Elevation - 13,803 +/- (depending upon the source) feet above sea level or 33,500 feet from the base of the ocean floor
Translation - the air is very thin!
Further translation - nausea and lightheaded-ness
A four wheel drive vehicle is required to head beyond the visitor's center. Again, rent a Jeep!
The weather on the island of Hawaii (aka the Big Island) can vary from 80 degrees on the beach to 30 degrees at the Mauna Kea summit; raining in Hilo to sunshine at Southpoint. We found that the temperatures and weather conditions were unpredictable (I'm sure they are predictable to a local, but we weren't there long enough to figure it out), so we had a bag in the back of the Jeep that had jackets, mittens, swimwear, snorkels, tennis shoes and flip flops.
In one day we went from driving down to Waipio Valley (sea level) to walking around the summit of Mauna Kea at 13,803 feet above sea level. Talk about nausea and lightheaded-ness!
Getting to Mauna Kea is relatively easy. It's located off of Saddle Road, which traverses the island (east/west). Drive up the paved road to the visitor's center. Spend a little time getting accustomed to the altitude before heading up toward the summit. You can take a four wheel drive vehicle up and do a self guided tour; however you are not able to enter any of the telescopes. If you wish to participate in a guided caravan tour, check out the information on their website. While four wheel drive vehicles are required, we did see several tourists taking compact rentals up...revving engines and all!
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