Bosque walk, Albuquerque, NM 2/27/19

Wednesday NM Mountain Club walk along the Rio Grande, south of Rio Bravo.  Ten of us joined the group while another group went snowshoeing in the Sandia Mountains.  Meandering through the Bosque following the Rio grand south, passing the Albuquerque Water Authority Facility and some impressive irrigation/diversion ditches.

Total distance: ~ 6 miles.

Kaihalulu Beach, Hana, Maui, 1/27/19

Isolated, small red sand beach right in the center of Hana.  I include the trip to this beach because not only is the access difficult, but the trail is hidden behind the Hana Community Center and requires crossing a stretch of private land.  A large sign at the trailhead reads: "Trail is dangerous" (in bold capital letters) ... "and is subject to landslides."  This was not reassuring as it had been raining buckets the previous night.  No picture of the difficult stretch as I needed both hands to hang on to the cliff.

                                   The Red Beach has a reputation as the local nude beach. 
                            No nudists in sight on the day we visited as it was too cold to lounge 
                    in a swimsuit let alone no clothing. Only a few people ventured into the water. 

Kapalua Coastal trail and Kaanapali beach walk, HI, 2/11/19

Wonderfully rugged, wild coastal walk from DT Fleming beach to Kapalua bay and back. We didn't pay much attention to the exclusive resorts and homes (except for the ancient Hawaiian cemetery on the grounds of the Ritz-Carlton) because we were too busy watching the fury in the waves. 

Note the two sea arches in the lower right corner. 

Later in the day (no pictures) we walked part of the three miles of uninterrupted white sands of Kaanapali beach starting from the Whaler's Village to the Black Rock, and then south past the Sheraton.  Atop Black rock at sunset, a male performer, dressed in traditional Hawaiian clothes, blows a conch shell, throws a lit torch into the water and then dives into the sea.  We did not wait for the sun to set so we missed the show. Our last day in Maui.  I very reluctantly stopped walking in the beautiful white sand with mild surf at my feet.

Total miles for the day: 8.1 miles. 

Banyan tree, Lahaina, HI, 2/9/19

Wailea Coastal Walk, Wailea, HI, 2/4/19

South shore beach at Wailea (just south of our condo in Kihei) where we started the 3-mile round-trip coastal walk. We walked past fancy resorts, restaurants and homes.  In Maui, a private property may line the coastline but all beaches are open to the public.  Finding an entrance without trespassing on private property can be a challenge. 

Yes, another cattle egret. 

No black sand on this stretch of beach, only the remains of reef coral.

It was almost sunset as we returned to our starting beach and settled to see the sun go down. 

Sunset watching on west Maui is a noblesse oblige activity for tourists. All along the south Maui beaches people gather at sunset, wine glass in hand, to watch the daily event. 

Hoapili trail, La Perouse Bay, HI, 2/3/19

The trail is named after king Hoapili who re-built this lava rock road all around the island in the 19th century, following the trails of the ancient "Kings Highway."   

View towards Haleakala National Park.

The most rugged, wild, sharp and difficult-to-walk lava I have ever seen. 

And we have some impressive lava fields in New Mexico :)

We set out to reach Kanaoi beach (how difficult could it be???) and did not make it.  We took a wrong turn at the very start of the hike and found ourselves by the light house, way off course..... Given the difficult terrain, it was too late to start over.  We consoled ourselves with a picnic at our own small private beach. 

A treat along the trail, feral goats hopping over the lava! 

Hard to see?  They blended right in: brown on brown.

Another treat awaited us on our way back: an (endangered) monk seal pup sunning itself on the rocks close to the bay.  Could not get close as the whole area was cordoned off to keep the pup safe from nosy tourists.

Pipiwai trail, Haleakala National Forest, HI, 1/26/19

This 2-mile very well traveled trail leads to 400-ft Waimoku Falls. It is part of the Haleakala National Park with its 10,023-ft high volcano that covers more than 50% of the island of Maui.  The trails ran through conifer forest for about 3/4 miles and then opened up to this beautiful Banyan tree.  Note Jim standing under the tree in the bottom left hand corner.

Beyond the tree, we found ourselves in a bamboo forest, with branches swaying in the wind and sharp racking noises all around us.  Finally figured it was snapping and breaking branches falling through the dense jungle of bamboo. 

Humid and wet all along; mushroom heaven. 

And finally, there was the fall!
Round trip: 4 miles.

Waianapanapa State Park, Hana, HI, 1/25/19

Just a couple of miles up the Road to Hana from our cabin, we found Waianapanapa State Park, with a rocky coast, and Maui's only black sand beach with fresh water caves.  The caves, unfortunately, are no longer open to the public.  According to our Moon guide book, the maze of caves and tunnels are large enough to get lost in.

We opted to walk part of the ancient King's highway, an ancient trail that used to wind around the isle. On the way we passed blowholes, tidal pools and sea arches. Round trip 3.75 miles, 740 ft elevation. 

Waikamoi Nature trail, Haiku, HI 1/24/19

The Famous Road to Hana offers 55 miles of driving on a narrow, windy, mountainous road with too many one-way bridges to count. Drivers are supposed to yield to oncoming traffic on the single-lane bridges but what do you do when faced with a sharp turn and no visibility?   Aside from the stress of driving, views of both the rain forest and the ocean are spectacular. 

 Lunch stop short hike on the Road to Hana.  We figured we could take a short hike to views overlooking the area. 

Trail started out challenging but doable until we ran into some serious obstacles ....... we climbed over a couple of these and then ran into some serious mud and turned around. 

Waihee Costal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge, Maui, HI, 1/23/19

 

 End-of-the-day 2.4-mile walk by the shoreline passing dried-up wetlands and a number of historically important sites. Hawaiians understood the importance water and settled in areas with lots of fresh water. "Wai" as in "Hawaii" means "water." They build large fishponds and grew taro in irrigated fields. 

 Remains of a heiau or temple/shrine (bombed during World War II), now off limits to the public and,

now guarded by a spider :)

Wailee Ridge trail, Maui, HI, 2/23/19

On the walk to the trailhead, we had our first of many sightings of a cattle egret.  

Set off panoramic view of west Maui at the top of Wailee only to find that the parking lot at the trailhead was completely full.  Had to drive to the overflow parking one mile down hill. This added an additional mile to our hike each way.  First 2 miles meandered steadily uphill through conifer forest including stately Norfolk pines.

The trail then opened up to gorgeous views of the valley to the east,


 
and to the ocean on the west. 

 

 We had been advised to go early as clouds move in and obstruct the views by late morning. Given our extra mile of hiking to reach the trailhead from the overflow parking, it was past 11 am when we reached open spaces. Just a bit further up, we found ourselves in fog and a misty rain. With limited visibility, we decided to turn back.  Total hike: 4.3 miles, ~1200 ft elevation.

Iao Valley Trail, Maui, HI, 1/22/19

Very first hike of our 3-week-long discovery adventure of beautiful Maui. This "hike" was just a short stroll to a viewpoint. Our travel guide discribed this hike as appropriate "for anyone, including grandparents." It was the perfect intro to Maui, its rain forests, volcanic rocks, and .....

Banyan trees.