Our first anniversary celebration was a chance to try this again and explore what we missed last year.
Here's a quick overview:
Kahului
We started in Kahului, where we landed and where you can shop for food (good plan before heading for Hana which is a bit bare).
MC Escher was here :)
Road to Hana
After the late lunch, we did the road to Hana. Google maps was very optimistic about the road to Hana, 1:09 is a bit fast, even for me :)Garmin was more realistic with 03:11.
We stopped by the Garden of Eden and did the nearby hike around the waterfall, which got us back into the park from the side. The peacocks and especially the duck were very friendly if you had food :)
1H09, maybe if I floor it with no one on the road :)
waterfall trail by the garden of eden
By the time we got to Hana, it was of course raining
Luana Spa
We then arrived at the Luana Spa where we were staying for two days to visit Hana a bit less hurringly than last year.
some great meals, with fresh fish I had just bought :)
Hahanu Gardens
The next morning, we went to Hahanu Gardens, with the great opening hours of 10:00 to 14:00 M-F. Despite the hours and resulting difficulty to visit or to even find at the end of an unpaved road, it was worth it.
there were lots of dead lobsters that got washed on the 'beach'. Too bad none were fresh :)
Waianapanapa Beach and Coastline
After that, we went to visit the Waianapanapa beach and coastline:
Warning, warning signs are dangerous! :)
Venus Pool
The next morning, on our way out we finally found the Venus Pool that I couldn't find last year:
Seven Sacred Pools
We then went on our way to the seven sacred pools, which were closed due to water contamination (someone with HepC cut themselves and put blood in the water, it takes a while to flush). That said, it wasn't a biggie, we had already been in the pools last year and instead we used the opportunity for a nice quiet picnic by the water that no one was in :)
very nice bamboo forest
South Maui
We then finished the loop around South Maui and made it to the Tedeschi Winery in 1h20, which I'm told is a good time for that road :) We made it to the Winery just in time to visit it before they closed :)
nice roads :)
they also have nets to catch fallings rocks, which is good (the north west side is missing those)
fun 'straight' road
we were able to see Molokini from the road
Kula Enchanting Floral Garden
The next morning we went to the Enchanting Floral Garden in Kula, which was a quite nice place to visit.
Surfing Goat Dairy
After the Floral Garden, we went to check out the Surfing Goat Dairy, play with some goats, and eat some goat cheeses.
Haleakala
And we then headed to the top of Haleakala to have a picnic to acclimate before our hike.
on the way up, we saw the Pu'uo we were going to hike to
at the top of a bit over 10,000ft, there were a lot of observatories
Haleakala Sliding Sands Trail
Then, was time for our hike on Sliding Sands trail. Everyone made a big deal on how it was a tough hike, but we hiked a sustained 2.2mph on the way down and up (actually speed was almost just as fast on the way up). We were up and down in 2H, including some stops for pictures.It was actually a nice easy hike:
you could get a horse ride to the bottom and back
our target, the Pu'uo
the trail goes much farther if you have time
Haleakala Sunset
After the hike, we stuck around to watch the sunset, since we had done sunrise the previous year. What was interesting was that we were actually sitting on top of a rainstorm which I drove back down to after the sunset.
Kaluhui Airport/Maui Flight
The next morning, we went to Kaluhui airport for a very nice flight around Maui and the neighboring islands, visible on a separate web page (follow the link for more pictures).
Kihei Keawakapu Condo
By then, we had moved our base back to Kihei, just by the diving boat ramp.
the ocean view was decent :)
Maui Diving
Most days from then, we went diving in the morning with Ed Robinson's diving adventures. There are lots of pictures on the separate Maui Diving page
Iao Needle
Our first afternoon, we went to see the Iao Needle:
Waihee Plantation
The next afternoon, we went to the Waihee Plantation to do their nice hike:
our first stream crossing
and this was our target
La Perouse Bay
The next day, we had a dive-free day we used to go visit the south side of the Island on the Kihei side, aka the end of the road on that side of the island, a mere 5 miles from the higher up road going to Upcountry. Too bad the old makena road linking the two was closed to the public years ago after some idiots had an accident and sued the land owners (die in hell, idiots!).Anyway, going to the end of that road to hike to the south side of the Island from La Pérouse Bay, was fun.
lava rocks
this looked like a water pipe going to a few houses, apparently it wasn't worth digging the conduits in :)
Big Beach and Black Sand Beach
On the way back, we hit Big Beach where a few people were playing with the waves:
Old Lahaina Luau
The next day, we went to look around Lahaina before our Luau that evening:
the giant tree is still unbelievable
Kaanapali_Zipline
The next morning, our last day, we went to Kaanapali to try their ziplines. While they are overpriced in my opinion, they were quite fun.
Maui North West Loop: Blowhole and Olivine Pools And to finish the day, and our trip, we did the north west loop: the blowhole, and olivine pools with lovely 5mph one lane road at the end.
the road is nice at the beginning :)
the blowhole
and the Olivine Pools
full of life
After that, was the 5mph one lane road full of blind turns back to Kahului. Thankfully everyone we caught up with was nice enough to pull over and let us pass: my strategy was to gun it in the straights and be very careful on the blind turns. This got us out of it in record time.
