Haleakala and Hana hwy

[stever]

Is it possible to do both in one day? Am planning to go to sunrise. Then do hana hwy backwards. Am I crazy. We are used to getting up early and putting in a full day. Thanks

[Splinter]

If you are there for two days, and the ship leaves late, I suppose you could do this. You would have to get up about 3AM to get up the mountain for sunrise, then jump in your car and drive a very twisty turning road to and from Hana without much sleep. I would not recommend it, esp. on a weekend, as the traffic can be bad then on the Hana road. Not sure what you mean about "backwards"...you have to drive into and out of Hana on the same road unless you are planning to have a 4WD vehicle, and the road south of Hana can have wash-outs and is even slower than the north shore road. It would be a shame to drive the Hana road without having the time to stop and walk to the different waterfalls and pools, see the views and really enjoy it.

[spleen93]

I would agree with this.

 

Spleen

[stever]

We have read in 3 books to do hana hwy backwards. They also give phone #'s to call for road conditions and weather. Are they giving misinformation about that too(they say cars can do the south road). I know I was looking forward to going to the Blue Pool, but now I have read on this board you have to go through private property to get there. So we will not do this. We were planning on doing this our first night/morning. since I will be up anyway. Thanks

[Aloha_Jackie]

There is a van tour that you can take - they drive you in and then you fly out via Blue Hawaiian Helicopter - you will definitely need some sleep when you return. I dont know if you are biting off more than can chew - but if you are interested the tour is called Sky Trek - Blue Hawaiian is my fave for Helicopters and a great view of Heleakala on the way back to Kahului airport/helipad

[spleen93]

You certainly COULD do Hana Hwy backwards though I've never felt the need to do so. Given that you're starting with Haleakala that AM, you'd certainly be on the road early enough to avoid the majority of crowds. Remember to start the road by 8 am and you'll be fine.

 

Spleen

[Laura4cruise]

I know I was looking forward to going to the Blue Pool, but now I have read on this board you have to go through private property to get there. So we will not do this.

 

Oh no! We went to the Blue Pool last year in May and didn't walk through private property. No Keep Out or Kapu signs anywhere.

 

When did this change? Or has it not changed and I unwittingly walked through someone's land? I wouldn't have done that!

[spleen93]

From an article in the Honolulu Advertiser on May 23, 2004:

 

"For instance, "Maui Revealed" has been blasted for giving directions to an East Maui waterfall that requires crossing private land. But the same waterfall is featured in at least a half-dozen other books, including "Frommers," "Lonely Planet," "Maui Handbook," "Maui Trailblazer," "Maui Trails," "Driving and Discovering Maui," and "Hiking Maui."

Frank James Oliveira said "99.9 percent" of those who visit Helele'ike'oha Falls, also known as Blue Pool, are armed with "Maui Revealed."

 

Oliveira, whose family owns property that includes part of the pool, said the book is written in such a way that it whips tourists into a frenzy of entitlement that exempts them from obeying "no trespassing" signs and leads them into potentially dangerous activities.

 

Traffic on the private dirt road to Blue Pool has increased to an average of 300 cars a day, he said.

 

"It's a major headache," he said."

 

Also check out this article in the Maui Weekly newspaper -- which also gives some perspective of tourist impact on once private spots.

 

Spleen

[Laura4cruise]

Well, I didn't see any "No Trespassing" signs up when I was there. Perhaps I'm blind? There were houses along that part of Ulaino Road but we didn't enter anyone's yard. My husband and I wouldn't knowingly trespass on someone's property; now I feel really bad. :( Oh well, I promise I won't do it again.

 

We used the Lonely Planet guidebook for Maui and it doesn't mention that anyone owns part of the pool. That link to Maui Weekly was interesting, too. I can understand why certain areas would need to be closed off so as not to be overrun by tourists.

 

Thanks, spleen.

