I was thrilled to make it back to Hana only three weeks after my last visit. Hana twice in one month. How lucky am I?
This time around I went with my all-out explorer-adventurer friend, Shaina and her out-of-town guest, Nina. We drove out from Lahaina on Sunday and headed to Hana. On our way there, we stopped for a quick dip at Ching's Pond. It's a freshwater swimming pond fed by a waterfall that flows under the Hana Highway.
Once we made it to Hana, we stopped at Waianapanapa State Park to check out the caves and the Black Sand Beach, but it was crawling with Memorial Day tourists. We moved on down the road to try checking in at the Hotel Hana, but were rebuffed--we were too early. So, we moved on to our next adventure, the Venus Pool--something in Hana that I've never done before.
We parked Shaina's "Red Dragon" on the side of the road, jumped a fence and cut through a cow field to make our down to the water.
{abandoned outdoor stone oven next to a sign warning visitors to be respectful of the land}
{Paige-sized oven}
{Nina and Shaina at the top of the Venus Pool}
The Venus Pool is a natural formed swimming pool on the Hana coast. The pool is a mix of fresh and salt water as the ocean tides wash water into the pool while a spring feeds the pool from the mountainside.
{Shaina photographing the pool}
The Venus Pool is a great spot for swimming, but it's famous for cliff jumping.
{Here I am taking a running leap from 25 feet up}
{Almost touchdown. Note to amateur cliff jumpers: keep arms tucked in close to body to avoid angry red slap marks on arms. I followed this advice on my second go}
{swimmers enjoying the Venus Pool}
{a hiker contemplating making the big jump from 50 feet up}
{A larger crowd peering over the edge}
After jumping and swimming at the Venus Pool, we went to Hamoa Beach to catch some rays, watch bodysurfers and play in the pounding surf.
{Hamoa Beach}
{beach reading}
When we finished our afternoon adventures, we went back to Hotel Hana to check into our bungalow.
{entrance of Hotel Hana}
{famous weather stone}
{living room of our hotel bungalow}
{huge bathroom}
{Shaina and Nina enjoying Spam Musubi on the lanai}
{the pool at Hotel Hana}
After washing off a pound of sand from Hamoa Beach (man, that surf was mean) we relaxed on the lanai with some wine before grabbing dinner at the Hana Ranch Restaurant.
Later that night, we fell asleep to the rain.
And we woke up the next morning to rain. We relaxed in the hotel room, reading our books to the sound of pounding rain until checkout at noon. As we were gathering our things, the rain slowed and died completely.
Perfect timing for us to venture further along the Hana Highway to do our hike at Waimoku Falls. This is the same hike that Bryan and I did with Carolyn earlier this month.
{Shaina at the "Banyan" Tree--Shaina told us that this is not a real Banyan tree, but it is part of the Ficus family which is why it's similar in appearance}
{taking a small break on a tree branch bench}
{Jump!}
{look at that wall of bamboo!}
{waterfalls along the way}
{into the bamboo we go}
{we made it to Waimoku Falls!}
{perfect trail snack: wild raspberries--found by Shaina}
{once again, must learn how to keep my eyes open for pictures}
{crossing the stream on our way back from Waimoku Falls}
{second and last stream crossing}
{grasshopper friend spotted by Shaina}
After our hike, we drove back home the back way. So, instead of doubling back and driving home the way we came, we continued forward along the Hana Highway to drive along the bottom of Maui island.
{very different landscape from the lush rainforest of Hana}
{the road behind us}
{our fearless driver, Shaina, and her Red Dragon}
{the island of Kahoolawe}
We made it just in time to do a quick wine tasting at the Maui Winery (can't turn down pineapple wine) before making it back to Lahaina.
{fireworks blossom at the winery}
When I got home, Bryan and I went to dinner at Kimo's (prime rib and coconut crusted swordfish) before watching Mad Men and passing out. It's been quite the weekend!
