Travelogue

Day 8 - Enjoying the Wailea Beach Resort

Our buffet breakfastAs I mentioned in my previous stop, we checked into the Wailea Beach Resort last night and watched a beautiful sunset from our balcony.

We are not usually the “resort” type, but we decided to dive in and enjoy all the amenities, the first of which was an unlimited breakfast buffet at the Humble Market Kitchin by Roy Yamaguchi, a short walk away.

We had no idea who Roy Yamaguchi was, but apparently he is a big deal in the culinary world. He’s a Japanese-American celebrity chef and restaurateur and one of the founding members of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine movement.

Scouting out the pool situationThe buffet had everything you could dream of: several types of scrambled eggs, Hawaiian French toast, applewood smoked bacon, various kinds of sausages, salmon gravlax (which I had never heard of before but instantly became a big fan), and of course the usual fruit, cereal, oatmeal, yogurt etc.

It was overwhelming and of course we overindulged on the first day. We would try to control ourselves better on the remaining 4 mornings. Plus, the setting was phenomenal as we sat at a table overlooking the ocean.

Our infinity poolWhen we got back to our room, I looked down at the infinity pool from our balcony and saw that most of the lounge chairs already had towels on them.

I told Herb that we better get down there and claim two or we would be out of luck. He thought that it was rude to save chairs until you were already to use them, but he soon learned the ways of “resort life.” It’s a dog eat dog world out there, so we scurried down and claimed two of the few remaining chairs.

Me feeling pretty pompousThe pool was a 50-meter long infinity pool, also known as a zero-edge or rimless pool.

They are so cool because they give you the feeling that they go on and one forever - you know, infinity. They give the illusion of a missing edge where the water just keeps flowing on and on, in this case into the ocean.

It was a very hot day, so it was a welcome treat to dip in the pool, cool off while the water evaporated on my skin, dip again, and repeat.

Herb humoring me on a runIt was quite lovely. Still, I’m not known for my ability to just sit still for long periods of time, so I suggested to Herb that we go for a run on the Wailea Beach Path that goes for about 2 miles weaving its way between fancy hotels on one side and the ocean on the other.

We were located at about the halfway point, so we headed north first. After about a half mile or so, the pavement ended and we were spit out onto Ulea Beach, which is supposed to be the end of the trail. However, I was feeling feisty, so we continued running on the sand to Keawakapu Beach.

Another perfect sunsetFrom there we turned around and started heading south, once again regaining the asphalt surface. As we passed our hotel, Herb waved bye bye to me, but I continued on to Polo Beach, at the other end of the Wailea Beach Path.

Since I could go no further, I turned around and ran back to the hotel, where I found Herb eating a Mango popsicle. He said they were giving them out for free and he didn't want to ask for two. I think we both thought we made the right choice - me running the full 4.5 miles and him cutting it short for a Mango pop.

Lolo of the AlohaThat night we had dinner on the resort property at the Kapa Bar and Grill, located just one pool over from ours.

We both were in the mood for a Poke Bowl, so we ordered the local Ahi Bowl. I was a little disappointed because I didn’t notice that one of its ingredients was cilantro, and I am not a huge cilantro fan. User-error. The setting, however, was lovely.

After dinner we strolled around the resort grounds, this time on the side away from the ocean.

I felt compelled to pose for a photo inside the “O” of a huge lit up ALOHA display. I also took note of the Cornhole game, which I would definitely make Herb play with me another night.

Day 9 - Exploring the West Maui peninsula (Waihee Ridge Trail, Olivine Pools, Nakalele Blowhole, and Dragon’s Teeth)

Almost backWhen we vacation, we like to alternate relaxing days with days with more physical activity, which is usually hiking.

Before leaving for this trip, I had researched the best hikes in Maui, and one of them that consistently came up was the Waihee Ridge Trail, located on the eastern side of the nugget-like peninsula that sticks out to the northwest of the rest of Maui.

Makamakaole FallsOn a map it looks like you could just snap it off from the main part of Maui.

It’s considered a challenging hike, climbing 1,700 feet over 5 miles (RT).

