I have many thoughts and photos to share about Hawaii, days filled with picture post card scenes, sobering historical recollections, tropical trees, flowers and, of course, the Pacific Ocean. So I decided to start with the best story of the whole trip. It's about a dog, a tour guide and the Hana Highway.
At the beginning of our second week in Hawaii, Scott and I boarded a cruise ship for a seven-day sail to the other islands: Maui, Hawaii and Kauai. Our first stop was Maui, where we spent two full days. All the recommendations told us at the top of the list of "don't miss" was the 60 mile drive along the coast to the village of Hana. The cruise ship had several tour options available, but they were large groups with built-in "shopping and food" stops, all of which were unappealing to us. I read my Fodor's Guide, did some internet research about private tours and decided to take the gamble; we got off the ship with no idea how we were going to get to Hana. I started making phone calls and, while talking to one of the tour companies, I looked over at the taxi line and saw the driver of the next available car. Something went "ping" in my head. I quickly said, "Let me call you back," and grabbed Scott to go over and talk to the driver. His name was Matt and as luck would have it, he owned his own taxi and did tours on the side. He agreed to spend the day with us and take us to Hana for a flat fee.
Originally from Maine, Matt made the move to Maui a little over five years ago. The years living in paradise haven't jaded him; he is still really enthusiastic about Maui and interested in everything he sees. His energy spilled over to us and we were game to visit all the places he suggested. I told him I was a writer and would like to hear as many stories as he wanted to tell. That prompted him to make a couple of stops that weren't on the "regular" tour, which turned out to be some of the best visits of the day.
Our first scenic stop was Puokeipa Lookout, where I took shots of some surfers and stand-up boarders.
One of Matt's friends posted a YouTube video of this beach loaded with green sea turtles. Check it out if you are interested. (Hint: it's a little long, but if you go to the last minute, you get the best views.)
We drove by the fence "where surf boards go to die,"
and the Garden of Eden Botanical Garden, a private property with trails and drives among lush tropical greenery and blooms.
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| Scott, checking out the bamboo |
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| Can you see all the bees? |
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| Tree with carefully-cultivated lichen |
The Garden of Eden also offered us views of shooting locations for the movie Jurassic Park.
Continuing on the Hana Road, we took a side road down a small peninsula to the village of Haiku, where villagers are trying to re-establish the agricultural techniques of their ancestors, including growing taro.
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| Near the shore at the village of Haiku |
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| Taro growing |
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| Taro growing |
Next came maybe my most favorite part of the trip, because
of the story Matt related to us. When he first arrived on the island, his
buddy, who had encouraged him to move here and found him a job in construction,
took him all around, showing him the best spots. Off the Hana Highway is a
little track that takes you to the village of Nahiku, right on the coast. Along
the way you come across a run down, nearly collapsed fruit shack on the side
of the road. Pull over there and wait a few minutes for a dog to appear. Give
the dog some food and he takes off, wanting you to follow. The dog leads you
along a remote trail that twists and turns over and under the tree growth and
suddenly opens up to a tropical oasis. There is a waterfall with little pools
above and below for you to swim. You would never find this place on your own
and the dog barks to you as he leads, encouraging you to hurry up. Matt and his
friends had a wonderful day, a unique experience he has never forgotten because
you can hear the wonder and excitement in his voice as he tells the story. Feed
the dog some more and he takes you back to your car, then disappears to wait for
his next customer. Matt told us the story when we started along the road and as
we came to the spot, sure enough, there was the dog. Matt was so elated to see
him, but we couldn't stop. Scott did manage to get a quick photo. Maybe it's all made up, but my bullshit detector is very finely tuned and I'm seldom wrong. And Matt showed such true excitement about seeing him, that I'm betting the Tour Guide Dog is a true story. My niece has already told me I must write an illustrated children's book about him.
By now it was lunch time so, back on the Hana Highway, we
stopped at the Nahiku Roadside Marketplace. There we had some amazing food,
prepared in stands by local chefs. I watched our Chef Jen prepare shrimp pad
Thai from scratch. She chopped the vegetables, stir-fried the shrimp and
noodles in woks right in front of me. It was maybe the best Thai food I'd ever
had. I would have loved to try everything on the menu. Scott and Matt got
Kalua pig tacos, with black beans, cheese and shredded cabbage. They were
really good, too. Better than anything at Chipotle. There were fruit and
souvenir vendors there as well. Chickens roamed the grounds and Chef Jen's
little girl played with coconut shells under our feet. The whole stop was a delightful
experience.
