I Survived the Road to Hana 2/7

Hawaii Travelogue - Part 2 of 7


I Survived the Road to Hana

.. A narrow road
.. Hairpin bends
.. 620 curves
I survived the Road to Hana!

Highway to heaven
Is through a lush rainforest
What’s a rainforest without rain?
Rain lashes and teases in turn
Revival written in emerald green
Why would I not…
… survive the Road to Hana

Majestic cliffs upto 6000 feet
Waves crash and roar beneath
Ambrosial ocean to eternity
Cool breeze stirs the soul
Why would I not
… survive the Road to Hana

.. 54 (single lane) bridges
.. traffic backed up at each
.. five hour drive
.. for 68 miles
I survived the Road to Hana!

Trickling streams
Through the evergreen
Cascading waterfalls
.. A dozen or more
.. Right by the road
Ocean and Forest, Sapphire and Emerald 
Balm to the eye
Why would I not
.. survive the Road to Hana

Aloha Oi’
Hana No Ka Oi’ (Maui is the best)
Mau Loa (forever)


The Road to Hana is an amazing experience, complete with its 54 single lane bridges and 620 curves. Many visitors simply prefer to take tourist buses rather than drive but the real fun comes in driving the rather crazy winding narrow road and stopping where you felt like. (Caveat: Dad was the one driving and watching for those blind curves.) We left at 6am itself so that we would be there and back before it got dark. There are no gas stations after the town of Pa’ia too! The route is littered with hairpin bends and blind curves and many single lane bridges. Traffic backs up one end of these bridges to allow the other side to pass. The road was build in 1926 so it’s been around for a while. Before the 1990s the road was unpaved making for some pretty nasty potholes after the rains – hence the phrase “I survived the road to Hana.” The road is still unpaved with no barrier in some parts.


Hana lies in the mountainous eastern region of Maui and gets an incredible amount of rain (almost 400 inches), making that area a veritable lush green rainforest with its multitude of flora and fauna. Epiphytes like ferns, mosses and liverworts grow on the trunks of giant trees that form an enormous canopy. Bouts of heavy rain, and sprinkles of showers alternate along the ride, but what’s a rainforest without rain? Mosses are the sponge-like water storage reservoirs of the rainforest - there some 12000 species of mosses alone in the Hana rainforest. And what’s a forest if not for the tree – lots and lots of trees like Eucalyptus and Koa trees. The Hala tree with its aerial root system really stood out in its uniqueness. There were patches of ki plants – the leaves of the ki are used in making the leaf-skirts that Hawaiian dancers wear and also used to wrap food when cooking. The green growth contrasts with the bright blooming flowers like the Anturium, Bird of Paradise, Heliconia, Awapuhi and Hibiscus.

Getting an eyeful of the scenery, especially the many waterfalls along the way is what makes the journey so great. A waterfall seemed to pop up every few mile-markers - quite delightful in the way it merrily cascades over the hill and rock. The Waikuni falls (around mile marker 19) were like 3 parallel waterfalls all packed in one place. There was quite the parking jam as cars and buses alike scrambled to park on the already narrow road. The road divided one of the waterfalls just after mile marker 21, so from one side of the bridge you were viewing the top of the waterfall as it fell down. That was quite a sight. The waterfall just after Pua’a Ka’a Park (23) fell in two levels with a wide mossy pool between. At some places, water tricked down green vines that clung to the rock wall on the sides of the road– it looked like a shimmering green curtain as the sunrays refracted through the water drops. All these variations in the way falling water display itself to the human eye is quite astounding.