It was about a 50 minute drive from Wailea, with about 3 miles of really twisty roads at the end. It’s a very popular hike, so as we approached, we got concerned when we saw a couple walking up the steep road to the trailhead parking. Uh oh! Parking lot must be full.

Waihee CanyonSure enough it was, but we had come a long way to do this hike, so we decided to wait at the entrance to the parking lot for someone to return to their car. Sure enough, we only had to wait about 10 minutes.

This trail didn’t mess around. Right from the parking lot, it climbed 200 feet up a steep cement road.

Waihee ValleyFrom there we followed a lovely dirt path through a dense rainforest of guava, kukui, swamp mahogany and Cook Island palms.

One really weird group of trees had a series of raised circles on its bark every foot or so right up to the top. One was even doing the Samba. For the life of me, I couldn’t find out what kind of tree it was.

Waihee Ridge TrailBy a half mile into the hike, we had already gained 400 feet. Only 1,300 feet left to climb.

Shortly after that, at about the one mile point, we rounded a sharp switchback with a bench from which there is a panoramic view of Waihee Canyon, Makamakaole Gulch, and Makamakaole Falls, dropping 270 feet in several tiers.

Almost thereContinuing up the ridge, we got our first view of Waihee Valley. The valley is mostly wilderness interspersed with taro fields (a traditional Hawaiian staple food) and a couple of dozens of inhabitants.

From here the trail continues to climb by means of switchbacks and stairs until finally reaching Lanalili peak (2,563 feet) at the end of the hike.

Lanalili means “small heaven” and we could see why as we were rewarded with magnificent views in every direction.

Lanalili SummitThere were about a dozen people on top, three of which were speaking German. Herb, who spoke German as a child, loves to practice it, and he is surprisingly good.

Thankfully, the conversation switched back to English so I could get into the conversation.

Big coincidence, when we told them we live in Sonoma County in California, they said they are currently working at the Sonoma Racetrack, which is about a half hour from our home.

The way downThey work for Hyundai and travel around the world teaching amateurs enough about racing to let them loose on the racetrack in a Hyundai Ionic 5.

The hike down was great and the views looked totally different from this perspective. Thankfully, it didn’t rain during our hike, because the trails can get extremely muddy and slippery.

Almost backWe were lucky, because there was a downpour about an hour later.

Maui has some really narrow, twisty roads. We had already driven two of them - the road up to Haleakala Crater and the Road to Hana. We had one more to go - the one around the edges of the West Peninsula, which I have affectionately been calling the “Nugget.”

Little did we know that this would be the worst of the three in that it had many more single lane situations where we had to back up fairly significant distances.

Olivine Pools warning signThere would be 23 miles of challenging roads before getting to Kapulua on the west side of the Nugget where the roads finally began to straighten out and widen.

Driving this section of road (officially Highway 340) is called going “Over the Top,” meaning the top of the West Maui peninsula. It was pretty wild and we often had to back up as much as a quarter of a mile to let an oncoming car squeeze by.

There are some interesting stops though along “the Top.”

The dangerous Olivine PoolsOur first one was the Olivine Pools, a dramatic set of tidepools, which used to be a popular spot for swimming, but has since been closed due to several drownings.

We pulled into the small parking lot at the side of the road and walked the short distance, past the warning sign about not swimming in the pools, and came to the top of a lava cliff from which we could look down on the waves crashing over the pools.

Maybe this was a pretty rough day in terms of waves, but we couldn’t imagine anyone trying to get into these pools. There were signs in memory of two people that had drowned here.

Nakalele BlowholeIt was a pretty amazingly beautiful spot though, and I can understand the draw to this place.

From there, we continued on to the Nakalele Blowhole, another example of the dangerous power of the sea.

Like the Olivine Pools, this one too had warning signs to stay back to avoid being sucked in or washed out to sea by an unexpectedly large wave. So, in other words, stay back and enjoy the show from a distance.

Dragon's TeethLike the Blowhole we saw at Waianapanapa State Park the other day, this one too was formed by a partially submerged sea cave. When waves move into the cave with enough force, the seawater gets compressed and releases through a port at the top of the blowhole, gushing out like a geyser. How high the spray goes depends on the geometry of the sea cave and the strength of the wave entering it. This one was shooting jets of water as high as 50 feet in the air.

