The True Summit

The true summit (as in highest point) of Muana Kea from observatory

row.  The only access is a path which dips into a gully about 100 feet

and then climbs upward to the peak.  Ben & Levi trotted over for a

photo op.

At the peak there is a carn-style shrine on which mountain visitors are

expected to leave offerings.  Our gifts to Mauna Kea included a live

flower lei, a woven grass braclet, a live ti leaf lei and a shell from the

first beach we visited. 

Photo of the USGS bench mark at the peak - 13,796 feet.  So,
we climbed the highest peak on the largest mountain on Earth, if one
was to measure from the sea floor (approximately 33,475 feet).