Day 9: The Adventures of Jen and RaeRay

 

 

Ray was up before 5 a.m. watching the patterns of countless stars over Hana and drinking coffee from a pot that had been prepped the night before. He figured owners Gabbie and Poe Franklin left it for the earliest riser to brew. Ray was first up in the house. Rae finally appeared shortly after sunrise, and she and Ray walked to the black rock beach to view the morning colors. Back at the inn a little later, they visited with Gabbie and Poe on the slope behind the building and watched the waves in the distance. Gabbie is Gabriel Franklin, who was once a filmmaker in Los Angeles and had worked on many movies, including "Men in Black" and "Jurrasic Park." His family had owned property on the opposite side of Maui for 50 years. Last year he bought this inn, which had been called Joe's Place, and began restoring it. The rooms begin at about $150 per night, which is a bargain anywhere on the island.

Jen and RaeRay's last day on the road in Maui was another maze of twists and turns, waterfalls and valleys. The infamous Road to Hana was, for these travelers, the road back from Hana. It was smooth roadways but narrow curves and bridges -- unlike the rocky path from the previous day. Again, the drive was more than two and a half hours, again with many stops for awesome sights. The first one was Wai'anapanapa State Park with high cliffs and more black beaches down below. Rae was delighted to find the two wanderers she and Jen had met the day before -- Savannah and Anna -- in the campground there. Adjoining the state park property was a well kempt garden with two decorated graves. The group marveled at the toys and flowers that adorned the plots and wondered who might be buried here. They never found out. The second stop was at the National Tropical Botanical Gardens in Kahanu. Jen and RaeRay visited with the keeper of the small gift shop and bought a few souvenirs. The garden tour cost more than they could afford for the few minutes they had to spend there.

Rae kept close watch for a food stand amid the winding curves that she had seen on a previous trip to Hana. It was called Kok's, which Rae considered practically the same as her sister Kaki's name. The tiny business was perched on a cliff with a beautiful view, and the aging lady who manned it was jolly and talkative. She laughed and chatted with Rae and welcomed her parents. She seemed to remember this Southern visitor who had last been here on her first visit to the island two years ago. The stand had a small kitchen in the back, and anytime someone approached it, Kok's dog ushered them away. As the Subaru continued through the lush forest, Rae suddenly saw a small lot on the side of the road and stopped abruptly. This seemed to be the spot where she had crawled through a lava tube on a previous visit. Sure enough, a thinning grove of vines exposed an entrance to the mountain. Rae donned her headlamp and encouraged Ray to follow. They crawled through the hole into a cavern through the rock. Ray was hesitant to go past the opening, but Rae insisted. They traveled maybe 100 feet or more into the darkness past a fork into another cavern. A bit farther, they saw light. The lava tube had another entrance higher up the mountain. RaeRay applauded themselves for being so adventurous and then moved back toward the car. The tunnel was becoming crowded with other explorers. This was one of Ray's favorite adventures during the Maui tour.

Jen and Ray hadn't really seen sea turtles on the island, other than a few heads popping up in the surf. That all changed as they arrived at Ho'okipa Beach County Park. An oceanside park here had a public beach with one side covered in sea turtles. Gawkers stood along a line watching as the gigantic creatures as they traipsed in and out of the water. Their endangered status prohibits humans from getting too close. Also at Ho'okipa Beach, Ray satisfied his growing hunger pains with a cheeseburger from Bob's Burgers food truck. This is the creation of another California film producer named Bob Voit. His aging food truck posts a promise that if this is not the best burger on the island, it's free. Ray finished his meal and nodded to the owner: "Keep your money, Bob." After that, Jen and RaeRay arrived in Paia for a bit more shopping and a chance for Rae to get away from her parents and have an acai bowl at a restaurant there. She was beginning to miss her time alone, but Jen and Ray promised they would be leaving the next day.

