{ "id": "ep3s1xcj4q", "slug": "haleakala-national-park", "title": "Haleakalā National Park", "updated": "2026-10-21", "topic_path": [ { "id": "places", "label": "Places and geography", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/places" }, { "id": "places.sites", "label": "Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/places.sites" }, { "id": "places.sites.protected", "label": "Protected natural areas", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/places.sites.protected" }, { "id": "places.sites.protected.national_parks_united_states", "label": "United States national parks and NPS units", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/places.sites.protected.national_parks_united_states" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t1800.places.sites", "label": "United States · 1800 to 1945: Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.places.sites", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800", "label": "United States · 1800 to 1945", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.places", "label": "Places and geography", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.places" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.places.sites", "label": "Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.places.sites" } ] }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.places.sites", "label": "United States · 2021 and later: Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.places.sites", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021", "label": "United States · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.places", "label": "Places and geography", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.places" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.places.sites", "label": "Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.places.sites" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Haleakalā National Park is a U.S. national park on eastern Maui, Hawaii, established 1916 within Hawaii National Park and separate since 1961, protecting the 10,023-foot dormant Haleakala Volcano, Kipahulu rain forest, and over 200 endangered species across 33,265 acres.", "snippet": "Haleakalā National Park is a U.S. national park on eastern Maui, Hawaii, established 1916 within Hawaii National Park and separate since 1961, protecting the 10,023-foot dormant Haleakala Volcano, Kipahulu rain forest, and over 200 endangered species across 33,265 acres.", "node": "places.sites.protected.national_parks_united_states", "markdown": "# Haleakalā National Park\n\n**Haleakalā National Park** is a United States national park on the eastern side of Maui, Hawaiʻi, protecting the summit of the dormant Haleakalā Volcano, the rain forest of the Kīpahulu Valley, and the Maui coastline from sea level to 10,023 feet (3,055 m). It was established on August 1, 1916 as the Haleakalā Section of Hawaiʻi National Park and became a separate unit of the national park system effective July 1, 1961.[1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm) • [2](https://home.nps.gov/havo/learn/management/19600913_fed_law.htm)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Location | Eastern side of Maui, the second-largest island in the Hawaiian chain[3](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_OV_PRINT-1.pdf) |\n| Area | Approximately 33,265 acres, of which about 24,000 acres (72%) are federally designated wilderness[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) |\n| Established | August 1, 1916 as part of Hawaiʻi National Park; separate park effective July 1, 1961 (Public Law 86-744)[1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm) • [2](https://home.nps.gov/havo/learn/management/19600913_fed_law.htm) |\n| Summit elevation | 10,023 feet (3,055 m) at the top of the dormant Haleakalā Volcano[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) |\n| Haleakalā Crater | About 20 miles (32 km) in circumference; the rim rises more than 2,500 feet (762 m) above the crater floor in places[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) • [5](https://home.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm) |\n| Last eruption | Radiocarbon testing of the youngest lava flows suggests activity between AD 1480 and 1600[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) |\n| Biodiversity | More than 200 endangered species; more than 90% of native biota endemic to the Hawaiian Islands and nearly 50% endemic to Maui[1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm) • [4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) |\n| Visitation | Approximately 1.2 million visitors annually; 38 miles of trails[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) |\n\n## Geography and geology\n\nThe park spans two starkly contrasting environments. Within a few miles of the coast it rises to the 10,023-foot summit of [Haleakalā](https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala), a large shield volcano that makes up about three-quarters of Maui and measures about 32 km (20 mi) in circumference.[3](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_OV_PRINT-1.pdf) • [5](https://home.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm) Only about 5% of the volcano stands above sea level.[6](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/nature/geology-guide.htm)\n\n**The \"crater\" is not purely volcanic.** Congress's 1916 enabling legislation called Haleakalā Crater \"the largest and most spectacular crater in the world,\" but the depression was shaped by erosion as well as volcanism. Northeasterly trade winds drove rain against the volcano, and streams cut channels down the slopes; two streams eroding their way up the mountain eventually joined to create the long, deep depression. Later volcanic vents in the area formed the richly colored cinder cones and young lava flows that are now major scenic features. The park contains at least 24 known lava tube caves, and its lava includes both ropy pāhoehoe flows and the rough, jagged ʻaʻā type.