Maui offers a variety of terrains for exploring
Maui is a favorite among the Hawaiian locals and visitors alike. It is widely known for its meandering country roads, its lush beauty and small sleepy island towns. It is the home of the Bonzai pipeline, Jaws, and the famous North Shore, where surfers come year-round to sample some of Maui’s epic surf. In addition to unspoiled wildernesses, there lies here a dormant volcano, which visitors love to hike through, camp in, and see the miraculous silversword plant which grows in this unique climate and nowhere else on earth.
Though there’s much to do, one of the best experiences when visiting Maui is to keep the pace slow. Hana is one of these small sleepy towns, popular for the long, winding road through the countryside. Bamboo forests, rock faces, cliffs, and tide pools line this hour-long drive. So do abandoned churches, huts, wooden produce huts, and hiking trails. Road to Hana tours take you over 600 curves and 54 bridges. It’s one of those roads where if the locals’ advice says to take the eastern path, take the eastern path, as you just might find an impassable rock lying in the road.
Hana itself has a quaint general store named the Hasegawa General Store, where you can shop for unique traditional Hawaiian trinkets and crafts. The Hana Beach Park and Hamoa Beach are often cited as beautiful escapes from the rat race, and snorkeling at Waianapanapa State Park is a treat, as black sands line the shore and people try to spot (and pronounce) the Hawaiian state fish: the Humuhumunukunukuapua’a.
And though the road to Hana may be long, your own path in Maui will be unencumbered, serene and beautiful. Enjoy!