Road to Hana? Nah, take a hike instead.

ALOHA!

Every travel book, travel agency, concierge, and frequent Maui visitor will tell you that you need to travel the Road to Hana at least once while on Maui.  And yes, you really get a taste of the Hawaii you dreamed of after watching "South Pacific" too many times.  And yes, I have taken the Road to Hana twice, so far be it from me to suggest that you don't need to go!  But, if the thought of carsickness brought on by 4-6 hours of driving curves is too much for you, may I suggest a hike instead?

This is Waikamoi Ridge Trail, which is located at about mile marker no. 9.5 on Hana Highway.  To get there, you have to endure about 3 miles of Road to Hana's signature hairpin turns, and if you aren't paying attention, you will miss the parking lot...

​     It is not a large lot.

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But I digress.  Even getting to mile marker 9.5 takes quite a bit of time, so I thought it best to fuel up at Sugar Beach Bake Shop first.

It's located at the opposite end of Kihei Rd from the condo, so it's a perfect stop when you are headed toward pretty much anywhere else on the island.  Malasadas are best eaten hot and fresh.  They are little balls of doughy heaven!

Well, as long as I'm getting malasadas, I may as well get banana bread, right?

​Back to the Hike

​And you know a hike is going to be good when it begins with this message...

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I thoroughly enjoyed the 1 1/2 miles of picture taking, although my shoes accumulated a lot of mud working up the tree root path.

A montage of my hike.

No Hawaii hike is complete without a view of the ocean!

Anything involving the Road to Hana is best experienced in the morning, before the crowds show up.  One of the reasons I love this hike is that it is located amongst the trees, making it a cooler hike.  But bring water anyway!  Cool is a relative term on Maui.

ALOHA!