
Road-tripping on Maui
I spent the last few days of 2018 on Maui. The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2).
I had the pleasure to stay with a friend of a friend in Haiku. I had such a lovely time staying with Z. She has a nice house in a small development. It was pure luxury for me because I had my own bed, my own room and even my own bathroom. It’s a big step up from staying in a tent or sleeping on the floor. But more importantly it was so nice hanging out with Z and her animals. She has 2 cats and a wild pigeon and wild duck that come to the house every day.
On day one, way I went to Makena State Park. Without knowing, it is the number one beach on Maui. Most beaches in Maui have development right next to it. The state park is the only area where you can’t find any houses or hotels. The beach is white and wide and the water very clear and warm. I had fun taking my underwater camera with me and playing around with the camera in the clear water. This was also the first time since leaving Australia that I just lay down at a beach and relaxed. For lunch, I enjoyed some delicious freshly made tacos from one of the many food trucks.
I also went to Iau Valley. Iao Valley is a lush, stream-cut valley in West Maui, located 5 kilometres west of Wailuku. I took a few pictures, but it was hard to capture its beauty. A little tip for other travellers. Try to park before the main entry to avoid the $5 parking fee.
On day 2, I decided to have a rest day. I’ve been on the road for about 3 weeks and it was time to take a day off. I needed to organise some accommodation for Waikiki, and I was in need of a quite day. I did leave the house for lunch though. Haiku is very close to Paia. It is a great little town with places to eat and a couple of lookouts and beaches close by. This side of the island is usually a bit wilder though, so the surfers like to come here. I found swimming is better on the other side, either Makena State Park or further north near Lahaina.
The next day I drove over to Lahaina. I started with the Nakalele Blowhole. It is actually possible to drive all around the top part of Maui, but the road becomes a very winding and a single lane road shortly after the blowhole. A lot of people suggest turning around at the blowhole, so that’s what I decided to do.
The scenery on the drive there is quite pretty, but sometimes a little hard to enjoy when you have to focus on the winding roads. The blowhole is worth the drive. It’s a forceful explosion of seawater that erupts on a regular basis. It is advised that people don’t get to close to the blowhole, as people have died here. The water is very powerful and can drag people into the whole.
On the way back I stopped at a couple of the beaches along the way. A lot of them are dominated by large resorts and I would suggest staying away from these beaches. However, I did find a few beautiful beaches too. Some more about these in a minute, but first I stopped at Honolulu Bay or more precisely a little spot just north of it. There is a small road before Honolulu Bay where the experienced surfers go. They climb down the side of a cliff there to catch a break. The day, I was there, the surf was ‘pretty small’, but it was still great to watch the surfers do their thing.
On the way home I decided to stop off at the beach right along the freeway. It was one of the best decisions I had made all day. It was a black sand beach with lots of pebbles and hardly any people in sight. It was late afternoon, so the light was beautiful and soft. The water was warm and calm. Paradise for me. I spent quite a bit of time there just playing with my camera and enjoying the warm water. So if you travel to or from Lahaina do yourself a favour and stop at the beach between Olowalu and Ukumehame Beach Park.
Ukumehame Beach Park is a good place if you want to spend a whole afternoon.
I had a short stay in Maui, but I loved it. I’m glad I had the opportunity to visit. Next stop Oahu. Until next time, Sabine xxx
Check out the photos and videos below. Click on the thumbnail to enlarge images.

