Discovering Maui: Part 3, The Road to Hana

If heaven had a highway...

The road to Hana is without question the most famous and desired drive in all Hawaii.  It's been compared to driving through the garden of Eden:  a slow, winding road through a lush paradise that you always knew existed-somewhere. 

The road to the village of Hana is two lanes with lots of one-lane bridges with a portion unpaved.  Sometimes putting your car rental contracts in jeopardy.

To navigate and to make sure you don't miss a waterfall, beach or place to buy banana bread we recommend purchasing the book Maui Revealed.  It pin points where to look by mile markers on the highway.

Taro is grown in pondfields.   It is a perennial, tropical plant primarily grown as a root vegetable for its edible starchy corm, and as a leaf vegetable and is considered a staple in African, Oceanic, and Asian cultures.  Pesticide use in the pondfields is barred because of the clear opportunity for chemicals to quickly migrate into streams and then into the ocean.

Lava Tubes

Waianapanapa (Sounds like WHY-A-NAH-PAH-NAH-PAHY) Black Sand Beach. The beach was formed when lava flowed and shattered on contact with the ocean.

Mongoose

Getting to the Red Sand Beach (Hawaiian name is Kaihalulu) is tricky.  The trail is on the side of a hill, with loose cinders making the footing awkward in several spots.  And one part is along a shoreline exposing you to rogue waves.  If you look close you might see a nude sunbather.

Seven Sacred Pools

The best place to take a cool dip.

I did say cool or cold!

That's me behind the falls.

 The back side of Haleakala Crater.

What a beautiful day!

Just like home.

On the way back to our hotel we decided to have dinner in Lahaina at Cool Cat Cafe, voted the best burger in Maui for 5 years. 

Gary, had the Duke.  The burger has two delicious strips of bacon, melted cheese and golden onion rings, all covered in their special BBQ sauce.

I had the Don Ho, a burger with bacon and Jack cheese, with pineapple and sweet Hawaiian sauce.

  So good after a busy day!

Our last day was spent just relaxing on the beach before the overnight flight home.

The hotel offers many opportunities to learn about the Hawaiian culture.  One being how to make a hawaiian lei.  All the supplies are free and meeting people from other parts of the world was the bonus.   I purchased the special needles in hopes I could make some lei at home with our own flowers.

 The proper way to wear a lei is gently draped over the shoulders, hanging down both in front and in back. It is considered rude to remove a lei from your neck in the presence of the person who gave it to you, so if you must, be discreet.

 The Kaanapali Beach Hotels courtyard.

Another wonderful vacation!  Where will we go next?