Maui - January/February 2026

[You can enlarge any picture in this narrative by clicking on it - it will open in a separate window and in many cases, show detail you can't see in the smaller version.  (Click on the back arrow to return to the text.)  Many more pictures can be found here.]

Sunday January 25 - Tuesday January 27

We picked up Katie and George at the airport Sunday night and filled the car up with cheap (Costco) gas.  Monday was a sleep-in day as they were tired from a long day of travelling.  After breakfast I took them up to Kihei Rent a Car to add them as drivers for our car (no extra charge) and then we went to Safeway to stock up for the next 2 weeks.  In the afternoon, John took them on a walk along the shore trail we used regularly - they saw a big pile of turtles in the cove and watched a whale calf showing off for its mom!  And the sun put on a good show at sunset, too!

Tuesday was our Haleakala volcano day.  We packed lunches and left around 8:30 am.  George drove us up the very steep, twisty roads.  Our first stop was at Hosmer Grove that has a nice half mile loop trail.  We met some rangers part way who showed us several endangered bird and gave us hints on how to spot them.  We had already seen some nene (picture at right: a goose that is the state bird) in the parking lot; we also saw an 'apapane (big red one) and i'iwi (smaller red with a long curved bill) and heard the Hawaii amakihi (small yellow).  Katie managed to snap a picture of an i'iwi in flight (below left) but I just wasn't fast enough to get any of them!  It was a pleasant hike and we also saw a couple different types of Eucalyptus tree (peppermint eucalyptus in the center below). 


Continuing upward, we stopped at Leleiwi overlook that was a short hike from the parking lot over rocks to the viewpoint - the photo on the right above is along that trail; it is an interesting desert-like area at cloud height!  At the overlook, we got an awesome view of craters and cones.  Clouds added a lot of interest to the views. A few of those pictures are below - there are many more in the Photos collection!

Then we continued on to the summit (summit overlook at the right, sign at the left).  The views were all fantastic; views of the crater were much like the ones we saw from Leleiwi except we were higher up, looking down on it.  The ecology is more desert-like up there.  One of the fun things we learned is that the native 'āhinahina plant (aka silversword - photo at left below) grows nowhere else in the world, it only blossoms once in its lifetime and was endangered until a federal effort was undertaken to protect it.  We ate our picnic lunch near the visitor center.  The only picnic areas are down at the lower visitor center and Hosmer grove so we sat in the car or on the stone walls.  We walked up to the summit point and saw the Space Surveillance Complex (not part ofthe park) - pictured in the center below.  We could see Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea on the Big Island over the clouds - see the picture on the right below.  I had really wanted to walk the first half mile of the Sliding Sands (aka Keonehe'ehe'e) Trail but we were all too drained to even try it.  I was amazed at how wiped out I felt - we were over 10,000 feet and I'm sure the altitude was a big part of it. 

On the way back down, we stopped at the Kalahaku Overlook that had similar views to the Leleiwi one.  There was a long stairway (or ramp) up to the viewpoint and the clouds were quite remarkable by then, making the views of the craters, cones and slides rather unearthly.  We took pictures of us with "our heads in the cloud!"  Driving back down was a little scary as we were going through the clouds.


We got back to the condo around 4 pm; we crashed, took showers and then went to Coconuts Fish Cafe (an easy walk up the street) for supper.  It was okay but I didn't like it as much as others did.  Maybe because I had coconut shrimp and so it was fried.  They did have some plates that were grilled but I had my heart set on coconut tonight!

Wednesday-Thursday January 28 - 29

On Wednesday John and Katie did some snorkeling near the rocks on Kamaole Beach II; George read and I did laundry and read.  Thursday was the start of our big Road to Hana adventure!  This is a long windy road from Kahului to Hana at the very eastern tip of the island.  It has about 620 curves and crosses 69 one-lane bridges - George was recruited to drive!  We left around 8:30 then stopped for gas at Cosco and headed east. At MM9 (before the numbering restarts) we stopped at Ho'okipa Beach. It is known for being a great surfing spot and for turtle watching in the afternoon.  We didn't see turtles in the morning but enjoyed watching the surfers for a while!

