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Mauna Loa Road And Trail At Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Reopening

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By NPT Staff - October 8th, 2018
Hikers on the Mauna Loa Trail at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park/NPS

Hikers once again will be able to trek the Mauna Loa Trail at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park/NPS

You once again can hike the Mauna Loa Trail at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park and stay in one of the cabins on the mountain.

Park crews on Monday were to fully reopen Mauna Loa Road to vehicles along with Mauna Loa Trail, the 13,677-foot summit, and both high-altitude cabins.

Permits are required for all overnight backpacking and for the Pu‘u ‘Ula‘ula (Red Hill) cabin and Mauna Loa summit cabin. The park’s backcountry permit office was scheduled to reopen Monday at 8 a.m. Backpackers should be adequately equipped, experienced in wilderness and high altitude trekking, and physically fit. Learn more about Mauna Loa and how to obtain a backcountry permit on the park website.

The Mauna Loa Road, trail, and its remote backcountry have been closed since May 11 due to damaging volcanic and seismic activity in the park. Significant road construction continues on several sections of Highway 11 within park boundaries, including one-way traffic stops at mile marker 30 and to the west. Motorists should drive carefully and be prepared for delays.

Visitors to Mauna Loa Road can see how native forest was impacted by a wildfire that started Aug. 4 outside the park. The fire burned 3,739 acres and came perilously close to the Kīpukakī Special Ecological Area.

The park’s coastal backcountry trails and campsites are scheduled to reopen on Friday, Oct. 19. 

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