Trail Blazers-Maui

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Maui in February

When you find yourself in the dead of the winter doldrums, Maui, Hawaii is the perfect place to go. With 

temperatures in the low 80s and ocean temps. in the 70s, it’s not hard to pack your bags for a fun-filled 

vacation. If you love nature and adventure, its sightseeing is like something out of a fairytale. It’s 

Humpback whale season. 10,000 whales migrate to its waters spawning their young. From the minute 

we left Kahului Airport and headed west on H-360 towards Ka' anapali around it’s hairpin turns next to 

the Pacific ocean our excitement grew. As we turned the curve a Humpback whale jumped straight up 

out of the ocean- breaching, as if to say welcome, we’re glad you’re here. From that moment on we all 

knew it would be a vacation to remember.

When we arrived at The Westin Ka'anapli Ocean Resort Villas we were amazed at its astonishing beauty.

The Villas are fully equipped so you can buy your own food and keep the vacation affordable. The resort 

is adjacent to Ka'anapali Beach with stunning views of the Pacific ocean and West Maui mountains. We 

decided to scope out our surroundings and take a walk on the sidewalk that hugs its beach line. As we 

walked along there were slight rain showers that ended with one of the most beautiful horseshoe

rainbows we've ever seen. The resort was surrounded with beautiful foliage, pools, restaurants and

outside grills with an herb garden for your farm-to-table dinning. If you’re anything like us, you would 

want your trip to be delightful, but affordable as well. Our first night we enjoyed cooking on the grill and 

conversing poolside.

The next day we set out early on our adventure to catch the sunrise on our way to Haleakala National 

Park to hike on Pipiwai trail. There are two routes to Haleakala, but if you’re adventurous, like us, you 

may want to take the scenic route on H-360 that hugs the cliffs and butts up against the mountain. It is a 

one-way highway, so be forewarned. When we arrived at Haleakala we had a quick lunch and headed up 

the Pipiwai trail. The trail had spectacular views of waterfalls and rainbows. The further up you hike the 

more beautiful it becomes. My favorite part of the hike was a bridge that lead to a bamboo forest trail 

paved with a boardwalk that gave your feet a break along its steep incline. At the top of the mountain 

was a stunning view of the 400-foot Waimoku Falls. This made the hike all worth while, since if your 

anything like us you don’t research the details, which made the surprise that much more mezmerizing.

The second day we got up early had our breakfast pool side and headed down The Road to Hana-Hi-360 

scenic route to catch the lush rainforests, waterfalls, natural pools, and exotic beaches. There are 

roadside stands which offer a variety of foods and fruits, such as papaya, pineapple and coconuts. My 

favorite was the roasted coconut, which was like nothing I’ve ever tasted. Along the road we came to 

Kanahu Garden, which is one of five National Tropical Botanical Gardens in Hawaii. We were pleasantly

surprised when we walked up to the tallest, most beautiful Yuka tree’s, the first we'd ever seen. They 

were stunning in their neon green, pink and yellow stripes. 

After our walk through the garden we got back on the road to Hana. We stopped at Waianapanapa State 

Park. As we walked along the path it lead to a view of its famous black sand beach. We couldn’t help but 

go down and sink our toes into the sand, but it wasn’t sand at all! It is covered in tiny black pebbles that 

feel like popcorn kernels between your toes. Its cave on the beach also caught our curiosity, so we went 

in and looked out into the ocean. When we arrived back at the resort our adventure didn’t end there. 

Who can go to Hawaii without going to a Luai? So, we made reservations and went to the Old Lahaina 

Luai. It was a cultural experience with traditional Hawaiian cuisine and a show about the history of their 

customs, dances, religions and people. 

The third day part of the crew went zip-linning. As for me, I chose to stay at the resort and pamper myself with a massage and rest my bones in the Jacuzzi in the pool area. When the crew came back we decided to go out on the town. There are a variety of restaurants in Lanai City-Blue Ginger Café, Cafe 565 and  Richard’s market. We decided to go to Kobe Japanese Steakhouse & Oku's Sushi Bar. It’s a great place to go if your celebrating a special occasion, such as a birthday, which was the reason for our trip. It was fun to watch the chef twirl his knife and create onion volcanoes, which he set on fire on the hibachi grill.

The fourth day we decided to take a whale watching- snorkeling adventure out of Lahaina harbor. We weren’t sure if we would actually see any whales since, after all it was a snorkeling adventure as well. After about twenty minutes low -and -behold there she was, with her calf. As the guide gave us particulars of how the whale’s log with their calf’s, the Mama began teaching him how to use his flippers! It was so much fun observing the behavior of nature at its best. When they swam out of sight, we  continued on to snorkel with the Sea turtles. I was skeptical if I would actually see one, but right before I headed back to the boat, there he was swimming up to greet me. I got a picture of him, but I wasn’t about to let him get to close, so I swam back to the boat.

Our fifth day there we decided to relax at the resort. During the day there were vendor’s all along the side walk, which made it convenient to grab a few souvenir’s for the folks back home. As we sat on the beach you could see the whale’s jumping and swimming just above the water. It was a sight to see! They swim right alongside the paddle-boarder’s without disturbing them. That night we caught a happy hour drink at the outside restaurant and grilled poolside to remince about our adventures in Maui.

A lass, the sixth day it was time to checkout and go home. We had to checkout early, so we sat at the beach by the roadside. Then we traveled into Wailuku, just ten minutes from the airport to do some last minute shopping. If you ever want an experience of a lifetime definitely go to Maui. Make sure you rent a Jeep for all your excursions or just stay at the resort. It beats the winter doldrums any day.