A Maui Bike Tour

Headlong down Haleakala

A popular eco tour option is to take a Maui bike ride down the Haleakala volcano. Early birds can get to the summit of Haleakala in time to see the sunrise, then proceed down the mountain.

Some Maui bike tours start at the top of the volcano and end at the ocean beach. Worried that you don't have the stamina? Just read my favorite 'couch potato' advertisement - "...bike 38 miles down the world's largest dormant volcano with only 400 yards of actual pedaling." Only ten yards of pedaling to travel a mile? You can do it!

On the other hand, this is not the place to learn how to ride a bicycle on your Maui family vacation. There is a good deal of steering and braking and speed involved (an upcountry citizens group says that the local hospital admits one person that was biking down Haleakala every other day!). Most of the bike tour companies have a minimum age requirement. There are a wide variety of duration and distance options offered, so be sure to select one that matches your comfort zone.

Some 19 bicycle tour businesses operate on Haleakala, attracting an estimated 79,000 riders in 2005, according to park officials.

As we drove up Haleakala, we passed large groups of bikers coasting down the mountain. Most bikers looked like they were in total control as they cruised along. But some displayed what looked like mild terror as they hurtled down the winding mountain road at the upper reaches of their personal speed limit. Biking down Haleakala is the perfect adrenaline pumping activity for teenage boys.

The video below provides a overview of the bike ride down Haleakala. It's long (nine minutes), but worth the time if you are considering this bike tour. You get a good perspective of the skill, speed, and turning that is involved. The photographer is an experienced biker, and is wearing a camera on his helmet (you can see the shadow image of the camera on the pavement when the photographer is at the high sunny part of the volcano). If you want to view the video, click on the 'play' button in the image below.

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