The Road To Hana

One of the big attractions in Maui is actually a stretch of the Hana Highway. The Hana Highway runs along the east coast of Maui to the small town of Hana. Though the drive is only 52 miles it can take up to 3 hours to drive because along the way is 46 one way bridges and countless narrow curves and hairpin turns. As fun as that sounds, that is only part of the appeal. The drive is through beautiful scenic rainforest, and along the way one can stop and see numerous waterfalls, beaches, and other scenic wonders. We planned Friday to be our Road to Hana day, and Sarah planned out all of our stops along the way. Since we saw so much, I divided the trip into several different posts.

Waterfalls

Our first stop was to see a waterfall. What we soon discovered is that there are so many waterfalls along the way that you do not need to stop just to see a waterfall. These are the highlights of what we saw.

Pit Stop At The Coast

Our next stop was to get some world famous banana bread. Well it was for others to get some world famous banana bread, I do not like banana bread. As it turns out though, I am glad that we stopped because there were ample photo taking opportunities. The banana bread stand was right on the coast and we had yet to get any pictures of the coast. I even found a couple little critters to photograph.

Coconut Chicken

Our next stop was not on Sarah's itinerary, but we could not resist. Some in our group had been craving trying a fresh coconut, and there just happened to be a roadside coconut stand along the way so we stopped and tried a couple. I tried the fresh coconut which tastes different than the dried out shreds you get at the grocery store, and actually I did not like the fresh as well. Who knew? I was amused though taking pictures of the chickens and chicks running around through the piles of old coconuts husks!

Wai'anapanapa State Park

Our next stop is one that I did not photograph. We were trying to see something called the Blue Pool. Sarah's guidebook said that the drive to the Blue Pool was through private property, but not to be deterred. Well as you drive towards the pool there are signs everywhere saying "Blue Pool Closed. Turn Around!". Sarah was determined so we drove as far as we could, and a couple of our group walked on ahead to see if the signs were wrong. Well the signs were right. The entrance to the Blue Pool was gated closed and there was no way around. Oh well!

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So after that disappointment, we continued our journey on the Road To Hana. Our next destination was the Wai'anapanapa State Park to see the black sand beach and the caves with fresh water pools. I had decided that I did not want to go into the water and then have to spend the rest of the day wet so I did not bring my swimsuit. I did however step into the water in the caves. It was very cold! The black sand beach was nice, but not as impressive as the one we visited on the Big Island.

Red Sand Beach

Of all the stops we made on the Road To Hana, my favorite was also the one that I insisted on seeing. Having seen a cool black sand beach and the amazing green sand beach on the Big Island, I knew that I had to see the red sand beach in Maui. It was a bit like the green sand beach in that you had to hike out to the beach and it is formed from an old volcanic cinder cone too. Sadly there were more people at the red sand beach than at the green sand beach, but I was still able to get some fun pictures.

O'heo Gulch or the Seven Sacred Pools

Our final stop on the Road To Hana was actually on the road past Hana. If you drive south from Hana you come to the eastern entrance to Haleakala National Park. In the park on this side of the island is an incredible set of waterfalls and pools called O'heo Gulch or the Seven Sacred Pools. Well the Seven Sacred Pools is a bit of a misnomer since there are far more than seven, but apparently the Seven Sacred Pools is a name that attracts tourists?! By this time it was three hours after we left our condo in the morning and most of us were tired especially since we had to drive back the same way. We opted not to hike up to the top of the falls, but decided to be content with what you can see at the bottom.