Maui Sites - October 11-14 2018

I was in town to participate in the Maui Marathon. I brought the entire family with me and we decided to do some sight seeing on Maui. These aren't really difficult hikes, but some fun places to check out. The highlight of the trip was the Waihe'e Coastal Dunes.

Red Sand Beach in Hana - October 11, 2018

Last time I was in Maui, we finished the Hana Relay which finishes near the trailhead at the Red Sand Beach, however nobody really wanted to go, I guess they were tired from all that running. I vowed to go back once I returned, that I did.

We landed in Maui at 9:30 am and picked up the rental car. It was a long 2 hour drive on the Hana Highway. At mile 34, yes, mile 34 is where the Red Sand Beach trailhead is located. I don't know who found this place, but it's quite secluded. The wave current is rough but it is cut off by these huge rocks, so swimming isn't too bad. The hike to the beach is about 10 minutes, maybe less. Reviews online say the trail is steep, but it really isn't especially if you've been hiking on Oahu, kids can do this hike easily. 

The set up was impressive. It was worth the 2 hour drive from the airport. I dressed in red trying to match the sand, but the pictures didn't come out. The sand near the water is soft. 

I’m not sure why I'm so intrigued by the different colored sand. There is also a green sand beach on the Big Island and an orange sand beach on Molokai. 

Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm - October 12, 2018

Today we took a trip to the Ali'i Kula Lavender farm. We thought it would be fields of lavender, but it was only bushes of lavender. The garden was nicely set up with different flowers. One was the koki'o ke'o ke'o, Hawaiian hibiscus. This is the only known hibiscus with a fragrant smell. According to their brochure, there are 6 different types of lavender. The lavender didn't have a strong smell and some did not have a smell at all.

One good thing was a beautiful view of the West Maui Mountains. The trail was only about a 15 minute stroll. After we saw everything, we headed towards the gift shop. Everything is so expensive, a tourist trap for sure. We bought a brownie for $3.50 and a scone for $3.50. There was this lavender honey which was really good, that made the scone so good. I wouldn't recommend this place to tourist or even locals unless you get in free of charge. It is not worth it. 

Makawao Town - October 13, 2018

This is not so much a hike, but a walk through a historical town. We had time to waste before going on our tour to the Surfin' Goat Dairy. What we did was take a pit stop at Makawao. I've always wanted to go visit and was very curious at what the town had to offer in terms of its historical significance. 

As you drive through the main hub of the town, it is apparent that a lot of the original buildings are still standing today. My question is why was Makawao a Paniolo town? More so, why does Hawaii have Paniolo's? It doesn't make much sense to me. I would find out at the Makawao Historical Museum. 

The volunteer provided me with much needed information, and it was only me who listened though. She said that Captain George Vancouver as a gift to Kamehameha I dropped off a bunch of cattle. The cattle died quickly (not sure why). Vancouver encouraged Kamehameha I to place a 10 year kapu on cattle so it could grow and multiply. The cattle ran free and created problems. They needed someone to chorale these cattle. The Vaqueros of Mexican, Spanish, Indian descent were recruited to train the Hawaiians how to manage large herds of cattle. This all happened on the Big Island, so I need to figure out how the cattle got to Makawao. Anyway, Makawao became a business center to serve the people of the cattle industry.

During the plantation days, Makawao was also a hub for the different ethnic workers. The Japanese probably tired from working on the plantations and started general stores. The Chinese became merchants and blacksmiths. Filipinos continued picking pineapples and opening markets. The Portuguese who were the mainstays of the community continued ranching and farming. 

During World War II, Makawao helped out by having a hospital and being a place for Marines to settle. 

The walking tour included 20 sites. We probably only saw a handful of them because we didn't have too much time since our Surfin' Goat Tour was going to start. 

Surfin' Goat Dairy - October 13, 2018

This would be the highlight of our day. After Makawao we came here a bit early. We had to wait for quite some time and the communication was terrible. For example, we didn't know where to report. When asked, the lady had a bad attitude. It's like WTF, you are having a bad day so you have to put that on all the customers who pay big bucks. Putting that aside, this place won a national award for top goat cheese in 2004-2006. They have a solid national reputation. Everything here is quite expensive though, but the quality is top notch for goat cheese. At 3:30p, our tour started. The young lady was quite knowledgeable. She knew her facts. We started by feeding the goats. She said it is buck mating season and that one buck can mate with 90 bucks a day if he wanted to. I also learned that goats hate water, so if I was ever in the Waianaes and was attacked by a goat I would spit water on it and the goat would run away. The tour was called Evening Chores where we would feed the goats, milk them, and then eat the cheese. The goats were hungry and feeding them was a chore. Since we were the only group, we had this big basket of hay to feed the goats. It was tiring because we were trying to be fair in what we offered to the goats, instead of dumping the basket on the ground and letting them go free for all. I thought feeding the goats would be dangerous, just like feeding a dog. Those sharp teeth can hurt you. But goats don't have upper teeth and their bottom teeth aren't too sharp, however, if they suck on your finger, their back teeth are really sharp. I was careful not to let them suck my finger whole. I think Malia got bit though.

