CHAPTER 26
The culmination of Dillon and Dia’s hospitality was the Maui Grand Tour- an all day circuit around the coastal fringe of Haleakala Volcano, the south-eastern nut of the peanut shell shaped island. The trip started with a stop at Maui’s only winery, complete with a sampling of the local specialty: pineapple wine. I wish I could recommend it, but to me it had the distinct flavor of a way too ripe pineapple starting to ferment and rot- my advice to them: stick to the grapes. Next, we made our way to Haleakala National Park, where a winding path through thick groves of bamboo led to a stupefyingly tall waterfall. The day was getting hot, so a quick stop at Venus Pools for some cliff jumping was in order, followed by a cocktail on the patio of the luxurious Travaasa Hana Hotel. At Waianapanapa State Park we explored long extinct lava tube that lead straight to the most amazing black sand beaches- amazing for their obsidian color, and for the hundreds of neon blue Portuguese Man-O-War that had been washed ashore and littered the sand. The infamous Highway to Hana took us home, but the term “highway” is a little misleading- it took two and a half hours to negotiate the 60 miles back to Kihei because the road is extremely windy, with about 620 curves and 46 one-lane bridges.
Our last few days on the island we spent completely horizontal, on the beach or at the pool. We would get out the door pretty early, and after setting up the umbrella and chairs, make for the water where we would spend at least an hour or two snorkeling the reefs right off the shore. It was the most amazing sight, the world’s best aquarium- with all manner of fish and multicolored coral, starfish, sea snakes and sea slugs, and the coup de grâce: sea turtles.
The beach was perfect every day until about 1pm when the offshore winds picked up and turned all that soft golden sand into a hellish, island sized sandblaster. We learned quickly to say goodbye to the turtles, pack up, and retreat to the poolside comforts of a cabana and cold cocktail by about 12:30 so as to beat the rush.
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