Hawaii, Day 2: Road to Hana and Pipiwai Trail

Each day was incredible, but when Dave asked which one I would relive, I said "Day Two" without hesitation. On our second day we woke up bright and early and hit the 3 hour twisty- turny Road to Hana. The drive was through lush rain forests and had waterfall and shore stops every few mile markers.
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My favorite stop on the Road to Hana was the black sand beach. As soon as we walked up, it took our breath away-- the black sand and blue water making such a sharp contrast. Walking on the beach was so cool. We found it wasn't really sand, but more like tiny ball bearings or large poppy seeds. We then discovered a lava tube cave that let out into the crashing ocean. Indescribable!





Another great stop on the Road to Hana was the 7 Sacred Pools. Here we were able to actually swim in waterfall pools! As the name implies, a huge cliff supports enough water runoff to make a chain of seven waterfalls with seven pools ending in the ocean. The water was invigorating and I even took a fancy jump off the cliff into it.

I am a bit prone to carsickness and the Road to Hana's 600 curves were no exception for me. If the drive alone was the point of this day, it may not have been fulfilling. We actually made the drive to hike the Pipiwai Trail. I had read that this was the best hike in Maui and we sure weren't disappointed!

We hiked past too many waterfalls to count. This was my favorite spot. On top of one waterfall cliff you could stand and gaze in awe at an infinity pool only God could create!

We were totally safe, but here I sit at the ledge of another waterfall.

We went swinging in the giant Banyan Tree.

Dave's most memorable part of this hike was the bamboo forest. This was fascinating. The bamboo grows so tall and so thick that no sunlight gets in. It was dark and damp in it and a game of hide-and-seek proved he could literally hide a few feet in and not be visible. When the wind blew, all the bamboo clacked together making a cool noise.

The dead bamboo was really light. This one is probably five times my length and I can lift it easily. We broke some fallen shoots down to make walking sticks.

The conclusion of the 4 mile hike was to traverse across a stream and find Waimoku Falls tumbling down 400 feet-- the tallest waterfall we've ever seen. We had to just sit and admire it for a while before beginning the long hike and drive back. Day two was perfect.