Our next stop was Twin Falls at MM2 (after we restarted at 0 at Pe'ahi).  It cost $10 for parking but there was still plenty of room in the mid-morning. There are actually 3 falls that we visited: the first two were fairly close to the parking lot then there was a longer hike up to the third one. It was a nice walk, with assorted flowers (below are: a bamboo stand, heliconia and walking iris) then the higher falls (really sort of a "double" falls) required wading across a rocky pool.  I had water shoes and the others kindly waited for me to change shoes and go take pictures that are shown below the flowers.

Our next stop was lunch at Kaumahina State Wayside Park (MM12) that had picnic facilities and nice coastal views (one at left). Then, a little further down the road we stopped to visit Ke'anae Arboretum (MM16). There is no charge for this arboretum and it was a delightful hike.  Highlights were the Rainbow Eucalyptus and many flowers (purple spider lily at the right) and great spiders! Below are the eucalyptus (you can see where the "rainbow" name comes from), a torch ginger and Hawaiian garden spider.

We stopped again at Pua'a Kaa State Wayside (MM22) to use the facilities and got a bonus prize of more waterfalls!  (Pictured at the left.)  We made a short stop around MM25 at Makapipi Falls - these falls are under the bridge we were standing on which meant we'd get a much better view from another place.  We had wanted to go to Kahanu Gardens but they close at 3 PM and it was already almost 3, so we just went on to the Hana Kai resort in Hana where we were spending the night. 

You can see from the picture at the right, the Hana Kai has a beautiful location, right on the ocean.  Since we were only there for one night, we had selected one of the smaller suites but we found we were upgraded from our original reservation into a 2 bedroom, 2 bath suite with a full kitchen and marvelous views from floor to ceiling windows and sliding doors all along the east side.  Wow - we recommend them highly!  We spent some time walking on the black sand beach then took advantage of the kitchen by getting take-out supper at the nearby Food Truck park.  John got Thai and the rest of us chose Mexican burritos, quesadillas and tacos.  We have a strenuous morning planned tomorrow so went to bed early!

Friday, January 30

Since we are now on the east end of Maui, we could watch a beautiful sunrise from the deck.  We had minimal breakfast stuff with us but George went out and scrounged some goodies (banana bread and pineapple coconut bread, e.g.)  We left around 9 am for the Kipahulu district of the Haleakala National Park.  It was hard to believe but the road from Hana to the park entrance was even WORSE than the rest of it - it was not only twisty but also bumpy, very narrow and not well maintained. 

Katie, John and I hiked the 2-mile (each way) Pipiwai Trail to the Waimoku Falls with an elevation gain about 800 feet; it took about 4 hours.  It was quite steep and rocky - fortunately it hadn't rained recently as I understand it gets really muddy and slippery when wet.  Highlights - starting at the right include a walking palm; then below at the left is a giant Banyan Tree about a half mile up  - see John standing next to it for a sense of its size (click the picture to enlarge it) and notice the long low branch on its left that has rooted itself in several places. Below from left to right: we crossed several streams and bridges - this one is Palikea Stream with a small cascade we could see from a bridge; At about 1 mile up we come to a bamboo forest - part of the trail in this area is a boardwalk which is a great relief from climbing over and around all the rocks.  (John and Katie are up ahead of me on the boardwalk.)  Finally, at the top we come to the 400 foot Waimuko Falls.  Even though this is a rainforest, it is currently in a drought so the falls isn't as profound as it sometimes is but we still found it pretty impressive!  We also saw various types of flowers, other plants, spiders and bees!


George wasn't interested in the torturous climb but waited patiently - he walked the "7 Pools" trail near the Visitor Center and shared the pictures he took of that; he mostly just enjoyed the peace and quiet, listening to some podcasts.  On the way back to Kihei we stopped for a late lunch at the Food Trucks in Hana where I got a picture of a friendly gecko.  We drove the rest of the way back without stopping - it was raining much of the way (not hard, fortunately).  I did get a couple snapshots of waterfalls we could see from the road but mostly we were just enjoying the lushness of the forests we were driving through.   We got back safely and tired.  I got out a "quick and easy" supper - frozen ravioli with canned marinara sauce - and then we headed for showers, books and an early bedtime.



