Urban Outcast Music #19 - Kihei Town by The Throwdowns (Maui rockers)
The thing that impressed me with Maui was how easy it was to get beautiful places all to yourself. I just assumed that the herd mentality would be in full effect but the scenery is so abundant that us tourists were spread very thinly across the island. I'm going to avoid a chronological story line of the explorations as things have gotten a little fuzzy since I started trying to sort through the 1,000+ photos of rocks, water hitting rocks, etc...
West Maui:
There was no shortage of wind or waves on our visit and the pro surfers were taking advantage at Honoloa Bay (Nikki Van Dijk, 5th place).
It also had the Nakalele blowhole popping but several of the popular lounging pools were too rough to take advantage of and just in case you were tempted, the crosses were there to sober the mood.
Central Maui:
The Iao Needle is surrounded by incredibly steep/green cliffs but we couldn't find any trails to let you explore any further... So you have plenty of time to stand there and ponder the battle for Maui when King Kamehameha I of the Big Island took advantage of his rival's absence in 1790 and used his new cannons to pound the Mauians into submission. The event is poetically named either Battle of the Dammed Waters (because of all the bodies) or Battle of the Clawed Cliffs, neither of which sounds very pleasant. It would be another 4 years before Maui fell for good and a further 16 years before Kamehameha took control of all Hawaii.
The Iao Needle is surrounded by incredibly steep/green cliffs but we couldn't find any trails to let you explore any further... So you have plenty of time to stand there and ponder the battle for Maui when King Kamehameha I of the Big Island took advantage of his rival's absence in 1790 and used his new cannons to pound the Mauians into submission. The event is poetically named either Battle of the Dammed Waters (because of all the bodies) or Battle of the Clawed Cliffs, neither of which sounds very pleasant. It would be another 4 years before Maui fell for good and a further 16 years before Kamehameha took control of all Hawaii.
With the warm-up mountains in the rear view mirror, you can start driving up the massive shield volcano, Haleakala. At 10,023' tall the summit takes you above the clouds, pollution, and noise to end up in a spectacular desert of the crater and its cinder cones. We walked in three miles but to do it right, leave your car at the bottom trail head and hitch your way to the top so you can stroll 11 miles down through the entire crater. Four such wise hikers were able to squeeze in the back of our little Versa and they were quite the group of characters that included a professional coconut trimmer and a Finnish musician.
Once in the crater proper, I was blown away by the bluest of blue skies and the utter lack of sound. If you weren't walking, all you could hear was your own breathing. No birds, planes, bugs... it was uncanny.
In the course of wandering the mountain we came across several of my favorite imported protein birds - a couple ringneck pheasants while chukar calls were bouncing off the cliffs. We also saw one endangered goose - Mr Nene. This is the first species I have come across where some individuals can fly and others are subject to constant ridicule for being unable to get airborne.
A quick fishy diversion - The O'opu is Hawaii's anadromous fish (ocean adult phase, freshwater spawner) of choice for eating but these little guys are documented to climb serious waterfalls in the hopes of finding marital bliss (including a 400'+ vertical falls). Google let me down on video evidence worthy of such a sophisticated blog... but there are clips of these little guys using their suction cup to climb up the rocks behind waterfalls if you are as unbelieving as I was.
The last commercial production of sugar anywhere on Hawaii ended on Maui in 2016 so there is 36,000 acres of lonely cane waiting there patiently. If you have any interest in owning your own industrial ruins, I bet you can get a good price and the location is tough to beat. If you pull the trigger, please invite me so I can wander around making up wildly inaccurate guesses at what the equipment used to do.
Hana Loop
Renowned for both its waterfalls and crumbling roads, the road to Hana and beyond is made for a jeep with the top pulled down but I can vouch its worth it even in the Versa. I'm cutting out at least two thirds of the waterfalls I even bothered to photograph but you might still get waterfall fatigue. If that happens, don't panic, just scroll back up to the desert shots to restore your equilibrium.
At the falls below we ran into a jeep that had locked their keys in the rental and this was roughly the furthest you could get from civilization on the whole island, it was almost sunset, and they had no cell service. Moral of the story, the universe will punish you for not keeping the top off. We loaned them a phone to start the backup key on its three hour drive and left them with our water while they were trying to lift the roof enough to run a wire down to lift the door latch...
Congrats on making it to the very end, your dedication will serve you well in sustaining those new year resolutions. I wish everyone a happy 2018 and hope to see you on the trails or wading in a river with the big one on the line!