The Road to Hana

 

After the summit was over, we packed up early the next morning and made a caravan with our friends toward Hana. Havana and I had done the journey along the famous drive two years ago with the help of the Shaka app. Since we  had such an incredible and memorable adventure with with our virtual guide the last time, we decided to use the app this time around as well.

The road to Hana if driven straight, is just about two hours. But with all the stops along the way for short hikes, swims under waterfalls and in swimming holes, a  search for banana bread (they were sold out) and a coconut ice cream snack stop and photo ops, the expedition ended up taking us close to six hours.

Those six hours passed seamlessly while they filled our senses. The endless lush green landscape and thick rainforest that hugged every one of the six hundred curves, the turquoise ocean that took our breath away, the high, steep cliffs, the big raindrops and bright, colorful flowers, all of these were healing and soothing. The road to Hana is a magical road, where time seems to have stood still. There is no cell phone service. It feels timeless and peaceful and a bit other worldly.

Since the drive takes so long, we spent the night at Hana Inn, so we could rest and recoup in the tiny town on the tip of east Maui. The quaint inn sits not too far from the beach, where sunsets and sunrises take your breath away. I could not not be humbled and in awe of the work of Creation that lay in the sea, earth and air all around me. 

The road to Hana is a journey that I was grateful to share with our family and friends. The road has a way to nestling into one’s being and leaving a piece of it’s peace with you, long after you have left the pavement.