Day 11. Maui (Hana area)

In the rush to get to Hana yesterday I wish we had taken the time to stop and do some shopping. The stove I use is a cat can alcohol stove. Usually, I use denatured alcohol for the stove, which works great. Unfortunately, you can’t fly with denatured alcohol and it is only sold by the quart, which is way too much for a couple nights of camping. So, for this trip I have been using isopropyl alcohol. It’s cheaper and is sold in smaller volumes. On the Kalalau trip I was able to get 91% alcohol and that worked OK. In Hana I could only find 70% and that didn’t work so well. It would ignite but wouldn’t stay lit for more than a minute, so water for oatmeal took a long time to warm up this morning.

Anyway, after breakfast we headed to the Haleakala National Park Kïpahulu Visitor Center. From the visitor center we hiked the Pïpïwaï Trail to Waimoku Falls. This 400 ft waterfall is probably one of the more spectacular waterfalls I’ve ever seen, especially since you are able to walk right up to the base of the falls. The 4-mile roundtrip trail has a section that passes through a bamboo forest. Walking through this forest of grass was like walking through a tunnel.

After returning and eating a quick lunch we went to see the Seven Sacred Pools in ‘Ohe’o Gulch, near the visitor center. The pools had some nice waterfalls flowing into them but rain was starting to fall so it was a quick excursion.

The next stop for the day was the Venus Pool. This pool was a 10-minute hike from the road and is a popular place for cliff jumping.

The rest of the afternoon was spent at Hamoa Beach. This is a popular little beach with some great waves that were good for body surfing. We played in the waves until it started to rain and then headed into town for supper (Hana Ranch House again). The final night of camping for the trip was rainless so that was nice.

Pictures from today can be found here.

Day 10. Maui.

The flight from Kaua’i to Maui was uneventful. After retrieving the rental car we had lunch at Da Kitchen in Kahului. The food and service were good and the prices reasonable. I just learned that Da Kitchen used to have a restaurant in San Diego but it is out of business… bummer. After making a quick trip to Kihei (on the west coast) to pick up snorkel gear we headed for Hana, where we will camp for the next two nights. To get to Hana we took the southwestern route. This route travels through a lot of lava fields and did not appear to be heavily traveled. Part of the reason, as we found out later, was that travelers going out of Hana had been told the road was closed due to flash flooding this afternoon. We did drive through some water running over the road at one point, but had no trouble (it helped seeing a convertible fording the stream before us). As we approached Hana the vegetation became more and more lush until we were in a full-on tropical rain forest. By this time it was raining heavily so we took note of places to go back to tomorrow and headed for Wai’anapanapa State Park, where we would camp. It was not raining when we got to the campground, so we set up the tent and headed into town to get some supplies and find some supper. There are basically two choices in Hana for dining: the super expensive Hotel Hana Maui or the expensive Hana Ranch House. We chose the Ranch House and were very happy with the food. After supper we headed back to the campground and the night passed with no rain.

Pictures from today can be found here.

Day 9. Kaua'i

Today we didn’t venture too far from Wailua and Kapa’a and were dodging occasional showers throughout the day. The first stop was ‘Opaeka’a Falls, another roadside waterfall. From ‘Opaeka’a Falls we headed further inland to Keahua Arboretum. The arboretum was uninspiring and we didn’t stay long. We next went to some falls on Kapa’a Stream. The falls were nice but the trail was very slick and I took a pretty good fall that was more damaging to my pride than anything else. We saw some very cool white stuff (lichen?) growing on some trees along the trail. After this we returned to the hotel and went for a nice walk on the beach before going out to dinner at Harley’s Tropical Barbeque near the hotel. The remainder of the evening was spent packing for tomorrow’s flight back Maui.

To see photos from today, click here.

Day 8. Kaua’i

This morning we went to Waimea Canyon. This canyon lives up to the hype and I can see why it has been called the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific”. The dead end of this road is at an overlook that is supposed to have great views of the Kalalau Valley. Unfortunately, the fog was thick in the Valley so we were unable to see the reverse view of where we had been two days ago. This area of the island is supposed to have superb hiking trails but with the threat of rain we didn’t venture too far from the car today.

After seeing the sites around Waimea Canyon we went to the south part of the island. Here we saw the Spouting Horn blowhole and then went to Kawailoa Bay took a walk on the remote beach here. To get to Kawailoa Bay we had to follow a potholed dirt road with many puddles that looked like they would swallow the rental car. For supper tonight we ate at Kaua’i Pasta, which was small but had good food.

Pictures from the today can be found here.