[spleen93]

And that's all you can do and your willingness to abide by any "No Trespassing" signs is what counts. :)

 

Spleen

[stever]

Thank you Spleen, we will actually be on maui for 4 days, I just thought since we are already over that way we could do both. The reason to do it backwards would be to avoid traffic and crowds at each site. Thanks again everyone for the input.

[Aloha_Jackie]

Mahalo to Spleen for sharing the link to the Maui Weekly article! Poor Laura, I feel sorry for her, but I dont think she did anything wrong - if there werent any no trespassing/Kapu signs then you are probably okay, you can usually tell if you have "crossed the line" - Polololu lookout on Big Island is well marked now and they say they will tow! Legal to go there - just not legal to park in peoples front yards....

[kwokpot]

Is it possible to do both in one day? Am planning to go to sunrise. Then do hana hwy backwards. Am I crazy. We are used to getting up early and putting in a full day. Thanks

 

I find it interesting, if not a bit sad, that vacationers feel the need to fill up every waking (and even non-waking) hour of each day with activities when they visit one of the most beautiful places on earth.

 

The whole point of vacationing in Hawaii is to ENJOY the beauty and surroundings that is around you - remember, we're not on the reality show 'Amazing Race', we're on vacation!

 

I've just had the opportunity to speak with 2 recent returning vacationers from Hawaii - both 1st timers.

 

One of them was my doctor, who just returned from a Hawaiian cruise last month. While he had a good time, he said that his mistake was planning too many tours - he actually became annoyed at having to constantly be on the go to meet up with tour after tour, and felt rushed and not relaxed.

 

My sister completed her 1st hawaii trip in July with her family, which included 2 small kids. She is a Type A personality; at home she enjoys having every min. scheduled with some activity - in fact, she even multitasks when she's out for a casual dinner at a family-style restaurant (I yell at her for that!)! She was actually apprehensive about this trip, since she says she dosen't like Carribean vacations because she gets too bored.

 

Well, she had the time of her life NOT over scheduling activities - and actually ENJOYING what Hawaii has to offer. Yes, she snorkeled, and hiked, and my niephew got surfing lessions - but for the 1st time in a long time, she learned to PACE herself and actually enjoy each activity rather than make a checkoff list of things accomplished on a trip.

 

I'm just pointing out that Hawaii is not going anywhere - and contrary to a popular saying, Hawaii is no longer just a once in a lifetime trip - so ENJOY each activity - ENJOY the beauty - have some DOWN time just to sit and relax - What's the point of going all the way to Hawaii just to sit in a car for hours just to say you've 'DONE' the road to Hana????

[stever]

kwokpot.

We will be on maui for 5 days. I just wanted to get these 2 important excursions on the agenda since we will be on EST and both are on the other side of the island. The other days are going to be spent boogie boarding with the kids or whatever they want to do. We have a modest list of must do's for each island. I like to get the must do's accomplished first, then if something prohibits us from doing them first we will still have a chance to do them later. We also are planning on going back next thanksgiving. It just seemed that it would waste time driving back and forth. Thanks Steve

[Aloha_Jackie]

I see that this may have hit a nerve - Kwockpots answer struck it with me anyway - I take offense to some of the remarks and do see both sides

 

Side one - I am constantly looking to take tours and maximize my valuable time on the islands, to each his own - I agree that Stever ought to go in guns blastin' and on EST time do the Haleakala thing and get Hana out of the way with the same stone

 

Conversely with Side two, this last trip for two weeks (8/24 - 9/7) which we just returned on Saturday from, we hardly did a bunch of tours, but sort of winged it - going to several places that we'd already been to - once for a change it was MORE RELAXING - but we cooked for ourselves alot etc

 

But - I dont want to feel cheated that I didnt get to see/do something that I may never get to see again - for whatever reason (health/death/financial etc)

 

Everyone has their own dreams and how to make them happen, the beauty is seen in different ways - it would be pretty boring if we were all the same....so, let's see....... lounge like a lizard or snorkel tour safari........

[Aloha_Jackie]

Aloha Steve - check this one out, bumping the thread for you....