Ride Down The Side Of A Volcano On A Bike
Okay, so you’ll have to go to Hawaii to ride your bike down a volcano. And we know that Hawaii’s not exactly next door. To anywhere. But if you’re planning on going there anyway, you would be mad not to want to ride a bike down a volcano once you got there. Right?

Have you been to Hawaii or are planning to go soon? If so and you would like to share your experiences and a photo or two with other visitors to the Before You Die website please get in touch with us.

Gift Ideas
Hawaii
Price: £11.87
34% off list price
Features colour highlights sections, tailored itineraries, insider tips and opinionated reviews from authors with intimate ties to Hawaii. These guides are intended for independent travellers.
Buy the book Hawaii - Lonely Planet Guide securely online with 10% off via amazon.co.uk by clicking here

And we are not talking any old volcano either. Haleakala may be dormant, but it is huge - as in H-U-G-E! For starters, it’s 10,000 feet high and it’s crater is so big you could fit the hole of Manhattan Island inside! It forms the centre piece of the Haleakala National Park on the island of Maui which can be reached by plane from Hawaii’s “Big Island” or from other islands in the chain.

The Haleakala Bike Company can be found at the foot of Haleakala at the Old Haiku Cannery in Haiku. Here, you will leave your car behind and jump in the courtesy van for your journey to the summit.

Yes the good news is you don’t have to cycle up a volcano before you cycle down it. In fact Maui is the only place in the world where you can bike ride downhill for 38 miles. Free wheelin’ baby! No pedalling required.

If you’re an early bird, opt for the Sunrise Special Tour that leaves two hours before sunrise and gets you to the summit an hour before sunrise. It’s available every day of the week, but you’ll need to be ready to go at 3.00am (4.00am in winter). Watching the sun rise over this majestic landscape is a memory that will stay with you forever.

After a narrated tour of the park in the van, you’ll be given a bike plus an all important helmet, gloves, back pack, and rain / wind gear.

You will then ride in convoy down the side of the volcano to 6,500 feet and just outside the park entrance. Then you are free to mountain bike at your own pace back to the shop, passing through some of the most stunning scenery anywhere in the world as you do so.

The Sunrise Special Tour costs US$72.25 plus tax (about £40) if booked online, while there are other Summit tours leaving at the much more reasonable hour of 9.00am (but no sunrise, people!) starting at US$63.75. A no thrills option without any sightseeing is also available for US$46.75 plus tax, again if booked online.

The Haleakala Bike Company also provides bikes for children as young as eight and you can hire a trailer bike if you have kids even younger.



Return To The Before You Die Fire Category