Saturday January 31 - Monday February 2

These were mostly windy, lazy days.  George went out and got cinnamon rolls for breakfast; the waves were quite rough (snorkel score was 3.5/10) and the lifeguards were having a hard time keeping kids away from the surf.  John and I took a beach walk but not very long. Katie took George to the airport Sunday.  The contractor upstairs doesn't work weekends so we enjoyed the quiet!  Monday it was even more windy - the snorkel score was 1.5!  It had rained some so we went back to the Kealia bird refuge to see if there were more birds around.  Nope - it was so windy that they were almost absent!  The few that were there (mostly stilts) had a hard time even flying in the wind.  We made our, hopefully last, grocery stop to get fresh produce for the last week.  I like the kind of sunset pictured at left, where the light outlines the clouds.

Tuesday February 3  The snorkel score was 3 so it didn't seem to be a good beach day.  We started at the Wailea Village Farmer's Market and found a few goodies.  One of the vendors was showing us watercolors of La Perouse Bay and said we really needed to go see it.  So we did!

Katie drove us all the way to the "bottom" point at La Perouse Bay.  The last couple miles were reminiscent of Hana Road!  Very twisty, bumpy, narrow.  But she handled it like a pro!  There is a parking area at the end of the road in the lava fields of the Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve.  We could see whale activity but were not close enough for pictures.  It was a beautiful area - we spent some time climbing around on the lava rocks - there were DOZENS of cars there, including a school bus with what appeared to be middle school kids on a field trip!  John was very taken by the dead tree in the parking lot and declared it "driftwood" so I took its picture (above, left).  We weren't equipped for the very primitive Hoapili Trail but that's where the trailhead is for another time. From the bay we could see the Haleakala volcano in the distance - its last eruption was at least 200 years ago.  We paused to read the La Perouse Monument (at the right above) to the first known European navigator to land at Keone'o'io (what is now known as La Perouse Bay).  On the way back north we stopped at a few pull-offs for the awesome scenery and picture taking.  The pictures below are of the lava fields that extend into the bay.  You need sturdy shoes for exploring and risk nasty cuts if you twist an ankle!  The one at the right is taken at a small pull-off at Ahihi Cove (not the big paved parking lot where there is a fee to park) along Makena Road, with Molokini Island in the background.

In the afternoon, I talked Katie into walking up to the Beach Street Shave Ice store because I thought it wasn't right to go to Maui and not try the renowned shave ice!  It was okay but not rave-worthy.  There are macadamia nuts in the bottom, then a layer of ice cream, then shave ice and flavored syrup on top.  It was very refreshing on a hot day, though!  In the late afternoon, Katie and I went down to The Shops in Wailea to see a Polynesian dance performance. The troupe was very good  - included all ages from 4 years up to "very mature."  They were performing native dances that told stories about the culture and history of the island.  We got the best views across from the stage on the second floor; sadly we couldn't understand most of it because the sound system was "fuzzy." But it was fun to watch and we also enjoyed the many kids in the audience who were trying to do the dances, too!

Wednesday February 4 - Thursday February 5

Wednesday we just relaxed, hung out at home and walked the beach - but here's an interesting sunset picture (no clouds tonight).  I love the way the waves are reflected in the sun!  Thursday morning we went to Mile Marker 14 on highway 30 - aka Olowalu beach - for snorkeling.  What an interesting reef - it was near high tide and that makes the beach narrow, but the marine life is awesome. We saw lots of fish and turtles.  I got claustrophobic and didn't last too long out there, but I did get a good turtle picture (above, right) and SAW a lot of fish that my camera couldn't capture.  Besides snorklers, there were lots of kayaks, canoes and a scuba class.  It was a VERY busy road, bumper to bumper in both directions, making it quite hard to turn anywhere, even a right hand turn from the parking area was tough. More pictures from that morning include Katie (left) and John (right) snorkeling. Below is a (bad) picture of what I'm pretty sure are parrot fish - my old underwater camera doesn't focus well anymore.  In the center is a picture of a well-camouflaged sand crab that was entertaining me for a while and on the right is a picture showing the "beach."  There is no parking lot so cars just park along the road wherever they can pull off.  There are lots of trees which helps make it shady but, especially near high tide, it's very narrow. In the afternoon, we just read and relaxed.