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\nThe park's geology consists mostly of [Pleistocene](https://www.edgepedia.org/pleistocene) and younger igneous rocks of the Kula Volcanics and Hāna Volcanics, and it retains evidence of Pleistocene glaciation, with as many as 10 glacial advances recorded.[5](https://home.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm) • [7](https://www.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm) Radiocarbon testing of the volcano's youngest lava flows suggests it was last active sometime between AD 1480 and 1600.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\nRainfall varies enormously across short distances. Moisture-bearing trade winds bring upwards of 400 inches of annual precipitation to windward mountain slopes, while some leeward areas average 10 inches or less. Vegetation zones transition from humid subtropical lowlands and cloud forests to a sparsely vegetated subalpine desert at the summit.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\n## History\n\nBefore the 1900s Haleakalā was reachable only on foot or horseback, yet it was already Maui's prime tourist attraction by the 1890s; wealthy Maui businessmen built a rest house at Kalahaku in 1894. Because road-accessible Kīlauea on Hawaiʻi Island was drawing more visitors, the idea of a summit road took hold, and Congress established Hawaiʻi National Park, encompassing Haleakalā along with [Mauna Loa](https://www.edgepedia.org/mauna-loa) and Kīlauea, in 1916.[8](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/hale-highway.htm)\n\nThe road to the summit was built between 1933 and 1935, deliberately aligned so the crater remained hidden until vehicles reached the top, and it officially opened in 1935 with a celebration at which [Civilian Conservation Corps](https://www.edgepedia.org/civilian-conservation-corps) workers handled parking for 320 cars. The CCC operated camps at Haleakalā from 1934 to 1941, building trails, the 1936 summit visitor center, and three backcountry cabins on the valley floor (built 1937). From 1941 to 1946 the U.S. Army occupied the park, which was closed to the public from 1941 to 1943.[9](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/upload/PH-03-Haleakal%C4%81-National-Park-Photograph-collection_508.pdf) • [10](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm) • [1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm)\n\n**Separation and growth.** On September 13, 1960, Congress passed Public Law 86-744 establishing the Maui portion as a separate park effective July 1, 1961, and a 1961 act redesignated the Hawaiʻi Island portion as [Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/hawai-i-volcanoes-national-park).[2](https://home.nps.gov/havo/learn/management/19600913_fed_law.htm) • [4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) Kīpahulu Valley was authorized for inclusion in 1951, a new Kīpahulu park section was added in 1976, and Kaʻapahu lands (1999) and Nuʻu lands (2008) extended the park further in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.[10](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm) • [1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm) The Crater Historic District was listed on the [National Register of Historic Places](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-register-of-historic-places) in 1974.[10](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm) The United Nations has designated the entire park, together with Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, as the Hawaiian Islands Biosphere Reserve.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\n## Ecosystems and conservation\n\nThe park protects one of the richest assemblages of native Hawaiian life. More than 90% of its native biota is endemic to the [Hawaiian Islands](https://www.edgepedia.org/hawaiian-islands) and nearly 50% is endemic to Maui, and the northern and eastern slopes together with the Kīpahulu Valley rain forests are among the richest botanical regions in Hawaiʻi.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) More than 200 endangered species live in the park; the two most famous are the Haleakalā ʻāhinahina (silversword) and the nēnē (Hawaiian goose), which was reintroduced into the park between 1962 and 1978 with help from Boy Scouts, park, and state wildlife officials.[1](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm) • [10](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm) The upper Kīpahulu Valley is managed as a biological reserve, closed to the general public, and protects one of the most intact rainforest ecosystems in the Hawaiian Islands.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\n**Invasive species are the central management problem.** More than 400 established species of non-native plants occur in the park, most introduced in the last century, and new plants now arrive in Hawaiʻi at 2 million times the natural rate of introduction.[11](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/nature/invasive-plants.htm) Invasive mammals that prey on nesting birds and eggs include feral cats, Indian mongooses, black rats, Norway rats, Polynesian rats, and house mice.[12](https://www.usgs.gov/centers/werc/science/assessing-mammalian-predator-control-protect-endangered-birds-haleakala) Beginning in 1976 the park started fencing its boundary to exclude feral goats and deer, work that continues today, and the fencing and exclusion of feral ungulates from most of the park is counted among its major conservation achievements.