The views seem to get better the deeper you go. The views of the forest on one side was more than matched by the magnificence of the ocean on the other side. Emerald on one side and sapphire on the other – Wow! Green, vegetation covered cliffs swept down to patches of white sands and waves that frothed and danced about, like that seen at the Kaumahina Park lookout point (12). We drove down to get a closer look at the Ke’anae peninsula (which we had seen from above) What a color contrast there was at the coast– a blue ocean leading to white waves crashing on the black rocky coastline – all against the green of the vegetation covered shore. The rocks were pretty slippery though. Dad and I tried to climb down to of the rocky planes along the shore, it was a little slippery so we got off. Good thing, cuz a few seconds later a big wave crashed and just swept over that area – had we been on it, we could have gotten swept away. The Ke’anae Peninsula appeared to be a popular fishing site as there were a number of fishing poles securely anchored to the rocks just waiting for the poor unsuspecting fish to take the bait. Can’t help but feel sorry for the carefree fish that will end up on someone’s plate. There were a few fishermen around but most of the fishing poles were unmanned. There was supposed to be taro fields in that area but some local Hawaiians told us there they were no longer there (later on TV we found that there is some water issue going on for the small farmers). Fortunately I got to see taro fields during my trip to Kaua’i 2 years ago and got to even eat a taro burger. At Ka’anae we got to munch on some banana bread. They were freshly baked at a small local store near the peninsula and the warm banana bread was just ono ono (absolutely delicious). 


Sometime after Pua’a Ka’a Park, the rainforest starts thinning out and we started to see more of the shrub type of plants and flowers. The road also get narrower!! There were a few unmanned few fruits stands along the way – totally based on honor system. The price was listed – for example 6 bananas were $1. You simply put the money in a box next to the stand and take the fruits. At one place Dad bought Passion Fruit (lillikoi in Hawaiian), which I tasted for the first time. This variety is yellow on the outside and has a hard gourd like shell. Inside is a yellow-orange like jelly with lots of black seeds. The jelly, which you scoop up with a spoon, is what you eat. It has a tart but tangy taste – a very pleasant and interesting taste, which I enjoyed enormously. Passion fruit is used extensively in drinks and desserts (like ice cream) which I got to enjoy too while I was in Hawaii. 

The town of Hana is significant for Hawaiians as it is the birthplace of Queen Ka’ahumanu, who was largely responsible for converting Hawaiians to Christianity (around 1820s). Just last week, we had studied the annexation of Hawaii in our US History. By 1892, Hawaii had already become important for the settlers in terms of its potential for sugar cane and as a trading port for trade with China. Almost two-thirds of the land was owned by non-Hawaiians. The Hawaiian King was persuaded to let the US build a naval base on Oahu (Pearl Harbor) in 1887. When Queen Liluokalani tried to reassert Hawaiian sovereignty with a new constitution in 1893, the marines were brought in. The queen surrendered and the US officially annexed Hawaii in 1898. 

The small town of Hana is very scenic on all sides, nestled amongst all that greenery. We had some delicious Thai soup in a roadside restuarant near the Hana School. Hana itself is a quiet and peaceful place and very laid-back. The entire Hana Hwy region, including Hana felt more ‘island-like,’ than the over-commercialized parts of west-Maui. Hana once was the sugar-capital of Maui and has its small one lane airport and port. My Raghavan Thatha (grandfather) had spent 4 days in Maui almost 30 years ago. He loved his visit there. It must have been even less developed then and even more beautiful. I got my “I survived the Road to Hana,” T-shirt at a local gift shop. 

Beyond Hana on the Hana Hwy is Hamoa with its Koki and Hamoa Beach. Homoa Beach is said to be the most picturesque beach on Maui and it did not fail to live upto that name. The waves were so high that you could not see the line of horizon when standing on the beach. It was just one magnificent wave after wave on the shore. There were barely a handful of people so it was like being on your very private beach. Sea cliffs (pali) surrounded the bay like beach and you could see the small island of Ala'u. All these islands are delightful with their coconut tree topping. Vaguely in the far distance is supposed to be the Big Island of Hawaii (which we visited 2 years back). The edges of the beach were lined with Plumeria flowers and there were dozens of the fallen Plumeria. 

Time was getting on, and we needed to get back before dark. The forest turned a darker green in the fading light. Hana was pure delight overall. 

- Hari Srinivasan

Hawaii Travelogue 2012
Part 1 - Aloha Maui
Part 2 - I Survived the Road to Hana
Part 3 - West Maui
Part 4 - North Beaches and Watermen
Part 5 - Whale of a Tail
Part 6 - Humuhunukunukuapua'a and the Coral Reef
Part 7 - Living Aloha