Maui!

For months, I had meticulously planned our trip to Maui. I had an itinerary of where to hike, snorkel, swim, and eat. How do you plan for seven days of adventure? You do your research, wait for the day to arrive, and then execute your plan. Or so I thought.

On Monday, we snorkeled amongst a rainbow of fish, an abundance of coral, and the occasional eel. The afternoon was spent taking in the local sights and scenery. In the evening, we attended a Lu’au where we enjoyed the delicious food, listened to beautiful music, and watched the graceful dancers. “This is the first day in two weeks that the Kona winds haven’t brought us rain,” remarked the father of a family from Vancouver Island at our table. “This is great.” I thought. “What good timing!”

On Tuesday, it poured. Our plans to hike and snorkel La Pérouse Bay and the Fishbowl were put on hold. After waiting around for the rain to pass, it soon became apparent that the rain was not going anywhere. –And neither were we. Change of plans. We put on our hiking boots, gathered up our hiking packs, and went farther west to hike near Honolua Bay. As we hiked, we came across all different kinds of trees and plants from liliko’I (passion fruit) to banyan trees and strange cacti and moss. Rain? What rain? Just like that, it was gone.
On Wednesday, we put our hiking packs and snorkels aside to take in some of the local sights. We visited a few art galleries taking in beautifully carved koa’a wood vases and photographs that seemed too beautiful to be real. We ate at the Paia Fish Market and watched the surfers and windsurfers who were brave enough to take in the waves at Ho’okipa. The name “Ho’okipa” means, hospitality in Hawaiian. And as I watched the huge waves break across the jagged reefs and lava shelves, the word “hospitality” didn’t exactly come to mind. More like the words, “hospital” and “ambulance” in big, red letters. I watched as a ten-year-old boy surfed alongside his father like a pro. He came running in from the ocean, arms flailing wildly about him, as he reenacted his experience for his mother. Walking back, I spotted a large sea turtle that was hidden between the lava rocks burying her eggs in the sand.

On Thursday, the rain was back. We put on our hiking shoes and clear plastic rain ponchos (just kidding) and headed towards La Pérouse.  Less than a mile from the bay, we came across a jagged, alien landscape of lava fields that extended out for miles. At La Pérouse, we discovered that both the bay and the fishbowl were closed to snorkelers and divers for two years. So much for those plans! Luckily for us, Makena Beach (and 13 other beaches) was only minutes away!

Fast forward to Friday. At 4:00 a.m. while most people were asleep, we packed up our equipment and made our way to Ma’alaea Boat harbor for our trip to Molokini. From the sun peering over Haleakala Crater, to the grey silhouette of the occasional whale breaching in the distance, the morning was beautiful. We approached Molokini around 8 a.m., dove into the water, and swam with the fish! Sand stars, razorfish, parrotfish, wrasse, and the humuhumunukunukuapua’a (try saying that ten times fast) were all around us. At twelve, our Captain brought us to a second diving spot. All around us were underwater lava and coral caves and bridges. But, that wasn’t the best part. Five minutes into our dive, we saw our first group of sea turtles. Large and just as inquisitive, I was surprised by how close they would come to us. 

Saturday morning, we packed up the car and headed down the road to Hana. I had seen the t-shirts before and I was worried that this was going to be another “South of the Border” experience.  Thankfully, it was not. The road to Hana is made up of over six hundred curves, fifty bridges, and some of the most beautiful scenery that I have ever seen. Most of the trip was broken up by frequent stops to see rainbow eucalyptus trees, hike the bamboo forest, view numerous waterfalls, smell the plumeria blossoms, and enjoy the fresh banana bread from Hana Farm. Yes, we survived the road to Hana, but we also survived the road back—and at night.

Sunday went by way too fast. It was a whirlwind of activities. Snorkeling, swimming in the pool (for the second time since we had arrived) and packing. But, when it was time to board our plane I knew that it was time to go home.

So…how do you plan for seven days of adventure? You do your research, you take each day as it comes, and you have a back-up plan.  You can’t control the weather, but you can be prepared for it. After all, that really is what an adventure is all about!