Day 7. Kaua’i

We awoke to rain this morning and so were in no rush to get going. For breakfast we went to Waipouli Restaurant where we each had one too many pancakes. After breakfast we went and checked out Wailua Falls, west of Lihu’e. The parking lot for the falls was also the viewing platform and so we didn’t have to hike on any muddy trails to see the vigorously flowing falls. From Wailua Falls we headed to the north side of the island to see the sites. We stopped at several beaches and the Kilauea Lighthouse. When we got to Hanalei we headed down to Hanalei Bay and walked out on the pier and watched people learning to surf while listening to one of the locals tell some big fish stories, including one about the monster that got away.

We next headed back down to Kë’ë Beach (location of Kalalau Trail trailhead) and watched some whales jumping quite a ways off shore. We were able to get a couple pictures that would have been better if the whales would have cooperated and moved about a mile closer to shore. There was a high surf advisory today and we were hoping to see some big waves but they weren’t too impressive. On the way back to the hotel we stopped for a bite to eat at Bubba’s Burgers. This evening was wash night and we made runs to the laundry room in between torrential rain showers. Tonight we’re both happy we’re not camping out.

Pictures from today can be found here.

Day 6. Kaua’i’s Kalalau Trail concluded.

Due to wanting to catch the last bus out of Hanalei, we got an early start at 6:30 this morning. Throughout the day the clouds looked threatening but rain, thankfully, never materialized. Rain would have made for some tricky conditions as the trail was already slick. Instead, it was very warm and humid all day and I was sweating profusely on all the up-hills. We got back to Kë’ë beach around 2 PM and spent some time checking out the beach before hitching a ride into Hanalei and then continuing on to Wailua, where Janel was dropped off near our hotel (Kaua’I Sands). I stayed on the bus into Lïhue where I picked up the rental car at the airport.

It was a nice backpacking trip but I wish we could have spent more time on it. We didn’t have time to explore the Kalalau Valley or visit its waterfall or Hanakäpï’ai Falls. I guess we’ll just have to go back again!

Pictures from the Kalalau Trail and the Na Pali Coast can be found here.

Day 5. Kaua’i’s Kalalau Trail continued.

We got a late start today but reached the Kalalau Valley and Beach around 4 PM and had plenty of time to play in the ocean. Watching some whales jumping about a half-mile off-shore caused part of this morning’s delay. Those animals can sure make a big splash! The total distance covered today was about nine miles. The route had a lot of up and down and was filled with some great views, although the haze made for sub-par photography. A majority of the people we met on the trail today were those who are living illegally in Kalalau Valley. Most of them will spend a couple weeks in the backcountry and then head into town for a while to get food (and some how earn a living??) for a few days. They all seemed friendly and really love this valley.

Pictures from the Kalalau Trail and the Nä Pali Coast can be found here.

Day 4. Kaua'i

Today would be the first day of a three-day backpacking trip on the Nä Pali Coast of Kaua’i. In the morning we flew from Maui to Kauai. It was an uneventful flight on Island Air, with some good views of several of the Islands along the way. The descent into Lihu’e was exciting with cliffs on both sides of the aircraft! Once on the ground we retrieved our luggage and got a cab to Walmart where we would catch a bus up to Hanalei. After putting our luggage in storage at Kayak Kaua’i we thumbed rides up to the end of the road and the trailhead for the Kalalau Trail.

We didn’t travel too far this first day; only two miles to Hanakäpï’ai Beach. This was a beautiful setting for camping with a 150 yd long beach with a nice stream running through the middle. The remainder of the afternoon was spent lounging on the beach and setting up camp. All in all, a nice end to a busy day.

Pictures from the Kalalau Trail can be found here.

Maui. Day 3.

Today was pretty much a go to the beach day on the west coast of Maui. The first stop was to rent snorkel gear in Kihei. From there we headed south to Po’olenalena Beach (aka. Paipu, Pepeiaolepo, Loves, or Keauhou Beach). This was a nice little beach with small waves but pretty good snorkeling. We saw some cool looking fish, a lot of bleached corral, and a sea turtle. In papers I’ve read and lectures I’ve been too there has been a lot of discussion of ocean warming and acidification having adverse affects on corral reefs. This area was a sad example of what climate change is doing to our oceans. When Janel and I were on the Big Island seven years ago for honeymoon I recall that the corral we saw was alive and well with lots of colors. On the Maui coast that was not the case. I’d like to revisit some of the spots we snorkeled in on the Big Island again and see how they are doing.

After some time at Po’olenalena we headed further south to check out Makena Beach (aka. Oneloa Beach or Big Beach) and Pu’u Ola’I Beach (aka. Little Beach). We first headed over to Pu’u Ola’I Beach. Pu’u Ola’I Beach is a garment optional beach and was very crowded with scenery that was not particularly pleasing to the eye. So, we headed back over the knoll to Makena (Big) Beach, which was much less crowded. Big Beach got its name from hippies back in the 60s and 70s that kept things simple and called it was it was (a big beach) instead of calling it by its Hawaiian name, Makena. Makena is about a half-mile long and quite beautiful. The surf here was much bigger than at Po’olenalena and the snorkeling off shore was OK. After we snorkeled for a while, Janel headed in while I stayed in for a while and worked on my body surfing technique. Once I had taken enough abuse we sat on the beach for a while before deciding to call it a day.

