Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SLIDING SANDS TRAIL (KEONEHE'EHE'E TRAIL)
Starting at the summit visitors center (at 9,800 ft. in elevation)
Sliding Sands
descends
2,500 vertical feet to the crater floor below. Like a lonely vein switchbacking its way
across the dark side of the moon, Sliding Sands is a barren, windswept, shadeless, and
stunning conduit from the craggy summit to the cinder cone desert before you. If you just
hike down to the crater floor and back, it's an eight-mile round-trip, although continuing to
Kapalaoa Cabin tacks an additional 3.5 miles on to the hike. Due to the elevation, coming
back up Sliding Sands can be challenging even for the fittest of hikers.
SWITCHBACK TRAIL (HALEMAU'U TRAIL)
Beginning from an altitude of only 7,990 feet, the first 1.1 miles of this trail meander
through subalpine scrub brush before eventually bringing you to the edge of a 1,000-foot
cliff. The view down into the Ko'olau Gap is better here than from the summit area. Al-
though the trail is well-defined, the drop-offs can be disconcerting for those with a fear
of heights. After losing over 1,000 feet in elevation, the trail passes Holua Cabin after 3.7
miles and continues on to Silversword Loop, a section of the crater floor known for its
dense concentration of
ahinahina,
or endangered silversword plants. While it's possible to
connect with the greater network of trails from this point, Silversword Loop usually marks
the turnaround point for this 9.2-mile round-trip hike.
SLIDING SANDS-SWITCHBACK LOOP
If you're a fit person, have an entire day to spare, and want to experience the best of
Haleakala Crater, then this is hands-down the best day hike in the summit area of the park.
Since this is a point-to-point trail, you're going to end up six miles from where you started,
so either drive two cars up the mountain or sweet-talk a fellow visitor into letting you hitch
a ride.
While the loop can be hiked in either direction, the most popular—and far less strenu-
ous—route begins at Sliding Sands trailhead and exits via ascending the Switchback Trail.
Along the path of this 12.2 mile-journey you experience the full spectrum of Haleakala
wonders, from the frosty, mystical summit, to the otherworldly solitude of the crater floor.
If you're looking for an adventure, hike this trail at night under a full moon. At this alti-
tude you're frequently above the clouds, and the moonlight reflecting off the cinder is so
bright that you can walk without the use of a flashlight (though you should, of course, still
carry one). If the moon rises early, depart the summit at sunset, and if the moon rises later
in the evening, begin at about midnight and finish your hike at sunrise. There are few more
surreal feelings than walking completely alone, bundled against the chill of the night air,
