Napili Lanai Views

All of the pix in this blog entry were taken from the same place...the lanai of my condo at Napili Point on the northwest coast of Maui.  The scene constantly changes.  Each sunset is different...each day brings different weather, and varying surf conditions.  From the lanai you can watch snorkelers, surfers, fishermen, and paddleboarders,  Honu (Green sea turtles) surface for air, as many as six or seven at a time, especially in early morning and near sunset.  It's very pleasant to have happy hour out on the lanai and soak up the beauty.

The sun sets over the northern ridge of the island of Lanai.

Morning rainbow.

Palms and pandanus provide a nice foreground for the sunset.

Surf coming up.  This visit, it never exceeded moderate standards in the eleven days I was there.  During my first visit in 2010, the surf got huge on two occasions...it was in early December...and world class surfers appeared and put on a show...with film teams recording the gig.

Waves roll in from the north, coming through the channel between Molokai and Maui.

Crepuscular rays!

Trees are diverse on Maui.

Kipahulu Valley Slog

I visited Kipahulu Valley today.  The last two nights at my house have been stormy...lots of wind and rain.  Rather cozy in my little cabin but the watershed is raging, so no swimming today at the pools in Oheo Gulch.  As the pic shows, they're essentially rapids between roaring waterfalls.  Try a swim, get swept out to sea!

I hiked the Pipiwai trail mauka from the pools.  I have done this trail several times over the past 30 years or so.  It has some unusual features on it.  One of the first is this huge banyan tree.

Higher up, the trail goes through a large forest of bamboo.  It's neat to hear the bamboo clack when the wind is blowing.

Trekking through the bamboo forest.  Due to the abundant rain, the trail was in Russian Front mode for most of the way...that is, muddy as hell.  However, it's mostly well made, with many rock staircases and a large stretch of boardwalk through the bamboo...though not here...so if you don't mind getting wet, muddy, and sweaty, it's a go.

A closeup of the bamboo.

At the end of the trail lies the 400 foot cascade of Waimoku Falls, two miles and about 650 feet above the start of the hike.  Right after I left the falls the heavens opened up and I and other hikers had the privilege of being on the flat rock with the cow right overhead.

Farther down the trail lies this fine double fall, and there is another 200 foot high cascade below this one.  Also some large mango trees.  Altogether, an interesting, scenic, and unusual hike.  It helps to be staying in Hana so that upon finishing the trek you can quickly shed your grungy clothes, take a nice long shower, and have a cold beer.

Hana Hiatus

After eleven days in Napili, my friends headed back to the mainland and I took the jaunt to Hana.  Enroute, I passed Ho'okipa Beach, one of the planet's foremost surfing spots...both board and wind.  The surf and wind were about average on this day...that is to say strong but not humongous...and the surfies were out in force, putting on a show.

The surf pounded the north shore of Maui all the way to Hana.  Here at Keanae, a little village off the highway, it was particularly dynamic.  I should add that just a few hundred yards from this spot is a stand that sells EXCELLENT banana bread!

Closer to Hana, I stopped at a wayside.  This kittykat promptly hopped up on my hood and made himself at home until I started to leave the carpark.  Then he got a panicked look in his eyes and bailed off my slowly moving vehicle.

Hanawi Falls, at mile marker 24 on the Hana highway.  The waterfalls were cranking quite robustly as there has been a lot of rain lately.

I finally arrived at Koali Cottage, five miles south of Hana town.  This is the view from my lanai.  Quite a change from Napili.

The morning sun brightens the sea after a showery night.

Black sand beach at Waianapanapa State Park, just north of Hana.

Two blowholes at Waianapanapa.

Ocean was rockin' and rollin'!  This area had a lava flow about 500 years ago, and there is still a lot of black a'a providing a fine contrast with the sea.

Hala trees frame the surf.

A heiau near Waianapanapa.

Lava rock looking finely surreal close up.

Massive waves crash against the lava.

I got a video to load!  Check out the rowdy surf.

I set up at this spot under a pandanus tree for awhile and just read and enjoyed the surf.  This wave is splashing at least 25 feet into the sky.

Back on the home front, mynahs keep the horses company...and pick off any bugs that might land on the steeds.  Very quiet here at Koali Ranch.  No cell service, but the internet is good.  Chuck, who owns the house, lives next door with his congenial yellow lab Max.

Mystical Haleakala

When visiting Maui, it's always a must to make the jaunt up to Haleakala...the House of the Sun.  It's ten thousand feet above sea level, and I mean right above the sea!  Look closely at this pic about halfway up the road and you can see the ocean on both sides, with the isthmus of central Maui in between.  It's a different world up here.

Maui upcountry is cool and misty, with frequent drizzle blowing across Haleakala summit onto the lee slopes.  Sometimes you see a rainbow...below you!

And here's the crater.  It's not actually a crater...Haleakala was once a huge shield volcano, with an appearance like Mauna Loa.  Over the past million years the summit has eroded away and the current crater is what remains.  There are three large gaps in the wall, including the Koolau Gap at left, which serve as highways for clouds to roll into the crater from the lower slopes.  Rainfall sends sediment running down through the gaps to the ocean far below.  The weather is NOT quintessentially Hawaiian up here...when we reached the summit it was 49 degrees.  Meanwhile back in Lahaina it was closer to 89.   Freezing temperatures are fairly common here in winter...snow is rare but does occur.

The light constantly changes as clouds drift in and out of the scene.  Away from the tourons, it is very quiet.  Like Crater Lake and the Grand Canyon, Haleakala is a power spot.

Vivid colors grace the landscape, changing along with the light.

The cinder cones on the crater floor are much newer than the rest of the land.  They originated as recently as a few thousand years ago.  The volcano is officially dormant, not extinct.  It could erupt again, but for now the fireworks are over a hundred miles to the southeast, on the Big Island.

The large mountain in the background is Mauna Kea, on the Big Island of Hawaii.  It's even higher than Haleakala...over 13 thousand feet...and gets snow much more frequently in winter.  It's about 80 miles from where I'm standing.

Rocks, clouds, sky...surrealism is in vogue at the House of the Sun.

Except for the one plant, and the fact that the sky is blue instead of red, we could be on Mars.

Rocks and land.

The intricacies of a silversword.

A complete silversword.  These plants are found only on Haleakala.  They are related to the yucca.  Probably, birds brought some yucca seeds over to Maui loooong ago, and the silversword evolved into its present form.  They grow in cold, arid conditions.  Like the yucca, the plant lives for decades...up to 50 years...then sends forth a showy flower stalk, then dies.

Adjacent to the national park on the summit is Science City, a satellite tracking facility.  Thousands of space objects are monitored from here.

Land, clouds, and the ocean, almost two miles below.