Hawaii may be the most remote land mass on Earth, flung about 2,500 miles from the US mainland, but it’s worth the trip. Want to watch fiery lava flow into the ocean? Go scuba diving with manta rays, sea turtles and tropical fish? Paddle a kayak to uninhabited islands for an afternoon of snorkeling and sunbathing? No problem.

The sea is just the beginning of the story. Hawaii is also a surprisingly varied destination for landlubbers. On Maui, Haleakala National Park stretches from the seashore up to a massive volcanic summit—it’s so big that the entire island of Manhattan could almost fit inside it—at an elevation of 10,023 feet. The park shelters waterfall pools, bamboo groves, cloud and rain forests, and a vast cinder desert—basically, a giant outdoor playground where it’s not too hard to escape the vacationing crowds.

Atop Haleakala Volcano

Make sure to shake yourself out of bed a few hours before sunrise, because it’s a slow, winding 38-mile drive up to the volcano’s summit from the coast. Incidentally, this route holds the record for the greatest elevation gain in the shortest distance anywhere in the world.

Huddled in hotel blankets and wrapped in fleece jackets and down parkas (all of which look quite odd on a tropical Polynesian island), throngs of spectators gather at the summit starting an hour before the sun rises over the fluffy clouds in a startling display of brilliant colors.

But why wait with all the crowds? You can find solitude and more panoramic views by hiking a short way down the Sliding Sands Trail, which descends into the heart of Haleakala’s kaleidoscopic cinder desert. Spiky silversword plants grow alongside the trail, their shiny leaves reflecting intense solar radiation and tall stalks blooming with creamy white flowers only once before dying.

Endangered nene, or Hawaiian geese, will honk noisily as you wind down to the crater floor, where you’ll find historic 1930s wooden cabins built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Each cabin has its own woodburning stove, bunk beds and panoramic windows that survey the crater’s wonders. Linger overnight for stargazing, followed the next morning by another spectacular sunrise and the literally breathtaking Halemauu Trail, which switchbacks through cloud forest back up to the main road.

Cruising the Coast to Kipahulu

Haleakala National Park is not just about the volcano summit, however. It’s also about the ocean. A visit to the Kipahulu section of the park takes you on another scenic drive, this time along Maui’s famous Hana Highway. Although many day trippers simply turn around in Hana, driving another 10 miles beyond it brings you to the tumbling waterfall pools of Oheo Gulch. Here at Kipahulu there’s no beach—but wait, don’t despair. What draws so many visitors are two dozen freshwater pools strung together by petite waterfalls flowing down toward the sea. Rangers can advise you if current conditions are safe enough to take a dip.

Across the road you can clamber up the volcano slopes along the Pipiwai Trail, passing through lush jungle and groves of bamboo trees that sound like xylophones when the wind blows. At the end of the trail, tangled with tree roots and perfumed with the sweet smell of guava fruit, Waimoku Falls drops over 400 feet in a lacy cascade down a fern-colored wall of lava rock. Although it might look tempting to jump in, rockfall makes it dangerous—so save your swimsuit for the pools back below, where you can practice hoonanea, a Hawaiian word that means to spend time in peace, ease and pleasure. Ah, paradise.

If You Go

Haleakala National Park (3-day entry pass $10 per vehicle) is open year-round. Temperatures near the volcano summit can dip below freezing, especially during strong winds or rainy weather, so bring layers. The Kipahulu section of the park reaches an average high of 80˚F on sunny days. The weather can change quickly everywhere.

There is no public transportation into the park or between the volcano summit and coastal areas. Rental cars are available at the airport in Kahului. Private commercial bus and van tours to the summit cost from $80 per adult.

Reservations for the parks’ wilderness cabins, costing $60 to $75 per night, are available online up to 90 days in advance. Permits for wilderness camping are free. The park’s two drive-up developed campgrounds—at chilly Hosmer Grove in the summit area and Kipahulu’s coastal bluffs—are free and first-come, first-served.

Haleakala National Park is fee-free June 20-21, July 18-19 and August 15-16, 2009.

Photo by Michael Connolly, Jr.