Our last stop on the “Over the Top” West Maui drive was the Dragon’s Teeth on Makaluapuna Point, an excellent example of what happens when two different forces of nature collide (lava, wind, and waves).

Dragon's TeethAbout half a million years ago, the dying West Maui Volcano erupted for one more time, pouring lava into the ocean, while fierce wind and waves drove it back onshore.

Meanwhile, the strong winds sweeping over the point caused the lava to cool and harden in an upward fashion. The jagged points of this formation look like dragon’s teeth.

This lava, known as trachyte lava, looks much different that the stark black lava we had seen so far, in that it is lighter in color, denser, and more finely grained.

Herb being reshaped by the windOn our visit here, we got to experience one of those forces of nature. As we got about 100 yards from the car, the skies opened up, the winds began to howl, and the rain came down in buckets.

I just had short sleeves on, so I ran back to the car to get my rain jacket. Herb already had his - boy scout that he is. I was drenched, but still determined to see the Dragon’s Teeth.

As the wind practically knocked me over, I felt like I was reliving the conditions under which these unique rock formation were created.
I’m glad I decided to go back to see them, because they were very cool.

Herb adjusting to resort lifePlus, I think it was more dramatic visiting them while experiencing the powerful force of the wind, which was, after all, what created their unique upward thrust.

Fortunately the Dragon’s Teeth was our last planned stop, because we were soaked.

Back at the hotel we didn’t feel like going out for dinner, so we ordered a vegetarian pizza from the Andiamo Pizza Truck on the resort grounds. It is run by Roy Yamaguchi, the same famous chef that runs the Humble Market Kitchin where we have our buffet breakfast every morning. It was really good.

Then we got in our fancy resort bathrobes and ate it out on the balcony.

Day 10 - Makena Beach, moonlight swim in Infinity Pool, exploring the Shops at Wailea, and Maloni’s Pizza)

Another day, another buffetWe hiked a lot yesterday, which meant today was our day off, so off we went to Makena Beach where we had been last week.

We especially like the northern section called Little Beach, which is tucked between two rocky lava outcrops, making it more protected and calmer.

This time as we climbed up and over the rocky trail at the end of Big Beach onto Little Beach, we were greeted by a monk seal lounging in the sun. We respectfully gave him a wide berth.

Our Monk Seal friendIt was a pretty hot day, so we quickly grabbed the last shady spot, tucked under a tree, which would at least give us a few hours before the sun got too high.

The water was much calmer than the last time we were here, so I spent more time in the water doing my version of body surfing - not exactly graceful, but lots of fun anyway.

All was going well, until all of a sudden the wind picked up with a vengeance. forcing people to quickly bring down their umbrellas and chase their belongings down the beach. The wind was blowing so hard that the sand actually hurt as it pelted us.

Another beautiful Maui sunsetFortunately, we were thinking about leaving soon anyway, so we quickly grabbed our stuff and headed back to the car. The monk seal didn’t seem too bothered by the commotion.

When we got back to the hotel, we were surprised that the umbrellas around the pool were still up. Must not have been too windy here.

It looked like a good time to take advantage of our welcome coupon for two free Mai Tais at the pool, so we headed down to the pool and grabbed two of the few remaining lounge chairs upon which to sip our cocktails.

Sunset swimHerb loves to swim laps, so we waited until dark when the pool cleared out to put on our swim snorkels and and get in. The pool is 50 meters long, so I lasted about 2 laps before getting out and just enjoying the post-sunset reflections on the infinity pool with Herb’s little snorkel going back and forth. It made for some interesting photo opportunities.

There was still dinner to take care of so we looked on TripAdvisor for a nearby restaurant for some casual fare.

Is this really Christmas?There seemed to be more choices near us than we realized. Manoli’s Pizza Company appealed to us, mostly because one of their pizzas was called the Personal Trainer’s Choice.

It sounded so healthy - Free range chicken, spinach, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, kale, mozzarella, pomodoro sauce, topped with avocado, goat cheese & finished with a balsamic drizzle.

The Personal Trainer's ChoiceWhen we followed the google walking directions to get there, we were amazed that it brought us through a beautiful, very upscale outdoor mall, with tons of restaurants. Why hadn’t we known about this before?

