My centennial visit to Haleakala included a 4.5-mile hike on the Sliding Sands Trail into the summit crater. Though it resembles a caldera, the crater formed as heavy rainfall carried by trade winds eroded the mountain’s core. The trail offers views over a barren, rocky wilderness across the coastal peaks and out to sea, obscured on this day by a low ceiling.
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5276-1024x1024.jpg)
The trail is visible below, though my destination is beyond view
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5323-1024x1024.jpg)
The Sliding Sands Trail snakes it way to lower elevations below the crater’s southern edge
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5324-1024x1024.jpg)
Peaks aside the Ko’Olau Gap rise above clouds which obscure the ocean beyond
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5326-1024x1024.jpg)
Contrasting colors of the rock make a striking landscape across a barren wilderness
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5301-1024x1024.jpg)
Beyond the two mile mark from the trailhead, Split Rock is my principle destination
![](https://www.centennialjourney.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/IMG_5302-1024x1024.jpg)
Split Rock