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| Kalua Pig tacos |
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| Matt, enjoying his taco |
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| Chef Jen preparing my shrimp pad thai |
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| Chef Jen's little girl |
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| The best pad thai I ever ate |
Ocean views at Nahiku peninsula.
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| Matt and Scott trading stories |
Arriving on the outskirts of Hana, Matt told us another
great story. He knew that a girl from Maine, someone he'd gone to school with most
of his life, had moved to Hana but he didn't know where. On one of his early
trips, he stopped at Hana Farms, a roadside fruit stand which also sells
freshly baked banana bread. To his surprise, he looked up and there was his
friend, working in the stand. Small world, Maine to Maui. We made the same stop
and bought delicious pineapple banana bread and macadamia nut banana bread
along with some jars of banana butter and pineapple jelly to try when we got
home.
Once in
Hana we stopped at Waianapanapa State Park, site of Maui's truly blackest
black sand beach. It's possible to swim there and explore the coastal caves,
but we passed on that and opted for a walk along the beach, experiencing the
different textures of the volcanic sand.
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| The Hand, rising out of the sea |
There is a private cemetery in the
middle of the park. I took photos of the sign there and would like to find out
more about the place.
Matt had taken his sister to the park when she came from Maine
to visit. His sister's fiancee had recently died and she, in preparation
for the trip, had read about the legend of the lover's flower. There was once a
Princess Naupaka who fell in love with a man who was not royal, so of course,
they were forbidden to marry. She had to rejoin her family in the mountains and
her lover had to stay on the beaches with those of his class. Before they
parted, she gave him a flower with petals only growing on half the stem. He
planted the flower and now it grows only on the beaches or up in the mountains,
mirroring the separation of the two lovers. We saw the bushes with their small,
half flowers, growing along the volcanic shore.
Our final
stop would be Haleakala National Park, where we saw the Oheo Gulch and the
Seven Sacred Pools. Before getting there we passed the Maui home of Charles
Lindberg, who is buried at a nearby church yard. Matt's finacee sells
real estate on the island and one weekend they were part of a group invited to see the estate house of Jason Reitman, the director of the movie
Juno. The house was for sell and the custom in Maui for these remote locations
is to bring a group of people at a time to see them. As part of the open house they had a door prize of a free night at Charles Lindberg's house for two
couples. Matt and his fiancee won and were able to spend the night there. He
said it was amazing, with rooms filled with all Lindbergh's memorabilia -- the
flight, his celebrity and the kidnapping and death of his son.
Water flows through Oheo Gulch, into the seven sacred pools and down to the sea.
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We decided to return along the back side of Maui instead of
retracing our steps along the Hana Road. This part of the island is very
different. It receives less rainfall, so the grass is brown and the vegetation
scrubby. It reminded both Scott and I of the Chisos Mountains in west Texas.
Almost uninhabited, we drove miles and miles without seeing buildings or
people, just free-ranging cattle.
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| Jacaranda Tree in bloom |
We drove the Kaupo Road, the backside
of Maui or "Upcountry." As we continued, we abruptly crossed
back into the rainy portion of the island and the scenery changed radically as well. Oprah
Winfree owns a lot of property in this area, accessible only by private roads.
This is the area of Maui cowboys and cattle ranching. We saw the most gorgeous
tree in bloom, completely purple blooms, the color of wisteria. Matt had never
seen it in bloom before so he didn't know what it was, but they were all over
this side of the island. I now know is was the Jacaranda Tree.
We arrived back at the ship at about 6:00pm after the greatest day-trip I can remember. Thank you so much, Matt Bryant, for this day, for sharing your stories, taking such good care of us and showing us the dog. It will always be a wonderful memory. Y'all go see Matt next time you're in Maui, 808-280-3485.
Thanks for stopping by today. More Hawaii adventures coming soon.