There was even live music with Hula Dancers dancing to Christmas music - still a bit odd for me spending most of my life on the East Coast where we really did have white Christmases.

Dinner was great. Nice setting, great service, and the Personal Trainer had made a very good choice.

As we strolled back through the mall, I found myself actually getting caught up in the Christmas spirit.

Day 11 - Hoapili Trail and dinner at Tommy Bahamas

La Perouse Bay - Hoapili TrailIt was our last full day on Maui, and I had one last hike on our to-do list - the Hoapili Trail to Hanamanioa Point Lighthouse.

So after another delicious, artery-clogging buffet breakfast at the hotel, we headed out for our last Maui adventure.

Herb was relieved to find that the 7.5 miles to the trailhead, located at the very end of Makena Road (the beach we had been to yesterday), had no crazy twisty, single lanes.

Along the Hoapili TrailWe were now at La Perouse Bay at “the end of the road” in South Maui, a very popular spot for surfing and snorkeling, as well as hiking through its rugged lava landscape along its dramatic coastline.

The Hoapili Trail is also known as the “King’s Highway,” because it was once an ancient Hawaiian walking path reserved for royalty.

Along the Hoapili TrailWe had walked a bit on the King’s Highway when we were hiking in Waianapanapa State Park in Hana a few days back.

The King’s Highway was built over 500 years ago during the reign of King Piʻilani as a means of connecting Maui’s 12 regions. It served as a vital artery for trade and defense, as well as a cultural and communication link between communities.

Along the Hoapili TrailErosion and development has taken its toll, and only fragments of the King’s Highway, like those on the Hoapili trail and in Waianapanapa State Park, have survived. However, it probably has held up better than many of our current roads.

Feeling a bit like royalty, we set off from the parking lot along a lovely trail that traced the coastline. We would pretty much parallel the coastline the entire way, sometimes climbing up onto rocky lava outcrops to watch the pounding surf below us, and other times walking across small sandy beaches covered in lava and coral.

Along the Hoapili TrailThe contrasting landscape of black lava rock, white coral, and turquoise waters was stunning.

The day was clear so we were also able to see Molokini Crater and Kaho’olawe Island across La Perouse Bay. Kaho’olawe looked like the hump of a huge humpback whale.

We even came across a small group of feral goats in the wooded section of the trail. They didn’t appear to be bothered by us at all.

Feral goat along the Hoapili TrailThese goats, and many other once domestic animals such as pigs and chickens, are not native to the Hawaiian islands, but were brought here by Europeans in the early 18th century as a source of food for sailors on long voyages.

However, they quickly became a self-sufficient feral population that now wreaks havoc on the islands' ecosystems.

They were cute though.

Along the Hoapili TrailAt about three-quarters of a mile, we came to a junction. To the left was the continuation along the King’s Highway, and to the right it was one mile to the lighthouse at Cape Hanamanioa. We went to the right.

The path to the lighthouse took us a bit deeper into the lava fields, where we felt like we were surrounded on all sides by big brown chunks of rock. There really was no trail at points. We just had to pick the best path to clamber over the sharp, uneven rocks.

By the time we got to the lighthouse, the wind had really begun to pick up with a vengeance - just like yesterday.

Lighthouse at Cape HanamanioaHaving spent my childhood vacations in New England, I had an image of what a lighthouse is supposed to look like, and, sorry to say, this wasn’t it.

It was really more just a beacon - practical but not particularly photogenic. Still, we had to get the obligatory photo of the end point of our hike.

From there we retraced our steps the 1.7 miles back to the car. Great hike! Fit for a king!

Another beautiful sunsetI suggested picking up take-out for dinner to eat on our balcony tonight, but my romantic husband said we definitely had to go out somewhere nice for our last night.

We tried to make a reservation at a popular, trendy place called Monkeypod, but that was booked, so we made a reservation at the Tommy Bahama restaurant over in the mall.

We had no idea that Tommy Bahama was more than an apparel store, but it was really good. There was live music and the food was delicious. I hadn’t had scallops in a long time so I very much enjoyed the Thai Shrimp & Scallops and Herb had his new Hawaiian go to - Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi.

Tomorrow it was time to head home and get ready for Christmas!!