I want to find a nice decent job as a helicopter pilot.

Posted on November 27, 2016November 27, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Well maybe not but our Tuesday morning adventure did involve a helicopter.

Of the 3 of us, I was the only one who had ever been up in a helicopter. My first ride was back in 2008 in Sedona. It was an awesome experience. But Sandy has steadfastly refused to even consider taking a helicopter ride. Of course Kathy didn’t know this and she pushed hard for a chance to see Maui from the sky.

To my surprise Sandy agreed with very little argument. I don’t know what that was about but we found ourselves booked with Sunshine Helicopters for a flight over Haleakala and the Road to Hana. I was hoping for some good aerial photos. Alas, this was not to be but the seating worked out for Sandy and Kathy.

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The 3 of us were assigned the back seat, Kathy to my left and Sandy to my right while I was in the middle.

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That meant that both Kathy and Sandy had windows where they could take pictures but I soon found that my seat pretty much prevented that. In fact it was hard to see much of anything.

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The front seats had a couple and they where constantly bouncing around, heads or hands always managing to get into the frame. The other seat was occupied by the Pilot. So much for getting shots out of the front window.

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Still it was interesting and fun and I am thrilled that I was there when both Kathy & Sandy experienced something new.

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Some Final Thoughts on The Road to Hana

Posted on November 26, 2016November 26, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Early on in our drive we stopped at a park. I wish I had written down the name for you. Sandy and I had found it the week before in our explorations. It’s on the left as you travel toward Hana. If you like big waves, this is a spot to check out. When we first found it, it was so wild that there weren’t any surfers but the waves were mesmerizing.

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It was a calmer day when we stopped with the tour and surfers were out in force. Some were very young.

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There were also vendors with things like jewelry and souvenirs on display.

We made a stop at a red sand beach. It gets its color from the iron in the sand. It rusts!

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The little coral church we stopped at is Palapala Ho’omau Church, built in 1857, it’s known as the burial ground of prominent aviator, inventor, explorer, author and activist Charles Lindbergh.

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Forty-one years after his infamous non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, Charles moved to Maui and settled in the remote area of Kipahulu, seeking privacy, beauty and simplicity. You can find the grave of both Charles and his wife under the shade of a Java plum tree at the limestone coral church.

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A small choral group was practicing when we arrived. It was beautiful. We all stood respectfully while they sang Amazing Grace.

047 Our guide skipped the Garden of Eden stop which surprised me. I’d heard a lot about this attraction. Maybe he skipped it because there is a fee.

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“It’s worth paying to enjoy walking the grounds, which are immaculately kept up and offer all kinds of photo opportunities. Here you can see an 100 year-old mango tree, bamboo, ocean views and Puohokamoa Falls.”

You can find a list of stops online and many shops sell ‘Guided tour” CD’s but everything takes time.

Our guide did as best he could with the amount of time allowed. The 8 hour tour ended up being 12 hours so I’d have to say we got our money’s worth.

The Road to Hana

Posted on November 25, 2016November 25, 2016 by Dusty Roads

The Road to Hana has to be the number 1 attraction in Maui, or at least close to it. Everyone knows about the Road to Hana.

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To drive or to tour, that was the question. If we toured I could enjoy the scenery too. If we drive that would be out of the question. Then our concierge told us it was an 8 hour trip depending on how many stops we made. I like driving challenging roads but 8 hours? I could feel my shoulders get tense just thinking about it so tour it was. Another guide reminded us to take our Dramamine. Many Hana trekkers have been done in by car sickness on the bumpy, windy road.

Bright and early Sunday we were picked up in front of our resort. At first the road looked very familiar. It wasn’t long before we were passing through Paia. There was Mama’s Fish House on the left. I spotted the little roadside stand where we had turned around on our previous adventure looking for “Jaws”.

As we continued on the road became even more narrow. At times dropping to one lane wide.

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All of the bridges (there were 54 in all) were one lane so if you met another car someone had to wait but most bridges had a waterfall or deep gulch at the least.

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Once in Hana we stopped for a picnic lunch and a bit farther along a roadside stand to stock up on banana bread and Maui honey. There is nothing quite like Hawaiian Honey!

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We stopped at an ancient church made from coral that had survived devastating storms and tsunamis.

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At the 7 Sacred Pools our efforts to see them were thwarted.

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We only had 45 minutes and from the parking lot it was a good 15-20 minute hike. I talked to someone who tried to make it and he said he only had time to get to the top pool. Returning would have been all up hill. Of our tour group only 1 couple actually made it all the way down and back and they were late returning.

On the backside of Haleakala we hit the bumpiest section of the road. At one point we were right on the edge staring over a huge cliff.

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At another spot we got out to look out over deep gully. The trade winds were blowing with enough force to knock you over. There at the bottom of the ravine was an upside down crushed car. The driver had survived thanks to a passing guest on a tour like ours who spotted the injured man. It was a sobering story.

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Our tour lasted 12 hours. We arrived back at our resort in the dark; a long day. My take on the Road to Hana? Everyone should do this once and a tour is definitely the best way. If I go again I’ll drive but I won’t cover the whole distance. I’ll stop often so I can get the best photos and maybe stock up on more banana bread and honey.

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The Long Way Home

Posted on November 20, 2016November 20, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Hi Again

Lots more to tell you about Maui but it was a long series of flights to get back home. We left Maui at 7 pm on the 18th and finally landed in Albany at 8 pm on the 19th. After a night at my sister’s house I left NY in a snow storm arriving at my home in Taunton, MA about 2:30 pm Sunday 11/20.

It was a warm welcome from my furry friend Rocky.

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I’ll get back to my Maui stories real soon.

Haleakala

Posted on November 11, 2016November 11, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Leaving the Banyan tree behind we started for Paia. But sitting at a stop light we saw a sign for Haleakala National Park. You guessed it…diversion #2. It was about 10:30 am by now and we thought it would be a just a quick side trip. After all, we weren’t going at sunrise or sunset, the 2 most popular times to visit.

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The airport shuttle driver in Albany had told us that we should make the drive because we could see the whole island from the summit and it would be worth it. As we entered the park a sign warned that there was no gas available in the park. I looked at our gas gauge. It was 1/2 full so I figured that should be enough. The sign also said it was 22 miles.

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Haleakala, aka “House of the Sun”, is a dormant volcano that is famous for its sunrise and the people that take the bike tour to see it. They take a van to the summit and after they watch the sunrise they bike down the mountain.

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The operative word here being “down”. They really fly! All along the road were warning signs to watch for bikers. There were a few hard core bikers that were going up. I guess there are always going to be a few people that have to do it the hard way!

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We made it to the first check point with no problem. Sandy had a National Park Pass so we only had to stop at the gate to pick up our brochure and show the pass. The entrance fee without the pass is $20.00 per vehicle in 2016. The price is scheduled to go up in 2017 to $25.00.

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2nd stop was at the first visitor center.

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Here we made a rest stop and chatted with the rangers. We learned that the park is home to the Nene, the Hawaiian Goose and state bird. There is a pair that lives near the station but they only come out when it rains to play in the puddles. We didn’t see a Nene but we did see some little birds that seemed to be hunkered down. 017