Before heading back to the condo in Wailuku, the group stopped at Kanaha Beach next to the Kahului airport. This is one of the best spots for wind surfing. They watched a few surfers as a heavy rain cloud floated along the shoreline in the distance. This might have been their last chance on Maui's beaches during this adventure, but Jen was determined to get in two more hours of sunning during the morning they would be leaving on Saturday. The ocean is one of her very favorite things.

 

Day 8: The Adventures of Jen and RaeRay...

T-shirts across Maui rave about the island's remote southeastern tip. "Survivor," say some, and "I Survived the Road to Hana," say others. Tourists wear them everywhere after taking the 50-plus-mile trip to this town of roughly 1,200 residents. The problem with the drive is that the road twists through rainforests banked by high peaks and ocean cliffs. In dozens of spots it goes to one lane, and cars must stop and wait for oncoming traffic to pass. The speed limit at best is 20 miles per hour, which makes this at least a two-and-a-half-hour trip. Of course, most cars stop several times to look at the roaring waterfalls and lush pools below them. Hana is separated from the rest of Maui by a 10,000-foot volcano called Haleakala. It has been inactive since 1790, but it has shaped the island into the landform it is today. Several days earlier, Jen and RaeRay had toured the lava fields below Haleakala.

Rae had plans for Jen and Ray to see more than just the usual road to Hana. She would take them around the western rim of Haleakala so they could look down over the other portions of Maui they had visited. They headed out toward Hana before 9 a.m. and headed up the road that would've taken them to the Haleakala Crater. They didn't have time for it, though, so they traveled on past towns like Kula and Keokea and on around the southern rim of the mountain. That route overlooks the upscale towns of Wailea and Makena and the lava fields. Soon the road was twisting along the coastline, only 2,000 feet above. The path was often packed rocks, and it twisted around tight curves. They could see the West Maui Mountains in the distance, topped with clouds and obviously much smaller than Haleakala.

As they neared Hana, the group stopped at Haleakala National Park, which is another lush reserve with hiking trails to landforms and waterfalls. Rae showed them the spot next to the Seven Sacred Pools -- a series of waterfalls cascading down the cliffs -- where she had camped on her 26th birthday and first fallen in love with Maui. Also along the alternate road to Hana, Rae stopped so Jen and Ray could meet Linda, a long-time resident who runs a small general store in the remote ranching community of Kaupo. There, Jen admired the unique flowers growing around the yard. Another stop for the group was the Venus Pool, where some scenes of the movie "Jurassic Park" were filmed. It was a crater-like rapids emptying into a deep pool. Visitors jump from the cliffs into the clear water.

Finally, Jen and RaeRay arrived at their lodging spot for the night, a sort of guest house more like a youth hostel with a sign outside calling it Joe's Place. Now called Hana Inn, it is a building with five rooms on the second floor and three on the lower floor, sharing five bathrooms between them. It is owned by Gabby and Poe Franklin, who live in the rear of the building. They have a helper living on the land and assisting with chores. He is an Arizona native named Sean, who has traveled the world mostly by foot or hitchhiking. Other guests in the inn with Jen and RaeRay included a couple from northern New York and a group from Spain. After unloading their car, Jen and RaeRay walked down to a nearby black pebble beach, along the way meeting two young women about Rae's age who were filming scenes for a documentary. Meanwhile, a truck loaded with coconuts stopped and a Maui native calling himself Kai leaped out with a machete. He said he removed the fruits from trees on resort properties so they wouldn't drop and injure guests. He said he made $75 for climbing a tree, and he kept the coconuts. Kai told them they should try some fresh coconut water, and chopped the top off three coconuts for them to sip.

Back at the Hana Inn, Jen and RaeRay headed to a food truck park about a mile away for dinner. They had already looked at prices in the Ranch Restaurant -- the town's only real eatery -- and it was far too upscale for this trip. Ray tried a pulled-pork quesadilla from one vendor, and Jen and Rae shared a stir-fry from an Asian truck. Those cost less than $10 apiece. The group had enjoyed about all the entertainment Hana could offer. They were ready to settle in for a good night's rest. They would take the real Road to Hana back to Wailuku the next day.