Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
al and the universe. Whatever its footprint may be, the TMT will be the greatest tether to
the heavens on Earth - our planetary piko .
Sights
Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station
(MKVIS; 961-2180; www.ifa.hawaii.edu/info/vis ; 9am-10pm) The Mauna Kea Visitor In-
formation Station is of modest size, but packs quite a punch. It is full of videos on astro-
nomy, virtual observatory tours, and exhibits on the mountain's history, ecology and geo-
logy. Movies are constantly showing, and there's an interesting gift shop full of things for
budding astronomers of all ages.
Also, you can puchase coffee, hot chocolate and instant noodles, or munch on freeze-
dried astronaut food, and there are books and gifts for sale. Several hikes are possible
from here, and at night the free stargazing program ( Click here ) is held here.
Summit Area LANDMARK
Sunsets are phenomenal from the summit. All of Hawai'i lies below as the sun sinks into
an ocean of clouds - while the telescopes silently unshutter and turn their unblinking
eyes to the heavens. Look east to see 'the shadow' - the gigantic silhouette of Mauna
Kea looming over Hilo.
Moonrises can be equally as impressive: the high altitude can make the moon appear
squashed and misshapen, or sometimes resemble a brushfire. In any case, bring long
pants, a thick coat (or lots of layers), a warm hat and gloves. It gets cold up there.
If you have a 4WD, you may drive to the summit in the daytime, but you must des-
cend 30 minutes after sunset. It takes about half an hour to drive the 8-mile summit road;
the first 4.5 miles are gravel. Just before the pavement begins, the area on the east side of
the road is dubbed 'moon valley', because it's where the Apollo astronauts rehearsed
with their lunar rover before their journey to the real moonscape.
Keanakakoʻi HISTORICAL SITE
During Mauna Kea's ice age, molten lava erupted under its glacier, creating an extremely
hard basalt, which ancient Hawaiians later chipped into sharp adzes at the ancient adze
quarry Keanakakoʻi. For 800 years, these tools were fashioned on the mountain and
traded throughout the islands. Entering the fragile quarry is discouraged but not prohib-
ited.
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