Like Riding a Bike

I took a 1-hour motorized hang gliding lesson in Hana. You know that part in ET when their bikes start flying? That was what it was like, except with Maui as a backdrop (sea arches, waterfalls, ocean, mountains, etc.), especially once we cut the  propeller and let the glider do it's thing.

Ice Water is Fun (day...I've lost track)

It's hard to pick a favorite activity from all the exciting adventures we've had, but I think we both agree this is a strong contender. The caves at Waianapanapa State Park are filled with a mixture of fresh water and tidal ocean waters, resulting in possibly the most clear (and cold) water I've ever swum in.

But even better than jumping off a small cliff into the frigid water was the fact that, after donning headlamps, we and our new buddies (heard in the above video) went exploring and discovered about 5 hidden chambers past the main one. The last one required a squeeze and then a plunge into unknown depths. Excellent fun.

Seven Sacred Pools: The Flash Flood version

We drove counterclockwise (lefty-loosy) around the island to hit a waterfall mecca called Ohe'o Gulch- commonly known as the Seven Sacred Pools.

Random waterfall dumping into the ocean

The drive itself was gorgeous. I liked it even better than the clockwise drive to Hana, but the road was much more perilous (imagine cliff-side blind hairpin turns on a one lane dirt road and you're starting to get the picture). Peter had to honk whenever we went around a corner in case there was a car coming that we couldn't see.

Ohe'o gulch was under flash flood conditions due to all the rain that day. To give you an idea, here is a picture of what it usually looks like that I pulled of the internet:

And here is how we found it:

Normally, people swim in all the pools beneath the waterfalls, but there was no swimming to be had today. But hiking was still okay, so we took went on a four miler to a 400-foot falls called Waimoku.

He thinks he's so funny

The waterfall dumps out into the ocean- I bet there are some fun currents there.

And the rain rain rain came down down down, until the trail itself became a four mile waterfall.  Luckily, we had our swimming suits on and were able to put them to use as rain gear. Our prize was stunning.

The pictures don't do justice to the scale of the waterfall, so I've included this graphic: the blue line is the 400 ft waterfall and the red rectangle is a 6 ft human.

 Other pictures from the day:

Half of the hike was through a dark bamboo forrest

Here are the tops of the bamboos

A Monkey in a Banyan Tree

Big Beautiful Orb-Weavers

The road home had more adventure: same perilous conditions plus driving into the blinding sunset.  But we were rewarded with vistas of rainbows and sea arches.

Peter was so pleased that I wanted to stop so much to take pictures.

A Hie to Hana: Clockwise (day 8)

We drove to Hana (which is on the other side of the island) in a clockwise fashion. This drive is infamous for it's white-knuckled winding mountainside drives and waterfalls around almost every bend. The rain dampened our hikes, but it also turned every trickle into a gusher, so waterfalls were even more rampant.

Hey, that's our road!

The lava that formed the island also left behind lava tubes- we found one by the roadside and explored it with our headlamps. Later, we paid to explore the largest lava tube on the island. I liked the little one we just found a little better.

The entrance to the roadside lava tube- most people just drive right by it.

Small lave tube entrance from the inside

The other end of the small lava tube

The commercial lava tube

The town of Hana was fanastic. The coast was amazing- bluest ragingest water ever, complete with sea arches, blow holes and surf-made waterfalls. I could have watched the waves crash all day.

Peter almost did this, but we were late for another appointment.

Haleakala: The Other Side of Heaven

Haleakala (pronounced Holly Ockala) is the dormant volcanic mountain that largely created the island of Maui. At an elevation over 10,000 feet, it's quite different than the tropical paradise below. It's desolate and it's COLD!

The wind chill is the kicker. I had my Boston coat on, along with gloves and an ear-warmer, and I still wasn't warm enough at the top. But I was fine for the hike we took on the Sliding Sands trail.

The Landscape is surreal- like hiking on Mars. And it looks like the edge of the world since you can often see the ocean 10,000 feet below and are above the clouds. Completely awesome.

The endangered Silverswords look like they're straight out of a Dr. Suess book. 

Our Trail Guide seemed a little distracted by insects.

He's singing a High C because he's so cold.

We watched the sun set over the AFRL. Really it's the Eye of Sauron

I love what you do for us, Toyota!

A sliver moon