Haleakala. On a bicycle. aka My Husband is Crazy.

My crazy husband thought it would be "fun" to spend his Hawaiian vacation riding a bicycle up 10,000 feet or so. And there just so happened to be this volcano nearby. So he rented a bike, got up early and rode UP Haleakala (and then turned around and rode back down). We did not go with him because 4 hours in a car with a three year old was not how I wanted to spend MY vacation, but he promised to take lots of pictures so it would almost be like we were there.

These are those photos. Taken by Chris on his iPhone 4. Edited by me in Lightroom 3.

On the drive to Paia. This is the starting point.

A little rental bike porn before heading out.

On the road. A little ways past Makewao.

Kula Marketplace. Right near the entrance to the Haleakala National Park.
Refill your water bottles here.
This is around 3,000 feet elevation.

Half way there!

The view of Kihei (where we are staying) from 5,000 feet up.

The Ranger Station at 7,000 feet, last stop to get water.
The lady at Kula Marketplace warned against drinking this water.
But it seemed pretty legit.

Cloud bank he rode through between 7,000-8,000 feet or so. It was pretty cold.

It's all uphill...

8,900 feet. The final push!
(He looks tired, huh?)

Woohoo!!! He made it!

At the top. (The observatory is in the background).

The view from the top.

Looking down on the Visitors' Center.

Home again.

This is a map of his route. You can click the photo to see his other stats on Strava.

The internet says that this ride is among the top 3 most difficult rides in the nation and also the longest paved climb in the world. And if the internet says so, it must be true.