Cheya had been hounding us to go on the trip most commonly called “The Road to Hana” since we first moved to Maui. And so, at almost six months-to-the-day into our Big Maui Adventure, we finally traveled the Road to Hana this past weekend. I knew it was full of big sights, narrow roads, caves, bamboo forests, waterfalls and many areas deemed to be sacred, but the trip definitely exceeded my expectations.

Hana is a little town located on the Eastern-most tip of Haleakala, which is the large dormant volcano or larger “nub” of Maui. Kent and I have taken the trip around the other Northwestern “nub,” which is called the West Maui Mountains. Haleakala’s nub, however, doesn’t have a direct route all the way around it. So, you have to basically travel all the way to Hana, then turn around and go back to where you came from. That is why the trip takes as long as it does and why Hana and much of the road leading to it seems as if it has been untouched by time.

While working at the Four Seasons, I get to hear a lot about what people are doing on their vacation. Because there is so much to see, it’s pretty common for people to arrive late for their dinner reservation, exhausted and apologizing because they had tried to make the Road to Hana just a quick afternoon trip. Well, it’s no afternoon trip. We wanted to really take the time to appreciate all that the East side of the island had to offer.

Our adventure started 5AM Saturday morning. With Cheya, again, as our designated Maui tour guide, we were able to see all of Hana’s nooks and crannies. And, as Maui Luck would have it, we were also able to even see inside the homes of a few Hana residents along the way. It was Hana’s day for “Maui Open Studios,” which is basically a day for artists to open their homes to anyone who wishes to come over and take a look at their artwork. We stopped at very talented photographers, painters and sculptor’s homes. All were welcoming and offered us food, drink and some “talking story” along the way.  It was inspiring to see how successful and happy these artists are, living in this beautiful place, creating beautiful things.

We made our way to Black Sand Beach, which included a lava tunnel hundreds of years old. The tunnel, filled with perfect, smooth black lava pebbles, led to an opening to the ocean. The opening acted as this perfect frame for the bluest water you can imagine.  We stopped for lunch at this amazing outdoor Thai place called Pranee’s in the center of town in Hana. It’s only open when Pranee feels like being open for business, and she only serves you if she likes you. Pranee is my kind of lady. The food was outstanding and the atmosphere was very charming.

We hiked through Haleakala National Park at Kipahulu, also referred to as O’heo Gulch, which included the Seven Sacred Pools. On the way up, you are treated to beautiful bridges, large banyan trees, and a serene bamboo forest. The bamboo forest was absolutely breathtaking. It was so quiet and perfect, all you could hear was the rustling of the tiny leaves atop the bamboo. When the wind is strong enough it forces the bamboo stalks to knock together creating an eerie natural wind chime sound that reverberates throughout the forest.

After our hike, we went to Hasegawa General Store to get some dinner ingredients. Thankfully, we were able to stay at Cheya’s friend’s amazing home in Hana on Saturday night. We made dinner, celebrated life through a few beers, and turned in early after a long day. Kent and I slept on the lanai and woke to the sound of the ocean and a beautiful sunrise.

It was time for our last stop on the Hana trip: Red Sand Beach. When researching Maui it seemed to be one of the places talked about the most. Now I know why. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and definitely the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. This tiny bay is surrounded by a steep cliff composed of a deep-red lava rock, all situated on a bed of beautiful deep-red sand. Scattered around the bay and somehow thriving on an impossible incline are bright green pine trees and palms. The backdrop to all of this is the most aqua blue water you have ever seen. The water was churning in the distance but the shore was wonderfully calm, due to a perfectly placed lava wall protecting the beach. It was one of those places where you just take a deep breath and are so thankful to be alive. I think we may have both turned into hippies that day.

It was such a great weekend with such great people. I can’t wait to make the trip again with family and friends once they make it out here.