Our last days on Maui we tried to do as much as we could do. We went to Wailea for a second time. Between several resorts is a beautiful coastal trail. These resorts, like Four Seasons, Wailea Grand and The Fairmount go out of their way to make the patron’s experience memorable. They don’t exclude visitors like us either. I loved finding the “free” Ginger water at the Four Seasons. They used ‘simple syrup’ which sweetened the entire drink. They even gave out a free recipe to their concoction.
It is in our last week we came across “Ka’anapali North” with Dukes Restaurant as a centering force along that trail. It was on that walk we were able to reach the highest floor of the Sheraton overlooking the Ka’anapali area.
Our favorite find was Kapalua Beach and coastal trail. We were actually on the fringe of it with our visit to the “Dragon’s Teeth” area. The trick is to arrive before 8:00 AM and get a parking spot.
We did visit the famous Ritz-Carlton. Back in the 1990’s, they were building this resort when they came across a thousand Hawaiian graves. Eventually, they were forced to move the resort back a ways and make the burial area sacred again. You can still find cemeteries all along the coasts of Hawaii.
There is the Kapalua Coastal trail. Some of it is paved, but there are areas that you are on the rocky coast. The vistas to Molokai are stunning.
Our last two days we traveled east to Hana. It is 52 miles from the main town of Kahului. We had to travel over 620 hair-pin curves and 59 bridges, many of those bridges one-lane. You just have to take your time. We learned to book two nights at Hana to get the best experience.
We saw in a Lahaina art shop some beautiful photos of “the painted rainbow trees.” It is described as “The Most Colorful Tree on Earth.” These giant trees can grow up to 200 feet and are Eucalypyus. The Rainbow Eucalyptus, also known as the Mindanao Gum, originated in New Britain, New Guinea and cultivated for pulp wood in the Philippines. We found them at mile marker 7 on Hana Hwy. We hit it just right being by ourselves and the sun was out.
In Hana, Kathie and I did the walk to “Fagan’s Cross.” The cross was built for Paul Fagan who died in either 1960 or 1970, depending on what account you read. He was a famous developer who built the original Hana Hotel. This cross is quite large and is on a 545 foot Lyon’s Hill. It is a puffer of a walk, and a knee stopper when you come down.
We reserved a B& B room known as “Heavenly Hana Paradise.” The family came from New York City about 25 years ago. Hana is a place to get away from the world.
Our room is cozy, fully contained. No one has AC in Hana, but there are plenty of fans. The road to our B&B is graveled and takes a while to get used to. A chicken comes by our room named “Lucy,” who likes to dig in the dirt. Apparently, she likes to lay eggs in our outside chair too.
There are not too many places to eat in Hana. The most interesting was “The Clay Pizza” place. Everything apparently is “Farm to table,” ingredients. Not your normal pizza place, pepperoni and sausage are not even available. The pizza was cooked in a clay over, and wrapped in “banana leaves” with a small red flower on top.
We awoke in the morning hoping to make it up the Pipiwai trail at the Haleakala National Park. You actually walk through several bamboo forests to reach an impressive waterfall. But, the rains came down, just poured. After five times in Hana, we were finally rained out which Hana is famous for. We did find a beautiful waterfall along the way.
One of our major arguments back in 1998 was trying to locate the burial ground of Charles Lindbergh. Kathie suggested I should ask a local, and I finally did. There are absolutely “no” signs to this famous man’s grave.
There was no problem this time, and Kathie allowed me to wander around in the rain. My favorite gravestone though, is of Robert Scott G. Deming.
Mark Twain had visited Maui back in 1866 writing a travelogue, “Mark Twain in Hawaii: Roughing It in the Sandwich Islands.” He said of the Valley Isle, “I went Maui to stay for a week, and remained five. I never spent so pleasant a month before, or bade any place good-bye so regretfully.” We know what he means.
