ago, we accidentally stumbled upon Haleakala National Park when we sought a safer route back to the western side of the island following a trip to Hana on the far east. We crossed along the northern coast on a very dangerous road with multiple crosses (denoting deaths there, we later learned). We decided to go back along the southern coast and found ourselves on unpaved roads plying through the dust of volcanic sands.
The Haleakala Crater, almost seven miles across and about 2,600 feet deep, is the highlight of the park. There are two main trails for visitors to follow into the crater. The sunrise is said to be spectacular. To see the sunrise, hikers can reserve one of three cabins located in the crater.The landscape at the park is surreal and almost other worldly, we discovered during our unplanned journey. I would like to return to Haleakala National Park to take lots of photographs. The ones I took that day are 35mm color slides that are not easily accessible to share now on my blog.
