Mauna Kea: Climbing the highest” mountain in the world

Mauna Kea: Climbing the highest” mountain in the world

Why Hawaii's Mauna Kea takes the crown as the world's tallest mountain

Okay, we all know that Mount Everest is the highest mountain on earth, standing at a whopping 8,848 m (29,029 ft) above sea level.

What is less well known is that if you measure from base to summit, it is not Everest but Mauna Kea in Hawaii that takes the crown as the highest mountain in the world. Mauna Kea lies mostly hidden beneath the ocean's surface, but stands a monumental height of 10,203 m (33,476 ft) from base to summit.

Because of this amazing fact, we couldn't resist spending our few precious hours in Hawaii driving halfway across the Big Island and up to the dizzying peak of Mauna.

We agonized over the decision. Visiting Hawaii on a cruise meant we had limited time on land and had to choose between Mauna Kea and the famous volcano park. In the end we couldn't resist the call of the highest mountain on earth.

I love trekking, so persuaded Kia to try a hike to the peak. Unfortunately, after some research, we discovered that our eight hours on land were not enough for a comfortable round trip. If we missed the boat it would leave without us, so we made the decision to book a trip up (cheating, I know).

Shortly after docking we met Daniel, our guide from Aloha Island Tours. As a native Hawaiian, Daniel (or Lopaka) had an encyclopedic knowledge of his homeland and its people.

As we drove to Mauna Kea, he told us about his efforts to learn Hawaiian as part of a national effort to revitalize the language and secure its future. It was obvious that he felt a deep pride in his culture and heritage.

We paused for a prayer before beginning our climb. The peaks of Hawaii's five volcanoes are celebrated as sacred mountains, and the summit of Mauna Kea is traditionally considered the "Region of the Gods," an area where benevolent spirits reside.

After paying our respects, we headed to our first stop: the visitor center at 2,804 m (9,199 feet), where we stopped for 40 minutes to acclimatize.

Daniel frequently checked on how we were feeling about the elevation change. He told us that visitors occasionally dozed off on the climb due to the rapid changes. I kept an eye on Kia since this was the highest she'd ever been, but she was absolutely fine - perky even.

Weather wise we couldn't have asked for a better day. Although it was cloudy at sea level, we quickly gained altitude and had breathtaking views of the fluffy cloud beds below us. In Hawaiian, Mauna Kea means “white mountain” and we could now see snow between its peaks. Snow! In Hawaii!

Our second stop was at an array of 13 telescopes. The combination of high altitude, dry environment and stable airflow makes Mauna Kea one of the best places in the world for astronomical observations. We took a look inside one of the largest telescopes manned by researchers who live on the mountain at 9,199 feet (2,804 m).

After our second stop, we continued climbing and stopped a few hundred meters from the summit. At this point we exited the vehicle and hiked the final 20 minutes to the summit.

Despite the thinning air, we made short work of it and before we knew it, we were alone on the highest mountain in the world. The view was absolutely breathtaking.

We paused in silence on this magnificent mountain, awestruck by the spectacle stretching out below us.

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We never planned to visit Hawaii, and we certainly never expected to find a snow-capped mountain there when we did. Needless to say, we were very happy with our choice.

Funnily enough, you can just make out the famous volcano park from the summit of Mauna Kea. You can see everything including the stars.

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Mission statement: Paul Laubach/Shutterstock

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