About
Length0.5 mi
ShapeLoop
DifficultyEasy
Elevation gain50 ft up
Typical time15 min
TrailheadKipahulu Visitor Center, Hana coast
SurfaceGrass and gravel path
Best seasonYear round. The summit sits above 9,000 feet and can be near freezing at dawn; the Kipahulu coast is hot and humid.
DogsNot allowed
What you'll see 🌄 Big views🌊 River or creek🏛️ Historic site

Welcome to the Kipahulu District of Haleakala National Park! We're glad you're joining us today for a self-guided walk of the Kuloa Point Trail. As you'll learn along this trail, for generations Kipahulu has been a place of community, labor, and rest. We'll think about what makes a place a home, and how we carry our homes with us wherever we go. Please remember, Kipahulu is still a home! It is a home to the generations of Native Hawaiians who live in the area today. It is a home to plants and animals found nowhere else in the world. And it is a home to incredible forces that can shape this place in dramatic ways. For that reason, please be respectful and: Stay on trail at all times Do not disturb natural or archeological sites Do not stack or take rocks The Kipahulu Visitor Center welcomes hundreds of visitors a day to Haleakala National Park. Located in East Maui overlooking the Alenuihaha Channel that divides Maui from Hawaii Island. The visitor center deck provides views of the ocean, and, on a clear day, of Hawaii Island thirty miles in the distance. Kipahulu is one of the few preserved moku districts of Maui. A moku district is a system used by pre-Contact Hawaiians for dividing land and establishing the rule of law. The objects in the visitor center showcase that this is a homeland for people for over too many generations to count. As you continue along this loop trail around the Kuloa point, you can begin to see the importance of Kipahulu as a home. You can discover plants brought by Polynesian voyagers, observe hale built by early people, and feel the natural beauty of Oheo Gulch and the vast shoreline of east Maui. This land has provided for generations of ohana (families), and here a sacred bond has formed between people and place. Enter with aloha (respect,) for this is a homeland and you are walking into their cherished house. In this area you will also feel the power of water, which makes up the geographic boundaries of the moku. Fresh water was key to survival, and every moku village had enough water for everyone. It was the ocean from which the early people came to Maui. Waa (canoes) were the vessels carrying people and all they needed to establish a home. Making your way to the next stop think about your homes and what is it that ties you to your 'aina (land)? What are some ways that one can show aloha (respect) to a place?

Tips
Often called the Seven Sacred Pools, which is a marketing invention - there are more than seven and none are sacred. Swimming in the pools is frequently closed for flash-flood or rockfall risk; obey the signs.
Location

Kipahulu Visitor Center, Hana coast

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Trail data: USGS National Map / PAD-US, the National Park Service, state agencies, and © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Access and conditions change — check with the managing agency before you go.