[10](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm) • [13](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/science/nrca_hale.htm) A natural resource condition assessment judged six of 16 focal resource indicators to be in good condition, seven warranting moderate concern, and three warranting significant concern.[13](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/science/nrca_hale.htm)\n\n## Cultural significance\n\nHaleakalā is a sacred place to kānaka maoli ([Native Hawaiians](https://www.edgepedia.org/native-hawaiians)) and is linked to their traditional and contemporary beliefs and practices. For Native Hawaiians the summit is the Wao Akua (\"Place of the Gods\") where the demigod Maui snared the sun, and the park preserves heiau (temples), trails, altars, fishing shrines, house platforms, and other precontact and historic archeological resources, some still in cultural use. The Kīpahulu coastal area was first farmed by early [Polynesians](https://www.edgepedia.org/polynesians) more than 1,200 years ago.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\n## Visiting\n\nThe park is open year round, with entrance fees required at both the Summit and Kīpahulu districts.[14](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/compendium.htm) Most of the roughly 1.2 million annual visitors come to witness the sunrise from the summit, and the Summit District is closed to visitation from 3:00 am to 7:00 am daily except for vehicles holding a valid sunrise reservation made through recreation.gov and permitted commercial operators.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) • [14](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/compendium.htm) The park's dark night skies support stargazing, and sound levels inside the crater are among the lowest recorded in any national park.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n\nThe Kīpahulu District, reached by the winding Hana Highway near the end of the road to Hana, protects ʻOheʻo Gulch and the free-flowing Palikea stream; the Pools of ʻOheʻo are not open for swimming but can be viewed from the Kūloa Point Trail.[4](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf) • [15](https://www.nps.gov/hale/planyourvisit/conditions.htm) Overnight stays are allowed only in designated campgrounds, such as Hosmer Grove in the summit district and Kīpahulu Campground on the coast, or in three historic wilderness cabins; backcountry camping requires a permit, group sizes are limited to 12, and overnight camping is limited to three nights in thirty days.[15](https://www.nps.gov/hale/planyourvisit/conditions.htm) • [14](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/compendium.htm) Both districts are served by single roads and are subject to closure for severe weather, road damage, and other hazards.[14](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/compendium.htm)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Haleakala Centennial, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/haleakala-centennial.htm)\n2. [An Act approved September 22, 1961 (75 Stat. 577) and related 1960 act (74 Stat. 881), National Park Service](https://home.nps.gov/havo/learn/management/19600913_fed_law.htm)\n3. [Haleakalā National Park Foundation Document Overview, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_OV_PRINT-1.pdf)\n4. [Haleakalā National Park Foundation Document (September 2015), National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/upload/HALE_PRINT-508-reduced.pdf)\n5. [NPS Geodiversity Atlas—Haleakalā National Park, Hawai'i, National Park Service](https://home.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm)\n6. [Geology of Haleakalā, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/nature/geology-guide.htm)\n7. [NPS Geodiversity Atlas—Haleakalā National Park (glaciation), National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/articles/nps-geodiversity-atlas-haleakala-national-park.htm)\n8. [Haleakalā Highway, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/hale-highway.htm)\n9. [Haleakalā National Park Photograph Collection Finding Aid, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/upload/PH-03-Haleakal%C4%81-National-Park-Photograph-collection_508.pdf)\n10. [Timeline, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/historyculture/timeline.htm)\n11. [Invasive Plants at Haleakalā, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/nature/invasive-plants.htm)\n12. [Assessing Mammalian Predator Control to Protect Endangered Birds at Haleakalā National Park, U.S. Geological Survey](https://www.usgs.gov/centers/werc/science/assessing-mammalian-predator-control-protect-endangered-birds-haleakala)\n13. [Natural Resource Condition Assessments for Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/science/nrca_hale.htm)\n14. [Superintendent's Compendium, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/learn/management/compendium.htm)\n15. [Alerts & Conditions, Haleakalā National Park, National Park Service](https://www.nps.gov/hale/planyourvisit/conditions.htm)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Places and geography › Parks, protected areas, and geographic heritage sites › Protected natural areas › United States national parks and NPS units*\n\n*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Haleakalā National Park\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Haleakalā National Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park](https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Haleakalā National Park\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/haleakala-national-park. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Haleakalā National Park is a U.S. national park on eastern Maui, Hawaii, established 1916 within Hawaii National Park and separate since 1961, protecting the 10,023-foot dormant Haleakala Volcano, Kipahulu rain forest, and over 200 endangered species across 33,265 acres." }