You might want to cancel your plans for that trip up to Haleakala for sunset viewing on Thursday and sunrise watching on Friday. Visitors will be unable to access the Crater Road (Rt. 378) and Haleakala National Park’s summit road from 6pm on Thursday, July 30, 2015 to 2pm on Friday, July 31, 2015. A convoy will be using the roads to transport big loads of materials to the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST) close to the volcano’s summit. Although the roads will reopen at 2pm on Friday, the Haleakala Visitor Center will remain closed for the rest of the day.
If you’re backpacking into the summit on Friday, the park advises to get your backcountry permit the day before. If you’re unable to, the Headquarters Visitor Center will offer permits from 2pm to 4:30pm on Friday, July 31.
The Haleakala National Park will make up for all this by adding a one-day extension onto visitor’s three-day passes bought on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday (July 29, 30, 31). This extension can be used in the summit district and the Kipahulu district as well.
The last time a convoy planned the same trip up to the summit, it couldn’t even leave the Maui Baseyard due to protesters opposing the telescope’s construction.
Photo of DKIST construction: Brett Simison
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