The Road To Hana

Legends about The Road to Hana long preceded our actual arrival on Maui. Whenever we mentioned our plans to stay here to the already initiated, eyebrows would arch, heads would nod, and inevitably, in low and reverential tones, we would be asked: "Are you going to drive The Road to Hana?" So of course, we had to see what all the excitement was about! Also referred to as Dramamine Road, the Hana Highway is a 55-mile journey into the unspoiled heart of the Island, terminating in the peaceful town of Hana along Maui's rugged eastern coastline. It is hard to think of this area as unspoiled, though, with the hundreds of tourists, including yours truly, snaking along the 620 curves, some of them of the hairpin variety, and crossing the 59 bridges, most of which are one-laners. The drive can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours to complete, one way, due to the nature of the road itself, and the many opportunities to pull off the road to experience incredible island views, flourishing rainforests, and flowing waterfalls. The road traces a centuries-old path which is now a well-paved highway, and despite its twists and turns, it isn't as scary as it might seem. The speed limit is s-l-o-w, both by necessity and by the posted signs, ranging from 10 to 25 mph in most places, and there are guardrails the entire length of the road…not that you ever want to test them out, if you know what I mean. We made a few stops along the drive to hike on a nature trail, experience a waterfall up close, and just to get out and stretch our legs. We made it to Hana in 3 hours where we had lunch and explored the area before driving two more hours to get back home. Here are some pictures of our journey.

Leaving The Big Island, Heading to Maui

Today is our last day on the Big Island, and concludes the first month of our visit to the Hawaiian Islands. Tomorrow morning we fly to Maui, where we will spend the second, and final, month of our stay. Dan and I enjoyed our time here very much! We visited waterfalls and beach parks, walked through underground lava tubes, and watched the sun set into the clouds on Mauna Kea Mountain. We snorkeled with the beautiful tropical fish, made friends with the neighborhood geckos, and walked through lush botanical gardens. We enjoyed the sounds of local birdsongs, our many trips to the nearby Farmer's Market for fresh tropical fruit, and the aroma of the many blooming plants found all over the Island. Speaking of the Island, we drove (a lot!), and made our way around the perimeter, across the middle over Saddle Road, and to the southern most point of the United States (fittingly named South Point). We saw tons of lava, learned a bunch about volcanoes, saw the molten glow at night from Kilauea, and visited a planetarium. But our home base during our last four weeks has been Hilo, and I thought it only fitting to close out this chapter of our travels with a few "local" photos.

Kaumana Caves, Hilo, Hawaii

The Kaumana Caves are part of a 25-mile-long lava tube located on Hawaii's Big Island. Set on a hilltop above Hilo, the cave's entrance – actually a skylight formed when part of the lava tube collapsed – is open to curious visitors who want to explore the inside. (A lava tube is a natural tunnel formed by flowing lava which moves beneath the hardened surface of a lava flow. Tubes can be actively draining lava from a volcano during an eruption, or can be extinct, meaning the lava flow has ceased and the rock has cooled and left a long cave-like channel.) 

A concrete staircase leads down into the skylight that forms the entrance to the caves. The section of the caves open to the public stretches for approximately 2 miles. Many areas near the entrance are lit by sunlight, but the cave is damp, cool and often muddy, with lots of vines, ferns and roots hanging down from the entranceway and the ceiling. Visitors can observe a wide variety of lava formations, including some rock that is red because it cooled so fast during the 1881 flow that it retained its color.  

The Kaumana lava tube was formed by lava flow from Hawaii's Mauna Loa in 1881. The eruption of the giant volcano actually occurred on Nov. 5, 1880, but the lava continued its slow approach on Hilo through the first few months of 1881. By late June, it was within 5 miles of the town and began picking up speed. Legend has it that Hawaii's Princess Ruth, sent from Honolulu, is responsible for saving the then-tiny village because she was carried into the hills in late July and took up a position in front of the lava, praying to Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of religion and fire, to spare the town. The flow began slowing, and finally stopped in early August, just 1.5 miles from Hilo Bay.  

Dan and I didn't venture too far into the tube, maybe just 1/4 mile in each direction, but far enough to notice that without our flashlights we would be in absolute darkness. For the serious spelunker, long pants, headlamps, and closed toed shoes are recommended to traverse all of the accessible parts of this cave.

 

Snorkeling in Hawaii

What would a trip to Hawaii be without ocean snorkeling? Paddling around in the warm Pacific Ocean, buoyed by salt water, flippers, and the regular intake of air into my lungs, I would be content to float in this magical fish bowl all day long. It was hard to believe the array of tropical fish we saw within a few feet from shore. Bright yellow tangs with their eternal smile, beautifully painted rainbow wrasse and parrot fish, polka-dotted spotted box fish, brilliant red sea urchins, and the striped Moorish Idol were just some of the many fish we were lucky enough to spot while swimming over corral reefs and rocks. Dan was even treated to a brief swim with a sea turtle! We don't own an underwater camera, and didn't opt to rent one, so the pictures I have below are borrowed from Google Images and are excellent depictions of the underwater world we experienced.