Haleakala National Park
Haleakalā National Park is located
on the island of Maui in the state of Hawaii. The park covers an
area of 30,183 acres, of which 24,719 acres is a wilderness
area. Haleakalā was originally created as part of the Hawaii
National Park along with the volcanoes of Mauna Loa and Kilauea
on the island of Hawaiʻi in 1916. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
was made into a separate national park in 1961. The park area
was designated an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980. The
name Haleakalā is Hawaiian for "house of the sun." According to
a local legend, the demigod Maui imprisoned the sun here in
order to lengthen the day. The park features the dormant
Haleakalā Volcano, which last erupted at around 1490. The park
is divided into two distinct sections: the summit area and the
coastal Kipahulu area. The two sections of the park average
1,450,000 visitors per year.
Kipahulu Section of Haleakalā National Park
The second section of Haleakalā National Park is the
Kipahulu section. Visitors cannot drive directly to this
section from the summit area; they must take a winding
coastal road that travels around the windward coast of the
island. This part of the park lies within the lower part of
Kipahulu Valley. It is separated from the summit area of the
park by the upper portion of the valley. This area is
designated the Kipahulu Valley Biological Reserve and is
closed to the public to preserve the native plant and animal
species in this fragile rainforest.
This section of the park features more than two dozen pools
along Palikea Stream in the gulch called ʻOheʻo. These pools
contain rare native freshwater fish. Visitors may choose to
swim in these pools, or they may choose to hike a trail that
takes visitors up to the base of Waimoku Falls.
