After departing Medellin, Colombia we made our way to Maui, Hawaii where we stayed for a month. We have been going to Maui every year in February for the last 15 years so this was a bit of a welcome break from having to figure out everything on arrival. The sticker shock was expected, almost everything is more expensive in the USA and even more so in Hawaii. We took care of some medical and tax items, as well as a lot of planning for future travels. It was a nice break from our limited Spanish speaking skills and good for us to practice driving a car again as we had not done that since last August. We had friends and family join us for the majority of the time and it was great to reconnect with them and with our local friends who live here. Although it is high season, Maui’s tourism numbers are lower than normal this year, so we enjoyed a little less traffic and shorter lines. The end of our stay was unfortunately marked by a severe weather event but we ultimately made it out as scheduled.
Maui is one of the Hawaiian Islands, about 300 km southwest of Los Angeles. The Hawaiian Islands are some of the most remote islands on earth, which is a function of their unique geology. Many friends and family over the years have joined us in Maui and everyone has heard Susan’s Hawaiian geology / geography lesson.The island of Maui is quite large and consists of essentially two volcanos and the valley between them. We stayed in the town of Kihei on the southwest coast of the big volcano named Haleakala.Our wonderful friends Shawn and Susanne joined us for a week and we took a beautiful walk along the beach at our apartment.Susan came across this Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle (“Honu”) taking a snooze on the beach near our apartment. They are strikingly large – this one’s shell was about 2.5 feet (0.8 m) across. They are a protected species and their population has recovered well. We see them frequently.A view to the north from our lanai. The ancient Hawaiian fishpond wall can be seen out in the water behind us.Connecting again with longtime friends in Kihei, Maui at Cool Cats restaurant. From left to right: Adam, Susan, Jeep, Larry, Annie, and Teresa.We think this looks like a tree sneaking out of the water.
Our apartment building is called Menehune Shores, and they recently updated the landscaping at the front entrance. The whole place looked terrific.Susan and her dear friend Susanne at the Maui Ku’ia Estate Chocolate factory in Lahaina. Their factory and their nearby chocolate farm were spared in the terrible fire of August 2023 so we happily go every year to patronize their business. Besides really great chocolate, their venue has many offerings and sometimes live entertainment on their upstairs patio – with a view.We saw several examples of the small ways locals and local business are trying to help the 2023 Maui fire(s) survivors. In this case, at the Maui Brewing Company in Kihei, they are growing and providing trees for free to the residents of Lahaina and Kula who lost theirs in the fires.Last August we heard that our favorite upcountry restaurant at Kula Lodge caught on fire and was destroyed. They have a temporary food truck (while they rebuild the restaurant) that we patronized to show our support. It looks like the outside gazebos in the back and possibly the outdoor brick pizza oven were spared. The Marketplace and the Lodge were also intact. We intend to come back next year and will check again then.Another perfect sunset picture taken from the rooftop deck of Menehune Shores. The southern edge of the island of Lanai is visible in the background. In Whalers Village in Kaanapali, there is this very large and beautiful outdoor floor tile mural of a whale. Susan’s foot is provided for scale.
Adam with his mother, Pam, at Kaanapali Beach. Black Rock in the background is where there is a nightly cliff diving and torch lighting ceremony. The island of Molakai is in the far backgroundWe walked a beautiful loop trail (called ‘Ohai) on the north side of the West Maui mountains. You could see the Maui blowhole in the distance looking west (but not in this picture). It was not crowded and a little shy of 2 km (1.1 miles). There isn’t any shade so it is best to do on an overcast day or during non-peak sun hours.Hibiscus of many different colors are rampant in Hawaii and this one struck us as maybe a hybrid of two colors.The National Humpback Whale Sanctuary Visitors Center is located near our apartment. They have an outside patio with several newly updated informational signs about whales, turtles, and the ancient Hawaiian fish pond located in front of it.Unfortunately during our last five days on Maui there was a large storm (a “Kona Low”) that impacted all of the Hawaiian Islands. First we were trapped in our apartment by wind rain and floodwaters filling the street in front, which is the only access. Then we lost power for 46 hours and still could not get out by car due to the mud in the street. Eventually we were able to walk out through the mud and across a stream to get some food. As bad as this was for us we saw pictures and videos of much worse damage all over the town and across the islands.After the floodwaters receded, the mud was as much as a foot deep in front of our building. On the day our departing flight was scheduled, some bulldozers showed up and we were finally able to drive out of the parking lot with all of our luggage and some whoop and hollering. Our next post will be for San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
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Missing Maui already!
Us too. 🙂