Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
middle of the day to give yourself time to hike down into the crater or explore the forests
of Hosmer's Grove.
The largest factor, however, is working around the weather. Unfortunately, since
Haleakala is a windward-facing mountain, the weather can be fairly unpredictable. Though
rain (or even snow) can fall at any time of year, summers are usually a safer bet than winter
when there is the chance of a big storm rolling through. Statistically, the sunrise is visible
on 85 percent of days, with the other 15 percent being socked in with clouds, so at least the
odds are with you. If, on the other hand, you're planning on heading up during the day or
for sunset, a good rule of thumb is that if you can't see the mountain itself, then you prob-
ably shouldn't bother. On the other hand, if you can see the mountain itself, but just not the
top, then you know you're going to be in for a fabulous sunset. During the midmorning to
afternoon hours a cloud layer known as the
mauna lei
creeps its way across the mountain
between 5,000 and 8,000 feet. Although you will be driving through the clouds on your
way up to the top, on most occasions you will pop out above the clouds to watch the sunset
from your own floating island, awash in a sea of white. Or, to take the guesswork out of the
equation, call the National Weather Service hotline for Haleakala summit (866/944-5025,
ext. 4) for an up-to-date weather forecast, or check out the website (
www.ifa.hawaii.edu
)
for up-to-the-minute weather data (including windchill, wind speed, visibility, and rainfall)
before taking off for the summit.
