# Maui...Haleakala...Anybody ever go up or down it?



## fast ferd (Jan 30, 2009)

Going to Maui on a family vacation next week. Considered taking pedals, shoes, helmet, and stuff and renting a decent road bike one day. (I can see my wife rolling her eyes already!) 

I figured riding down would be a snap, but any of you peeps ever do it the hard way? 

Or any other tips for riding Maui are most welcome. Paved roads, only, cuz I don't do trails. :hand:


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## nor_cal_rider (Dec 18, 2006)

I'm going there next Friday for a week. I've rented from West Maui Cycles (in the Lahaina strip center by the Taco place) before and had a blast. I'm planning on getting a bike while I'm there to maintain my training (wife in her infinite wisdom didn't check with me before setting the vacation and AFTER purchasing airline tix realized DR is only a week after we return).

Back to your question - I did the tourist ride down (and froze my butt off) several years ago. THe last couple of years we have gone, I plan 1 day to do the "Assualt on Haleakala" and rode up AND down. You have to be REALLY careful climbing - people don't expect to see a rider heading up the mtn. The road to Hana is another "must do" ride. Also, if you are game, riding the west side of the island is well worth it.

Checking the weather last night, looks WIND and SHOWERS are dominating the next week's forecast.

When are you going to be there? I land 6/26 around lunch and don;t leave until 7/3 in the evening.

ENJOY!!!!


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## Goridenow (Aug 6, 2004)

*Ride to the sun*

I rode up Halekala twice. Both times were memorable. Definitely do it. There is good info on the climb from previous posters here and other sites - check out the Chain Reaction site for details and photos. Riding down was not fun - hands got sore and it was pretty boring.There is only so much fun in passing the guided bike tours at 30mph+ ( they are limited to approx. 15mph ). Its much better going up and getting the occasional thumbs up or "youre insane" from the guided tours.
Bring a camera, money to get in the park at 7,000 feet ( $5.00 ) and plenty of food, there are only a few spots after 3,000 feet to fuel up.You can refill the water bottles at the visitors center about a mile into the park. 
Another great ride on Maui is the 60 mile ride around the "head" or top part of the island. The guys at West Maui cylce in Lahaina have cue sheets - thats also a great place to rent a bike, great people and good roadbikes. The ride has incredible scenery. 
Enjoy, Maui is spectacular in so many ways and riding is one of them.


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## fast ferd (Jan 30, 2009)

Thanks for the info, fellas. I should've performed an RBR search, but wanted to get the freshest info here. We land midday on the 23rd and return on the 30th. Staying in a low-rise condo right on the beach in Kaanapali.

Bummed about the weather! I just looked it up and was surprised to see how mild they forecast it, interspersed with some rain. That could mean some real nasty weather for Haleakala. Might need to stay in the lower elevations. No sense in punishing myself...afterall, it IS vacation! 

If I chose only one day to ride, it looks like the 27th would work out the best. Smack dab in the middle of our trip would help me maintain some fitness. NorCalRider: PM me if you want to hookup for a ride on that day. I'm good for about 40 or 50 miles at 18+ mph. Dang, now I need to bring some raingear, too.

Aloha!


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## Goridenow (Aug 6, 2004)

Don't fret too much about rain going up Haleakala, the weather changes with the altitude.
I started in Paia in a downpour that lasted until about 2,000 feet then the clouds were gone and it was hot and sunny. By 6,000 feet or so it was misty and 10 to 15 degrees cooler. Above 8,000 it was laser clear, windy and probably 20 degrees cooler than the bottom. Bring arm/leg warmers and a jacket. Best bet, have somebody drive support, if it gets too bad you can alway bail and go back in the car.


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## Blue CheeseHead (Jul 14, 2008)

A friend of mine has done it. He also said the best ride he has ever done is the road to Hana. I have driven that. That would be my choice.

I have done one of the bike tours down Haleakala and it would be a good family thing to do. If you go up Haleakala just remember it is cold up there.


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## FatTireFred (Jan 31, 2005)

Blue CheeseHead said:


> A friend of mine has done it. He also said the best ride he has ever done is the road to Hana. I have driven that. That would be my choice.
> 
> I have done one of the bike tours down Haleakala and it would be a good family thing to do. If you go up Haleakala just remember it is cold up there.




pretty sure those tours don't start from the summit anymore, too many wrecks and the nps said no dice... I think they still go up and let you watch the sun rise, but then they start you outside the park


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## Blue CheeseHead (Jul 14, 2008)

FatTireFred said:


> pretty sure those tours don't start from the summit anymore, too many wrecks and the nps said no dice... I think they still go up and let you watch the sun rise, but then they start you outside the park


Thats what I heard. We did it back in 1993. I think they well let you bike to the top on your own ride. They just don't let the tours bike down. 

