| Mauna Kea Summit Adventures | |
I once participated in a panel discussion regarding travel and the Internet. At one point in the discussion each panel member was asked what he or she considered to be the best travel bieye on the Internet. My response was that for me, the best travel buy is when you find that very special place to stay or have dinner or special thing to see or do that you will always remember as a highlight of your trip.
Several years ago while surfing the net I came across the site for the Mauna Kea Summit Adventures. When we visited the Big Island in 1998, we made sure to reserve a spot on one of their trips.
Sunset on Mauna Kea
Photo by John Fischer
Mauna Kea Summit Adventures offers you the opportunity to view the Hawaiian islands from the peak of the tallest mountain in the world, if measured from the bottom of the ocean. You will then view the sunset and later the stars with more clarity than you have ever seen them in your life.
A trip to summit of Mauna Kea is a long and somewhat physically demanding adventure. Your group to the summit consists of about ten folks, usually of all ages. The guides are extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic. They are combination naturalists, culturalists, geologists and astronomers.
Mauna Loa as seen from Mauna Kea
Photo by John Fischer
The trip from Waikaloa to the summit takes about two and a half hours which includes as 30 minute stop at the Onizuka Visitor's Center at the 9200 foot level. The ride takes you across a large part of the Saddle Road until you reach Mauna Kea Road.
Along the way your guide gives you a wonderful narrative on the history, mythology, geology, flora, fauna, and animal life of the many levels of climate that you drive through.
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