Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park · Hawaii

Nāpau Trail

5.9 mi of trail, end to end · Maunaulu via Nāpau Trail: 2.5 mi round trip in the Service's write-up · about 350 ft of climbing · 850 ft of descent · 2,707 ft–3,360 ft · native surface · trail class Moderately Developed · hiking

3,325 ft 2,831 ft · 3.1 mi high 3,358 ft

Maunaulu via Nāpau Trail 2.5 mi round trip · the Park Service's write-up

1-2 Hours · no dogs

Start Maunaulu Parking Lot

Forested cinder cone with a black lava tree in the foreground

Experience a lava landscape from the 1969-1974 Maunaulu flow . Walk by lava tree molds and climb 210 feet (64 m) to the top of a forested cinder cone, Pu‘uhuluhulu (hairy hill). View the Maunaulu lava shield, which is similar to the now inactive Pu‘uʻō‘ō cone in the far distance. On a clear day you can see Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea and the Pacific Ocean.

Difficulty: Moderate - Most of the route is easy, but includes a 1/4 mile steep climb up Pu‘uhuluhulu cone.

Distance and hiking time: 2.5 miles (4.0km) roundtrip, Approximately 2.0 - 3.0 hours.

Trail Begins: Approximately 100 yards (91.4m) from the Maunaulu parking area. Ahu (stacked rocks) mark the trail across the lava flows. Please do not disturb them or build new ones. Stay on the trail .

Bring water, food, hat, sun protection and rain gear.

Safety: Hiking on flow fields can be hazardous due to deep earth cracks, uneven and unstable terrain, and razor-sharp lava.

Protect delicate lava formations. Surface patterns and lava trees are fragile. Reduce your impact. Please do not touch these formations.

Download the Maunaulu Trail Guide (pdf 2.3MB)

Accessibility Rough and uneven terrain with steep incline up Puʻuhuluhulu cinder cone.

This hike on nps.gov

On the parks map

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About this trail's facts

The lines are the National Park Service's public trails layer, the trailheads and the waterfalls, views, peaks and historic places along them the Service's public points of interest, read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end. The write-ups are the Service's own "things to do" text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the park's own site before you go.