MAUNA KEA
MAUNA KEA ACCESS ROAD
HILO, HI 96720
808-961-2189
Cannot believe that I have never been to the top of Mauna Kea while living in Hawaii for over 30 years. My goodness what a mistake. This place is AWESOME and COLD. Temperature at the summit was 39 degrees in May. You definitely need a jacket and warm clothes if you want to be outside and take it all in. We drove up in a small rental 4-Wheel Drive. We were stopped mid way up by a Park Ranger who asked us politely to pull over and spend time getting acclimated to the altitude which reaches 10,700 feet. We stopped for about a half hour at the visitor center and then proceeded up the paved road. Yes the road is paved most of the way. There is however a few miles where the road turns to dirt and gravel. Then it goes back to being paved. Why they don't pave these few miles of road is amazing to me. I think they want to keep the masses out by requiring a four wheel drive vehicle due to this small unpaved section of the road. Makes sense as once you get to the top it is nice to have quiet time without being surrounded by hundreds of people. There were a few dozen vehicles and tour groups at the top, but nothing that bothered us. I brought up a bottle of wine, cheese and meats to have a little sunset party but it was way too cold to sit outside and enjoy. Ended up drinking my vino in the car with the heat on. The views on Mauna Kea are stunning and seeing the many observatories was super cool. Could only imagine what they can see from here. One of the highlights of our visit was we were able to view the International Space Station racing through the night sky. A "holy shit" moment I will never forget.
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