A Trip Around Northwest Maui, Part 2

As with the last post, here there be many pictures. This is the second half of our trip around Halemahina. Because I may not have internet access for a while, I'm posting this early. For the record, we did go back to Honolua Bay the next day and had a lovely snorkeling adventure. All sorts of beautiful tropical fish and coral, including yellow tangs, sea urchins, saltwater angel fish and trigger fish.

The next stop after Honolua Bay was a brief pause to get a snapshot of some red rock cliffs. I'm pretty sure that this is near Honokohau Bay. There's a lot of "to do" about red dirt here on Maui, and this gives you a pretty good idea of where it comes from. In fact, the dirt on the shoulders of the road was also this lovely red clay color. This picture is also notable for the sunshine. It was a pretty grey day as we took this trip up the shoreline, but we got a nice little burst of sunshine here.

Red Cliffs Near Honokohau Bay

While in this same area we stopped at a turnout that had a stunning view of the ocean. One of the strange phenomenon that you see here (and along the road in this area) are these little piles of rocks. Apparently, they mean nothing. People just started doing it for no obvious reason. I guess it's a bit of a Mauian Meme. We left the rocks to themselves, but I thought they made a nice picture standing on this lovely grassy green hill on the way to an overlook.

Strange Standing Stones Above Honokohau Bay

After a little hike through this nice grassy area we got a stunning view of the ocean and the rocks and cliffs below and we stayed a while to watch and listen as the waves crashed on the rocks below us.

Crashing Waves on Honokohau Bay

And my sock got a little action in, too. What sock would not want the chance to take in the sea air and feel the breeze in it's stitches? And there may be no fiber festivals on Maui, but I brought a little bit of Maryland Sheep & Wool along for the ride in the form of one of my current favorite T-shirts.

Sock in Honokohau Bay

The rest of the trip from this point on was on mostly one lane road around the jagged edges of Halemahaina. Apparently there are some cattle ranches in the area. John was amazed when we saw these cows on the hillside. It doesn't look very steep, but these guys were probably standing on a hillside with something around a 45 or greater degree angle. Not a place you expect to see cows! John figures if you've got to be a cow, Maui is an awfully nice place to be one.

Happiest Cows on the Planet

I would love to have some pictures from the one lane winding trip that we took to get to Kahakuloa, but there really wasn't any place that was all that safe to stop and pull over. It's a pretty narrow road and there aren't a lot of good guardrails. There were many places where we had to stop and wait for others to pass. The trip is extraordinarily beautiful, however, so I'd recommend it if you get the chance, as long as you have someone comfortable driving under those conditions. When we finally got to Kahakuloa we had to laugh a little but when we came across this sign...

An Understatement in Kahakuloa

There was also a very good reason to stop at Kahakuloa. Who can resist the opportunity to have some of the best banana bread in the world?

Julia's Best Banabread Stand

For the record, the banana bread was excellent... it was fresh and warm. We saved some for breakfast the next morning. Yum yum yum. Julia was also doing a little knitting when we got there.... in case you wanted to hear about a little more knitting content.

The trip back home required a little less caution because we got back onto a two lane road after passing the Mendez Ranch. This would have been a better shot in the bright sun, but you deal with the weather you get. We didn't think we'd get another chance to stop and see Kuhului Harbor this way. (Kuhului is where the major airport is located). I don't think it's very clear, but there was an enormous cruise ship "parked" in the harbor when we took the picture.

Overlooking Kahului Harbor

Our last stop on our way back to Kihei was the Iao Valley. There's a lovely state park here. If I am remembering the signs I read here, this used to be a special place to the ancient Mauians. When you see the fog gently drape the cliff tops, it's easy to imagine why. Even on a grey, rainy day, the beauty and majesty of this place stands out.

Iao Valley Mist Covered Mountain Tops

The valley itself looks out west onto Haleakala. So you can see the House of the Sun from the House of the Moon. Or you could if there was just a little less cloud cover.

John in the Iao Valley

After that, we drove home to find sunshine on the shores of Kihei Bay and toasted the sunset with another glass of wine.

Aloha!