Final Thoughts on Our Maui Travels

Our highlights - filmed in the Maui Airport 

"Adventure" #5 - Beach Day at the Hyatt Resort

So this doesn't really count as an adventure but we spent the first day of 2011 lounging around and getting a sea-side massage.  It was fabulous. 

My thoughts on 1/1/11: 

Adventure #4 - The Feast at Lele

What's a trip to Hawaii without a luau?!? Although we now know that neither Sam nor I are terribly large fans of the whole Polynesian food culture, we did have a very good time. We were fortunate enough to have front and center seats and a beautiful sunset.  Enjoy!! 

I took video of one of the dances - to show how close we were and how loud it was! 

Adventure #3 - Lunch at Mama's Fish House and Exploring the Upcountry

After checking out the Wailua Falls, we headed to Mama's Fish House for a delicious lunch and a stunning view.  Sam even spotted whales in the distance.  

After our lunch we headed to the upcountry to check out Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm. Unfortunately we didn't see any of the lavender in bloom but there were lots of neat flowers and a very serene atmosphere.  

Adventure #2 - The Road to Hana

One of the most highly recommended activities om Maui is the Road to Hana - a tiny little town on the far eastern side of the island.  The road is extremely windy - there is almost not shoulder to speak of along most of the road and a sheer cliff down in many parts. 
















 I can't imagine driving on it but Sam really enjoyed it. I think that having the Mustang contributed directly to his joy level.  

While it is definitely possibly to do the drive out and back in one day, Sam and I really recommend doing it in two.  There aren't a ton of places to stay out in Hana but we stayed at the Hana Kai Maui Resort. We did have to pay a premium because we were only staying for one night and it is a condo rental place but the setting was beautiful and the room super clean and comfortable. It doesn't have a TV but the view makes a TV totally unnecessary. 




The Road to Hana isn't just a road - it's all the views and places to pull off and stop along the way.  The next pictures and videos are from our first stop at Waikamoi Nature Trail.  Our first "hiking" of the trip.  Funny story about our trek to top - there was one way that was very, very easy and the other was very, very muddy.  Guess which one we picked to take up. In our defense, we didn't realize that there were two trails and we were smart enough to take the dry one down. 

 Half way along the Road to Hana is the little town of Ke'anae.  Although we didn't drive down to take a look around, the view from the Road was very picturesque and peaceful. 

Just before you get to Hana is the gorgeous Wai'anapanapa State Park.  A black sand beach, blow holes and caves make it an interesting place to explore! 

For dinner in Hana we went to the Hotel Hana Maui - very swanky - tasty - although my stomach was still not thrilled.  One of the highlights of the meal was the French Canadian family at the table next to us.  They had an truly adorable 15 month old who adopted us and spent a decent amount of time sitting on my lap - we played "Row, row row your boat" and toasted using the traditional French "chin-chin." 

The next morning we got up and winded our way up an even more twisted stretch of the road to the Maui Wailua Falls. 

All the guide books say that this spot is constantly crowded but if you hit it first thing in the morning, no one has had a chance to make the drive out with you.  

 

I was intrigued by the birds that followed along right next to all the cows. 

The Road From Hana had one last treat for us - a spectacular rainbow. 

Underwater Views from Lana'i and our recap of the tour.

Some of the highlights from our underwater viewing.

I took this video - the parrot fish is one of my favorite so I drove down to check it out a bit closer. 

One of the craziest things was how strong the current from the waves was even down where the fish were swimming next to the reef.  You have to wait for it - but there is a whole school of black and white fish flowing back and forth.  

Finally here is our re-cap from the tour. 

Adventure #1 - Trilogy Tour to Lana'i

The first of our many adventures was a catamaran boat ride to the island of Lana'i - off the coast of Maui.  We went with Trilogy (my mom had see a spot about them on TV) - a great company - clean boat, knowledgeable crew and they give you lots of food! 






 We really took advantage of our video camera on the trip and Sam especially enjoyed shooting lots of underwater videos.  We loved the trip despite that fact that my stomach did not.  We were even fortunate to see a competitive pod of male humpback whales. Sadly we didn't get that on film but there are still some neat videos of the whales as they frolicked around our boat.   

This next video captures some of the motion of the ocean - I was really enjoying the ride for the first part!! 

Then....not so much....

The humpback whales travel from Alaska to Hawaii every winter to mate, give birth and raise their young.  The adults, who feed on krill and other small fish, eat nothing for an entire summer - this means the moms who are tirelessly nursing their babies get no food to replenish themselves!  Check out our whale sighting at around 30 seconds in. 

The view from the beach on Lana'i: 

A very swanky Four Seasons Resort

 Sam checking out his videoing skills.