Before heading back to town we drove to the end of the west coast road to La Pérouse Bay, where there is a very large lava field. The road here was quite narrow. There were occasional homes on the beach that looked like nice, simple places to live with a spectacular view. The sunset was pretty good.

Pictures from today can be found here.

Maui. Day 2.

Last night was a relatively restful night.  Our room is a little warm but not stifling.  The desk clerk last night wasn't the greatest at enforcing quiet hours and he was actually making the most noise it seemed.  Different person tonight and he seems quiet so I expect to be sleeping sooner.
Anyway, we awoke at about 6:30 this morning and headed out about an hour later.  We decided to tour the northwest corner of Maui today.  Our plan had been to first go see the hanging bridges in Waihe'e Canyon north of Wailuku, but the access to that didn't open until 9 and we got there at 8.  Instead, we did what was probably a better hike and hiked the Waihe'e Ridge Trail, which overlooks the area we had originally planned to visit.  The trail was a little shy of 2.5 miles and climbed about 1,500 ft.  We took our time and reached the top in about 1.5 hours.  When we started there were hardly any clouds in the sky but when we reached the end of the trail, Lani-lili hill, it was socked in with fog with a few glimpses of the coast and mountains now and then.  Luckily there were some great views going up, including Makamaka'ole Falls, so it was definitely a worthwhile effort.
After returning to the car we continued north along a winding, and sometimes very narrow, road.  The area we passed through was very lush with occasional villages, each with a collection of fruit stands.  One hour and 11 miles down the road we reached the parking area for the Olivine Pools.  After a quick lunch of PBJ sandwiches and fresh pineapple we headed down for a swim.  The ocean was very turbulent here but in these collection of pools, that are fed by occasional waves washing over the protective lava walls, the water was calm and clear.  We spent about an hour swimming in the pools and then headed back to the car and our next destination.
A couple miles up the road we stopped for a quick 1.2 mile hike on the Ohai Trail.  Not the most impressive hike but some good views of the coastline and Moloka'i to the north.  This trail did have a surprise as there was a humpback whale about 100 yards off shore that would occasionally surface and slam it's tail up and down.  Impressive!  I had never seen a whale from from so close before!
After returning to the car we continued north with a brief stop to see Nakalele Blowhole (not impressive at low tide) along with a couple other overlooks.  In the last 'pure' Hawaiian village we passed through there was a series of unattended pineapple stands selling the fruit for $3 so we picked one up.  It made the car smell really good the rest of the drive.
By this time it was getting to be late afternoon and we were feeling tired so we completed the north island loop, passing through resort choked Lahaina without making any more stops.
It was a great 1st full day of the trip and we are looking forward to getting in some snorkeling tomorrow.  I have added to the collection of trip pictures here.

1st Day on Maui

Well, this is my 1st blog post ever so hopefully it's good.  I've started this blog to share my wonderings with others as well as to have notes that I can look back on.
Since Janel and I have moved to California we've taken a lot of trips but they have mostly been short weekend adventures or visits to family.  Therefore, we decided that it was time to take a trip that would be longer with just the two of us.  We had thought about South America but settled on Hawaii.  We honeymooned on the Big Island seven years ago and had been wanting to go back since then.  We're going to be here for nearly two weeks, spending time on both Maui and Kauai.
Today we flew from San Diego to Kahului (I'm still not sure how to say that word and noticed that the pilot and flight attendants on the plane always said we were going to Maui instead of trying to pronounce Kahului).  My friend Daren was nice enough to watch our cat while we're gone as well as take us to the airport this morning.
We arrived in Kahului around 1:15 pm and retrieved our luggage quickly and then proceded to spend over an hour waiting in line at the rental car place.  That's an hour of vacation we won't get back.
After getting the car (a minivan instead of the compact we reserved) we headed over to Northshore Hostel to check in but discovered that we couldn't check in until 5pm so we headed up the Iao Valley, which is nearby.  The guide book stated this valley was the site of a massacre of the Maui people by the Big Islanders in 1790.  The Iao Valley State Park is a small park that is not too far from Pu'u Kukul, the highest point on the west side of Maui, one of the wettest areas on earth.  It was a nice little park with some short paths and a water garden with taro growing in the pools.  The prominent feature is the Iao Needle, a short way up the valley from the park.  The map we have shows longer trails leading out of the park and up the canyon but we didn't pursue any of these since it was getting late.
From Iao we returned to the Hostel, checked in, and went to the grocery store to get some provisions.  Supper was simple and we are now relaxing, figuring out what the plan is for tomorrow.  I have posted more pictures from today here.