After having done some good descents in California, I expect descending Haleakala would not be any fun. My forearms and wrists were sore from braking on the 2,000 foot descents.


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## FatTireFred (Jan 31, 2005)

Blue CheeseHead said:


> Thats what I heard. We did it back in 1993. I think they well let you bike to the top on your own ride. They just don't let the tours bike down.
> 
> After having done some good descents in California, I expect descending Haleakala would not be any fun. My forearms and wrists were sore from braking on the 2,000 foot descents.




yes, you can still go it on your own, just pay the park fee and shuttle yourself on up... descending that far on a beach cruiser = no fun, esp with a group of riders that mostly haven't been on a bike in 25 yrs


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## minstrie (Jun 13, 2005)

Agree with comments on W. Maui Cycle, good rentals, good info. I always ship my bike, but my friends (with the condo) rent. A fun ride is from Kapalua around the west side of the island. Really hilly, hugs the coast, passes by Honoloa Bay (great spot for watching surfers), then gets remote. I think it's a 50mi or so ride around W. Maui, but if you're just looking for a fun beautiful shorter ride, you could just do an out and back as far as you feel like. Another fun ride is to the winery and beyond on the south side of east Maui, you'd think you were in Scotland from the terrain. I haven't done the road to Hana, but plan to one of these years, have driven it a bunch of times but haven't had the time to ride it. Tough hills, rain forest, Edenic. 
Have fun, you can't go wrong there.
Minstrie.


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## brentster (Jul 12, 2007)

Riding down Haleakula was one of the neatest things I've ever done in my life. 

Have fun!!!!!!


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## quattrotom (Jul 15, 2006)

I've done both the west Maui loop and up/down Haleakala. The West Maui loop is really a lot of fun and you can often be quicker than cars on the tight curves and up/downs. Make sure you have watertight baggies or something for your cellphone/camera - frequent downpours are very common as others have mentioned.

I was not well enough prepared for the down part of Haleakala. It was in the mid-upper 80's when I started going up. 49F, misty with 20+ mph winds at the top. My body temp dropped really quickly and there is almost no effort required for going down. Bring a windproof jacket for the ride down - I only had arm warmers and froze. 

There used to be or still is a cycling map available at all of the bike shops - in addition to roads, it shows the common wind patterns. Some of the flat sections (particularly between the airport and West Maui) can be really windy and almost harder than steep climbing. I would strongly recommend lower gears than you are used to unless sun, strong winds and climbs are part of your regular riding. I happily rented a triple with 28mm tires and really appreciated it - the roads can be somewhat crappy in places on West Maui (although they did do a nice repave in the last few years for most of it).


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

*Don't miss it*

I did it up and down about 7 years ago (at age 51). Most memorable ride of my life. I rented from South Maui Cycles In Kihei, and they were great, but if their lowest level rental has Sora shifters (as mine did), spring for the upgrade. Not being able to upshift from the drops was a problem on the descent, where I was fighting gusty crosswinds and had to stay low.

Another tip: bring sunscreen to re-apply. High-altitude tropical sun is powerful. My nose was blistered after I sweated off the SPF.

You can stop for water and snacks at Sunrise Protea Farm, and you can get water at the visitor center near the park entrance, so you don't have to carry too many extra pounds for nutrition and hydration.

It's a magical place.


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## DrSmile (Jul 22, 2006)

I just did this ride, some pointers:

1) The road to Pukalani is crazy busy nowadays, so it's best to start the ride from Puklani at 1700 ft. It makes the climb "only" 8500 feet.
2) The first 6 miles from Pukalani on 377 is good pavement but there is no shoulder. Still a fair amount of traffic. Once you then make the left onto Crater Road (at 3400 vert. feet), it's 22 miles to the top and much less traffic. There are decent shoulders until the park entrance at about vert. 6700 ft, half way at mile 11 I think.
3) The going gets tough at about 8000+ feet, because you break through the clouds but also get some rarefied air in your lungs. The good news is there are small lots at 7000, 8000, and 9000 feet to stop at, but there is no water.
4) Going down you definitely need a windbreaker and gloves. Even then I had to stay below 30mph until I hit 6000 feet so I wouldn't turn into a Popsicle. At mile marker 8 there is a small and short uphill that you should freewheel before, I didn't and I almost locked up my legs. After this point you can descend faster than anyone in a car as the hairpin turns are banked almost perfectly.

No problems with the Breakaway bike on United, Hawaiian, or Island Air. Thanks Tom Ritchey!

To entice others to the top:

http://orthoforums.com/johe/Haleakala.swf


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