Road to Hana

Let's back up to Hawaii in November/December 2012.  Why not, right?

One of the things that everyone told us to do while on the island of Maui was to drive the Road to Hana.  I did my research before hand about where to purchase a picnic lunch, when to get gas, the best banana bread, etc.  I even purchased the R2H audio tour on CD so we wouldn't miss out on any of the sites along the way.

We started our morning early and stopped at Anthony's Coffee in Paia for breakfast and to pick up a picnic lunch.  Breakfast was good, but nothing to write home about.  Our lunch was made to order and ready once we finished breakfast.  The staff were very friendly and efficient.

My visions of the Road to Hana included winding roads flanked by the forest on one side and crashing waves on the other side.  My visions were inaccurate.  While the ride is nice and filled with over 620 curves, 50+ bridges and countless waterfalls in various stages of brilliance (depending upon the amount of rainfall), there are very few moments when you are driving along side the ocean.

In general, we followed the R2H audio tour and stopped at just about every stop suggested.  Many of the stops took you from the main road down side streets to the ocean, which didn't disappoint with some amazing views.  Chances are you will encounter some rain and the skies will be overcast, so don't expect beautiful blue skies...but if you are graced with blue skies, enjoy it!

Once we hit Hana, we continued on our trek and kept right on driving to the Seven Pools and then all the way around the island.  I believe it is frowned upon to take rental cars around the island to the south and around the island to the north, it's not that bad.  Yes, there is gravel and yes, you must go about 35 miles per hour, but it is definitely do-able and there are some beautiful sights to see.  We had a Ford mustang convertible and did not encounter any problems; although, we were quite cautious as it was not a race to the next destination.

A few pictures from the Road to Hana and beyond.