The traveling party was informed of the planned departing window between 6:00 am and 6:30 am the night before. This of course was quite early for being on a vacation in Maui although the trip to Haleakala was rather early as well.
We will travel the Road to Hana today. With Grandma being part of the traveling party, we had to come up with stops and itinerary that is suitable for Grandma's ability (no swinging on vine and jumping into waterfall pools for you kids out there).
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| Garden of Eden Arboretum |
Below were our
actual stops in sequence.
First stop: Kuau Store in Paia (36 MM8)
Second stop: Garden of Eden Arboretum (360 MM10.5)
Third stop: Aunt Sandy's Banana Bread on Keanea Peninsula (360 MM16)
Fourth stop: Keanea Peninsula Lookout (360 MM16)
Fifth stop: Half Way to Hana Store (360 MM17)
Sixth stop: Hana Ranch Restaurant in Hana (360 MM33)
Seventh stop: Kipahulu district of Haleakala National Park (360 MM42)
Eight stop: Wailua Falls (360 MM45)
Ninth stop: Black Sand Beach at Waianapanapa State Park (360 MM32)
Tenth stop: Paia Fish Market & Ululani Shave Ice in Paia
Kuau Store
Located in the town of Paia, this was one of our favorite stops. We made it there shortly after 7:00 am to pick up breakfast and coffee. The poke was one of the freshest that we had on the island. The gourmet coffee and pastry was great as well. We highly recommend this stop even for someone who is not planning to do the Road to Hana.
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| The inconspicuous storefront |
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| Surfboards lined the fence of the store |
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| Super fresh poke, first batch of the day |
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| We were greeted by a special friend |
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| Grandma is satisfied with the purchase |
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| Poke and rice for breakfast |
After a great breakfast on the the road, we were ready to explore. Garden of Eden Arboretum, located at Hana Highway 360 Mile Marker 10.5, was a stop that we picked for Grandma.
There are a number of reason that we liked about the Arboretum.
First: It is located less than 20 miles from Paia which allows the traveling party to stretch their legs and use a nice clean restroom after sitting in the car for almost an hour.
Second: It is located at a spectacular location with the view of the Keopuka Rock which was featured in the opening scene of the 1993 Jurassic Park movie.
Third: It features a number of unique plant species such as the Rainbow Eucalyptus Tree that we could see in one singe location.
Fourth: It features a nice waterfall - the Puohokamoa Falls with parking next to the lookout area.
Fifth: The overall area is not too large which was suitable for Grandma's walking ability.
Sixth: It opens early at 8:00 am which makes a great early stop before the crowd gets thick.
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| Puohokamoa Falls overlook |
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| Keopuka Rock Overlook |
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| Bamboo forest |
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| MM by the Rainbow Eucalyptus |
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| The 100 Year Old Mango Tree |
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| The banana patch is nearby |
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| The enchanted forest |
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| Selfie by the overlook |
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| We were greeted by the peacock family |
Keanea Peninsula
The Keanea Peninsula, formed by the lava flow of Haleakala when it was active, is a scared site for the natives. The old stone church was the lone surviving building from the devastating 1946 Tsunami. Today, the peninsula houses the famed
Aunt Sandy's Banana Bread which everyone stocks up a few loaf for the road.
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| Succulents on volcanic rock |
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| Endless lava volcanic rocks |
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| All kinds of interesting creatures can be found in the tide pool |
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| The Old Stone Church that survived the 1946 Tsunami |
Just past Mile Marker 17 on Hana Highway 360 (360 MM17) is the Halfway to Hana. It is a very small store that sells refreshment, shave ice, and also banana bread to tourists along the route. We stopped for shave ice and banana bread.
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| Made it to Halfway to Hana |
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| We are getting the shave ice for sure |
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| Shave Ice hits the spot on a sunny day |
We made it to the town of Hana at about 11:40 am, almost 5 hours after leaving our apartment in Kihei. We had made a reservation at the Hana Ranch Restaurant but it was for 11:00. I somehow completely miscalculated the time that it would take us to get to Hana. But Joanne was able to manage to secure a table for us when we arrived at the restaurant shortly after 12:00 pm.
Located about 10 miles south of Hana, the Kipahulu district of Haleakala National Park is one of the two districts (the other one is the Summit district) of the National Park. This 10 mile stretch of the drive was one of the most winding part of the Road to Hana (we were beyond Hana at this point). We passed numerous narrow single lane bridges and cliffs and were deep into the rainforest part of the island.
We had saved the parking ticket receipt from two days ago to use it here since the entrance fee is valid for three days.
We hiked the easy 0.5 mile Kuloa Point Trail which eventually led us to a great viewpoint of the 'Ohe'o Gulch of the Seven Sacred Pools.
We did not hike the epic Pipiwai Trail since we were short on time and is not suitable for Grandma.
The Black Sand Beach at Waianapanapa State Park at Hana Highway 360 Mile Marker 32 is considered a must stop so we obliged.
Reservation was needed due to the crowd and we reserved the "Afternoon II" time slot that provided us entrance from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm. We chose this slot because we wanted to make this stop on the way home.
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| The staircase that leads to the Black Sand Beach below |
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| The small beach is pretty busy on a Monday afternoon |
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| Volcanic rock was eroded by the sea to from the black pebble or "black sand" |
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| MM exploring the lava tube by the beach |
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| GG inside the lava tube |
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| Great view of the beach from top of the stairway |
We wrapped up our visit to the Black Sand Beach around 4:30 pm and started to head back. By late afternoon, all the shops were already closed. We darted through the windy Hana Highway 360 to get back to Paia town for dinner. During this part of the drive, all the traveling party had become car sick. What we realized was that the road was not only winding but very undulating. The change in air pressure from the undulation caused more discomfort than the swinging motion of the car.
We made it back to Paia around 6:30 pm after 2 hours of non-stop driving on the winding and undulating narrow Highway 360.
We had our heart set on Paia Fish Market for dinner but we made a quick stop at Mama's Fish House just to see if there were any spots - of course there were none.
We feasted on fresh catch fish plates and pasta in the crowded restaurant filled with tourists. We had to end the night at Ululani's just across the street.
After dinner we stopped by Costco to fill up and Walmart to check out some souvenirs. It had been another full day of exploration. Kudos to Grandma for sticking through it.
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| The laid back Paia town |
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| What is fresh today? |
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| Fresh catch plate with rice and homemade potatoes |
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| A perfect way to end the long day |
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