Looking back near four months now I cannot recall what we did of note for the three days after we connected with my cousin during our first full day on Maui. Only two salient things leap to mind: hanging at the nearest pool on the second day and driving the north coast a bit on the fourth. It seems as if we must have done something else…didn’t we? Our fourth day also represented our final full day on the western end of Maui. We had been told the natives didn’t really like tourists going up along the north shore, but we took a ‘chance’ and except for a bit of display for what I think represented a Hawai’i Separatist Movement we experienced no animosity. We certainly saw spectacular scenery as the road dove to near sea-level and then ascended to the tops of cliffs.
Our rental car, the ocean, and a spectacular sky above. Molokai in the distance. September 2024.Once upon a time I might have tried snorkeling but not now, and certainly not in this partially protected bay. (Little dots are people snorkeling.) September 2024.Unfortunately for my pictorial record, few pull-offs existed. At this one you can see a good representation of the north coast. The hill in the background has an incline in it as the road we’re on continues. We drove down to near-sea level in the bay out of the photo to the right. September 2024.
By my estimation I took around 100 photos of the coast and/or sunrises/sunsets while we lingered on Kapalua Bay. Dawn would start with the low-contrast promise of sun:
Pre-dawn, last morning on Kapalua Bay. Molokai to the left. September 2024.
And sometimes not so low-contrast…
This photo taken 20 minutes prior to the above it. Maui, September 2024.
I guess most of the time we stared at sunrises in the morning, sunsets in the evening and in between we ate and stared at stuff like this…
Breakers just beyond our shore, nearing sunset. Kapalua Bay, Maui, September 2024.
My first photo at Volcanoes National Park: a steam vent on the edge of the Kilauea crater. September 2024.
The island of Hawai’i could be called triangular. The west coast roughly runs north to south. From its northern tip, though, the coast runs northwest to southeast. Then from that easternmost point it runs northeast to southwest to join up with the west coast. Situated inland from the southeast-facing coastline lies Volcanoes National Park. Volcanoes presents much more than just dormant craters. Its most active feature (inland) turned out to be the first thing we saw: steam vents. Craters? I found their vastness difficult to comprehend.
Kilauea from steam vents on north rim, looking southwest. September 2024.
I’m not even sure the photo above shows only Kilauea. I see “Hale Ma’uma’u Crater” on the ol’ Google Maps. Lava flowed in 1919, 1921, 1954, 1959, and on and on I would guess. I paid little attention to information, so I’ve only myself to blame! Seeing it seemed more important than reading about it on signs, the internet, pamphlets, and the like.
Trade winds blow northeasterly toward the park. There are dry plains inland, but plenty of slopes catch the moisture. Plant life abounds there. Even in this dryness:
On the edge of the steam vents. Volcanoes National Park, September 2024.
Where the rain can fall, things change rapidly. Just a few miles away from the photos above…
Kilauea Iki Overlook trail. Volcanoes National Park, September 2024.Kilauea Iki Overlook trail. Volcanoes National Park, September 2024.
Eventually I realized this incredibly wide circle we were tracing surrounded a ‘family’ of volcano craters. We continued past many tantalizing side trips, acknowledging our (a) laziness, (b) general physical un-fitness, and (c) certain time constraints. Turning off of the Crater Rim Drive where it intersected Chain of Craters Road–further westward travel was blocked–we traced the path of lava flows to the ocean.
Approaching the coast in Volcanoes National Park. September 2024.Where lava meets the sea: Holei Sea Arch. Volcanoes National Park, September 2024.
Now that I know more about this park, I would go back to look into lava tubes, to hike a bit here and there, to see if some of the roads had opened up, and to maybe hike down into a crater…maybe. It looked kinda boring to be truthful.
‘Yep, the rock looks just as black down here. Why did we hike down here again?’ Volcanoes National Park, September 2024.
It all impressed this guy who grew up with the volcanoes of the North Cascades, a far different kind of thing.
Thus ended our day-to-market. My usual procrastinating nature had combined with Hawai’i’s induced laziness to leave two journeys for the final two days on this island. To be continued…
all the voices in my head 