The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1864-04-02
THE PACIFIC
Commercial Advertiser.
Rural Sketches
of the 5awaiian c5slands.
Leaving Lahaina for East Maui.


going on from Labsina-by steam sail to Kslepo-
lepo Makena, by schooner TO Kahului. and horse-
back cover the mountain Each route has its
recommendations, but the lover of the picturesque
will choose the latter. Leaving Lahaina at six
O'Clock in the morning to avoid the hot sun, rode
n level and sandy plain which skirts the foot Of
the mountains to Oualu, where the road ascends
but instead Of leading the mountains it, more
correctly speaking, around it. The mountains
Of West Maui have an elevation of 5000 feet and
the road ascends perhaps 1900 feet 1t is passable
for animals, but might be very much improved with
great expense.
From the highest point of the road where it be-
gins descend towards Wailuku is one Of the most
picturesque that the islands Afford and wor-
thy Of painters pencil. To enjoy it. dsmounted
from horses. Before us was the colossal noun.
tain Of Hal EAKAL stretching from the rocky shores
of Koolau, to the prominent knoll that lies under
Ulupalakua. distance of thirty miles, and rising in
one grand, symmetrical and noble mountain 10 900
feet above the Not cloud was on it, and its
outline rested boldly against the sky, while its sides
were clothed with forests and varied colored verdure
At the left in the distance were Makawao and Haiku
with their white houses and mill buildings. and at
the right the white chimney of the Makee mill
could be observed Beneath us lay the broad bay of
Kalepolepo, with the schooners .Netfie and .4nnie
Laurie moving across it. y low sandy and desert
.isthmus stretches from the bay to the the
ilet where is the port of Kahului Nowhere there
OF grandeur than from this point.
:Haleakaa, the famous House of the Sun, is miracle
of itself, which traveller in search of the marvel
Gus, should fail to visit. While admring
the view, gentleman who had just returned from
visit the mountain met and offered narrative
yof it, which We cheerfully insert and which very
appropriately in here We therefore leave
notes of Waikapu and Waiuku for another week
: A Trip to Haleakala.
Our guides were procured, and all the necessary
arrsng completed for the of the
: tain. There are two routes to the summit from
Ulupslakua, the southwest side, and the other
from Makawao, on the north side We concluded
make ascent from the latter place, it is much
the easiest read. and the finest view is obtained from
the northern summit. On Friday morning
o'clock. party, which was small, consisting of
Mr.. and Mrs. T., of San Francisco, and myself, left
Makawao for the mountain, preceded by native guides
with provisions. tent, bedding, sc. We mount
ed or horses that have made the trip several times
before, but obliged TO ride SLOW the road in
some places was quite steep We got along without
any difficulty, reaching the spring at O'Clock, which
is considered half way to the summit. There dis
mounting partook OF luncheon, filled our water
keg, and watered our horses. such would drink.
Some Of them refused, for could not impress
them the fact that they would get no more water
until the next afternoon when we should reach the
same spring on way home. we remained here
about half hour, and then remountng started for
the summit. The mountain was growing more difiI-
cut OF ascent now. being sleeper and very rocky
but we rode slowly, resting horses often, and oc
casonally dispatching one OF our guides 10 gather
for oheio berries, which grow In abundance on the
mountain sides. At three o'clock We reached the
cave which is some two miles below the summit. and
about thousand feet to ascend In going that dis
tance Our horses not at first inclined to move,
but by dint of whipping and squirting, and good
deal Of moral suasOn, succeeded IN starting them,
and in one hour stood on the summit of Haleaka-
Ia The House Of the Sum- 10, 200 feet above the
level of the sea- and 900 feet above the clouds
We have read many pages OF history and graphic
descriptions eminent tourists; we have heard ver
bal descriptions Of visits TO Vesuvius and Etna and
other wonders of the world have dreamed Of volca-
noes and extinct but never in our flights Of
imagination, have we conceived OF anything that
could approximate to the scene now behed from the
brink Of this crater. One view, not exceeding ten
seconds is sufficient compensation for all the difficult
ties attending the ascent The crater iseght miles by
twelve in diameter thirty miles in circumfer'
ence and 800 feet in depth inside, an excavation
sufficiently large 10 contain all the buildings of the
city of New York. Philadelphia, and Boston, and then
have room for a Of '' Central Parks Ii looks
like nothing in the world but just itself alone-one
vast extinct furnace, partially hled with ashes ana
cnders and decomposed lava. Ii admits of no simi-
les or comparisons it is wild IN Its grandeur and
so awfuly sublime. Ii of course has been active at
some period since the formation OF the islands, but
that action preceded the records of native traditions
liz certainly is within the recollection OF man.
IL contains twelve distinct cones or pyramids
of cinders and ashes, towering up 500 or 9OO feet,
like grim sentnels to guard its gloomy precincts from
desecrarion. They do not appear to be more than
ffty feet in height seen from the summit. There
ia an outlet to the the side, through
which the lava evidently found its way the sea.
IL is hardly possible what the appearance
Of the crater must have been when it was active
sea Of LIQUID lava. The cnders which are deposited
all over its summit, give evidence that at some Pc
riod the lava must have been thrown out over its
highest peaks but it is beyond the power of concep
ton TO form any idea of the appearance of lake OF
FIRE twelve miles in diameter thrtytwo miles IN cir
cumference and twenty five hundred feet deep. The
freaks of nature are far beyond the comprehension
of man, aud some Of them will not even admit of
fictitious explanation There is little vegetation
in the crater, except high up on the sides
lie, turn from view OF the crater ana gaze
over the sea- Its and boundess extent, from
where the foam crested breakers lash themselves In
fury on the coast rocks, far to the line marked
by the distant horizon, is covered with oiIoWy sea
Of Clouds compact, that not wave Of the ocean
is visible. There they lay apparently motionless,
thousands of feet below The vast black bars, the
piled up masses Of FURNISHED gold, the beds of soft
saffron and richest purple lying surrounded with
Continually huctuang discs OF CRIMSON like vast
Kaleidoscope till the very itself was for moments
UNDECIDED in the gorgeousness its light had created;
the appearance of storm, but the feeling OF calm
over all that tumultuous yet settled world oil Clouds
that had come hoatiDg silently and maJesticaly TO-
ssther. silently that knew not from whence