Now to the fun part, milking the goats. The lady lined them up and taught us the technique of holding the teeth which is like the nipple. The goats don't like to be milked, they seem irritated, but can tolerate it because they are fed granola. Squeezing the teeth was hard and needed some strong hands. I can't imagine people trying to milk goats, it would take all day for such a small amount. After our attempt to milk the goats, the lady hooked them up to the pump. With the pump, it was a quick couple minutes and milking the goats was done. The advent of technology. 

The final part of the tour was trying the goat cheeses. The lady said it was a 16 hour aging process. Fresh goat cheese is amazing. She even said that some of their cheese can last months if properly stored. 

This was a great experience. It was worth $100. We tipped her $10 for being such a good tour guide.

Waihe'e Coastal Dunes - October 12, 2018

With the Maui Marathon tomorrow, I came to Maui not to do strenuous hikes, but to find hikes that were easy. I came across the Waihe'e Coastal Dunes. I wasn't sure how long it was, but I was going to go as far as I could to find the rare dwarf naupaka. According to the website, there are 2 coastal naupaka, one is the main one scaevola sericea also known as beach naupaka, the other one is scaevola coriacea which is the dwarf naupaka. The dwarf naupaka once grew on all the main islands except Kaho'olawe, but is now restricted to only Maui. Not only restricted to Maui, but to Waihe'e, 2 islets, and Kaupo. It is federally listed as endangered and numbers are declining. 

Getting to Waihe'e isn't difficult, it is one of the easier hikes to get to on Maui. The Maui Land Trust owns the land and visitors are welcomed. There are major historical sites too in the area, none have been restored and were overtaken by alien vegetation. 

We parked outside the gate and took a walk. It was obvious that the trail has traffic, but I think they want to keep it as wild as possible. Invasive species have taken over the place, the native stuff is trying to survive. Near the beginning was akia. By the looks of it, it appeared to be the uva-ursi species. 

The kids had slippers so I wasn't sure how they would do or how much they would tolerate. But they did fine. We only hiked for about 1.2 miles or so. At about 1 mile were the dunes. I wanted to find the dwarf naupaka. We were in a cemetery, it was kinda weird. I started to get frustrated because the dwarf naupaka wasn't in the area. I felt demoralized. Trying to make the best out of the situation, I saw nehe and this native grass which I'm not sure of the name, later to find out it was mauuakiaki.

It was hot going back, but I stayed in the back looking for more plants. Jared questioned me about the name of a plant on the trail. I told him it is "pohinahina" and there are a lot of them, "look, see there are a lot of them". As I was pointing it out, I saw another plant, "what was that?". It was the dwarf naupaka!, mixed in with the pohinahina and other alien weeds. "Shit, this made my entire trip", I thought to myself or I mentioned it out loud. I can't remember. 

Walking back was so sweet. I got greedy and started looking for the akoko which I learned during the research process, but didn't find any. There is more to explore as the dunes extend past the stream. I definitely would go back again. In the meantime, I have to appreciate the time with my family. Although at times it is hard to hike with them with the nagging complaining from the kids, I do get impatient, but they are a big part of my hiking purpose. 

Wailea Point - October 15, 2018

After the marathon, I wanted to go to Wailea Point to look for some plants. I've read that 30 years ago, they started a native garden, so I wanted to check it out. 

Wailea Point is a multi-million dollar condominium complex located between two five star hotels, the Four Seasons and the Fairmont. No doubt for the filthy rich. We drove to the gated community and Michelle didn't want to deal with trying to get in. I pulled over to the side and talked with the security guard at the guard shack. I asked him if I wanted to see the walkway. I did this in an honest non confrontational way. He said just go to Polo Beach and walk to see the garden. 

I drove 1 minute up the road to Polo Beach and parked. There was a lot of parking. The beach is nice, not world class though as the surf is rough. Immediately I saw some natives, actually almost all natives. Pohinahina and Naupaka, obviously. Some rare plants like the Red 'Ilima and Dwarf Naupaka. I left the kids and walked. I just was so enamored by the area. I could stay for days looking at the plants. It took about 20 minutes to walk around and check the place out. It was great! I really enjoyed myself. Too bad Michelle and the kids had to wait.