Maui: Lahaina

So we landed at Kahalui, picked up our rental car, a Chevy HHR, and drove the 20-odd miles to Lahaina. Vicki had found a perfectly wonderful studio apartment in a nice residential neighborhood 5 minutes' walk from the beach. We spent our first evening and the next morning simply walking the beach and looking at older Lahaina, the 19th century capital. Lahaina is totally touristy--nearly everything in Hawaii is--but there are degrees of touristy, I think, and, somehow, Lahaina is on the good side of the spectrum. Some history; some historical buildings; some natural interest; some interesting galleries; and also all the usual crap.

We walked past the Feast at Lele, one of the many exorbitant

"luaus" around

Alpenglow on a rampart of Mauna Kahalawai; interestingly,

to me, Maui is built on two shield volcanos, the much older

and now severely eroded Kahalawai (5000 feet), and the

younger, less eroded Haleakala (10000 feet), more about

which later

Mauna Kahalawai the next morning; it was cloud-covered

every day of our visit

The great banyan tree at Lahaina's center; it covers nearly a

city block, aerial roots capturing new ground, extending and

supporting the great lateral limbs; said to be the largest in

the Islands

Thus

And thus; it also supports and shelters a fine crafts market; one

of two in the world we have found in which there is NO CRAP,

only neat and fine stuff (the other is at The Rocks, in Sydney)

One of the joys of grandparenthood is the

whole new dimension of humor and cuteness...

Looking across the channel to Lanai

I would bet real money that the "wreck" just off-shore here

has been planted and cemented into place by the chamber of

commerce...scenic, nonetheless

En Route To Maui

So our twin-engine prop Island Air DHC8 flew low and slow, as I like it, from Lihue on Kauai to Kahului on Maui, affording marvelous views of five of Hawaii's larger islands...

Bye-bye, Kauai

Oahu's northwest cape; note gigantic waves

Desolate west coast of Oahu

Honolulu sprawl

Pearl Harbor, Battleship Row, Missouri and Arizona Memorial

Next up: Molokai

Molokai southwest coast; we'll see the splendiferous northeast

coast via heli later; even lower and slower

Over desolate and sparse Lanai now

From Lanai to Maui...10 miles? 5?

On approach to Kahului; Lahaina, where the boats are
headed, is where we'll stay

Kauai Out-takes

Hawaii is not paradise for everybody; Vicki read Michener's
old Hawaii, and read parts of it to me; the tale of
exploitation and oppression by US imperialists, well into
the 20th century, is shameful

"Ceci n'est pas une pipe"?

Garden hose snake at the National Tropical Botanical Garden

Mele Kalikimaka

Mele Kalikimaka, Kauai-style

Us at the Grand Canyon of the Pacific

Marie, Vicki, and Bob, at Kalalau Lookout

The Kapa'a Shores; thanks again, Bob and Beth

Kapa'a beach

Till we meet again, Kauai...cockle-doodle-dooooo!

Seldom Seen Kauai

The best beach on Kauai is on the navy missile range on the southwest side, accessible only to military or retired military personnel. Fortunately, brother-in-law Bob had his retired USN ID with him.

Looking south on huge, beautiful Major Beach

Looking north

We shared the miles of open beach with two surfers and two

fisherpersons

Niihau, the "forbidden island" in the distance

And its neighbor, uninhabited (by humans) Lehua

Because of Marie's keen eyes, we all got to see a whale--
maybe a mile away, flapping its tail and then breeching
once or twice; always a thrill; the picture above could be the
whale...

Also under the heading of "seldom seen Kauai," here is a 

sunny and absolutely clear and calm view of Kalalau Valley

from Kalalau Point in the higher country; doesn't get any

better than this; the boats and helicopters and ultralights

were out in force

Kauai Sunrise

OK, getting up to see the sunrise is not so big a deal this time of year, especially for tourists from the more eastern time zones; nonetheless...

Dawn's rosy fingers over the Mai Tai-dark sea

A lone paddle boarder off Kapa'a

Veteran sunrise watchers know that there is relatively full

light well before the sun actually rises

Thar she blows

More

Still more

Done

McBryde Garden/National Tropical Botanical Garden

Something we didn't do during our 2009 Kauai visit was tour the McBryde Garden/National Tropical Botanical Garden. There are certainly larger tropical gardens we have seen--many free and open to the public--but the McBryde features perhaps the largest collection of plants native to Hawaii. (Very little of what one actually sees here).

Main building/gift shop

Weird tropical fruit

The whole place is a couple hundred of acres, up from a
beautiful cove

More weird tropical fruit

South Florida, where I was born and raised, is loaded with

tropical vegetation; but Hawaii has the best hibisci

Vineyard, sort of

Staghorn fern, like one my mother had (until it was stolen)

Oozing orchid

Who can resist orchids?

Who can resist orchids, 2

Who can resist orchids, 3

An heron looks for lunch in the stream, surrounded by
papyrus

Mapplethorpe plant

Lipstick plant