Region
Most climbed route
Highlights
- Tallest mountain on earth as measured from the ocean floor... over 33,000 ft / 10,000 m!
- Highest peak in the Hawaiian islands at 13,803 ft / 4,207 m
- Considered a dormant volcano; last erupted 4000-6000 years ago
- A road leads to the summit, the site of Mauna Kea Observatories, the largest collection of space telescopes in the world
- Cycling from the ocean to the summit of Mauna Kea is a famous challenge as one of the greatest vertical road climbs in the world
Routes
2 summits • 12.4 mi • 4,519 ft gain • 9 hr 53 min
1 summit • 15.3 mi • 4,737 ft gain • 9 hr 16 min
1 summit • 16.4 mi • 4,616 ft gain • 7 hr 2 min
1 summit • 8.8 mi • 4,614 ft gain • 7 hr 9 min
Latest summits
"A 4WD vehicle is required to drive up the mountain; a checkpoint is set up to enforce that requirement. Walking past the sign to the actual highpoint is prohibited although the sign (see photo) doesn't say that. I was met by a park ranger upon return." — fredbrown585 • Apr 22, 2022
"First time climbing up Maun Kea. Choose the perfect weather, not cold not too hot, no wind. Waiau Lake is my favorite spot from the whole trip. If it wouldn't be for the high altitude, would be a pretty easy, straightforward hike. Coming from sea level, acclimatizing wasn't as bad as I thought, but after sumitting I had a headache for the rest of the day. Great experience!" — nandorszotak • Jun 27, 2020
"standard route from VIS to lower observatories then followed paved road to upper ones. Then over to hill where true summit is, to make an offering to the mountain gods at the cairn. rode down with a friend, as i developed severe joint pain on the way up" — neuromon • Jul 21, 2018
"drove and hiked to the summit with Sandra Rhude.
chilly with a nice breeze. some sparse snow about. the astronomical areas was very interesting as was the museum lower on the mountain. " — rhudedog • Aug 15, 2017
"We did it the easy way this time around, taking the road to the observatories, then hiking the last bit on the dirt path. The sunset was absolutely stunning, then we did a star tour down at the visitor center & saw Saturn's rings!" — Kevin • Jun 6, 2015
"Dizzy from quick ascent into thin air. Like hiking on the moon, utterly surreal. Did this by starlight after dark. Really and truly amazing. Almost no signs of life on the summit, but a fair amount of snow in shaded places. " — fish • Mar 12, 2013
"Summited via the main trail, starting at the Onizuka Visitor Center and completed a 15-mile loop by walking down the road. Great mountain. Had an otherwordly feel about it. Little relief from the sun." — catamount • Sep 23, 2009
"Hawaii Forest and Trails Tour to the summit. No hiking but some of the most spectacular sights we have seen. Parkas were loaned and we watched the sunset from the summit as observatories opened to view the night sky. Later at night we saw a night sky so bright and the Milky Way so dense we couldn't believe our eyes. Photos cannot capture the dome of sky we experienced." — NicknRita • Oct 7, 2007
"Tour van drove over the top, descended to a good spot for viewing sunset. I attempted to climb back up to actual summit, but I was so affected by altitude that I aborted effort. (This was despite spending 45 minutes acclimating halfway up.) Later we descended to a good place for stargazing and shared the guide's telescope." — barbaratraver • Jan 20, 2004
"This was my 50th state highpoint after many years of climbing. According to the Highpointers Club, I was the 100th person to reach this goal. I climbed with a group from the Highpointers Club, who were all at Hawaii for a Highpointers Club convention. We did a sea to summit climb in two days. Actually a few of us, including myself, did a sub-sea to summit climb, because we jumped into the ocean first and dove as far as we could before beginning our long hike to the summit. Jack Longacre, the president and founder of the Highpointers Club, was a part of our group. Sadly, Jack has now passed away, but his memory is alive and well with the club he started in the 1980's." — Stewy • Jul 28, 2000