I Survived The Drive To .......

Tour books and rental car agencies will tell you that there is no road that completely encircles the Northwest portion of Maui ... but they lie!!!  You really can drive around that end of the island (clockwise please) if you are a brave soul not scared by cliffs or backing up for half a mile in order to find a wide spot in the single lane road.  Even then, pull in your driver side mirror because you will need the extra space!!  Luckily I survived the backing up and the driving ... to find views like this!!

The day began looking over some property Cyndae was interested in buying.  $665,000 gets you a 1300 sq ft,  1936-built plantation home (remodeled thankfully) 20 feet from the neighbor who has more junk outside than inside, laundry hanging between you and the beautiful mountain view, as well as chickens, turkeys, dogs and several bee hives.  It DID have a gorgeous ocean view and a small beach if you didn't mind standing at the side of the road for 20 minutes before finding a space between cars so you could scurry across!!  There were too many right-of-ways to count and your front yard was a "common" area.  I'll pass thank you .....

It WAS a short walk to the home of Leoda's pies however ... which carried a lot of weight, just not enough to part with that kind of money!!

You'll miss this place between Ma'alaea and Lahaina because it looks like a dumpy grocery store and farmers market.  PULL OVER, look for the sign and you will be rewarded with the best peanut butter pie you ever ate!!!  Next time we will share ONE 5" pie ... or better yet, they make the same thing in 3" mini pies!!!  Yes, it's that rich!!!

Having been here so many times, I was looking for unusual places to see and found the book Maui Revealed.  GREAT book to find places off the beaten path NOT full of tourists (well not AS full of tourists)!!  One of those places is the petroglyphs.  Not even Cyndae, who lived here for years, knew about these.  The rocky dirt road up the mountain is easily accessible, but if the rental company GPS tells on me, I may be in for a big fine!!  The story goes that King Kamehameha fought a huge battle just over the mountain in Yao Valley with a local tribe (trying to unite the islands) until almost everyone was killed ... a massacre beyond description.  The survivors cut a trail down this mountain which was later used by natives who drew pictures on this volcanic rock wall.  Don't go too far past the drawings or you will see what a real pig farm smells like!!!

Next up ... dragon teeth.  When the last big volcanic flow happened here, as the hot liquid lava hit the huge cold ocean waves, the lava solidified into these upsweeping teeth.  Don't get too close or you will get VERY wet from the crashing waves below.  I know this from experience!!!

I'm guessing ten foot waves here!!!

There is a lot of sacred Hawaiian grounds that you must respect, including this circular maze next to the wall.  Please don't let your kids run around and through this ancient Hawaiian burial ground.  Even the Ritz Carlton Hotel agreed to respect this area and not build here.  

Further along the highway is the Nakalele Blowhole.  It's not marked ... but you will see a large parking area backed by boulders.  A short walk down the cliff (please be very careful, if you slip on this lava rock, you're done for!!) brings you to the blowhole.  Everything on this side of the island is ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!!  There really are no trails or guardrails ... you're on your own, so make sure your life insurance is paid up!!

The next stop was discovered by the author of Maui Revealed.  Although never crowded because very few know about it, you can see the damage from many people climbing down the cliff.  Along the way you will see the lava encrusted with Olivine minerals.  None large enough to make that necklace you've been wanting, but some big enough to cause you major bad luck if you take it from here.  Pele doesn't like people stealing and terror will rain down on you!!  

Here is an image of the pools.  Filled with wave action water, they are quickly warmed by the sun.  More like a big bathtub, you can't swim here, just relax and enjoy the view!!  Again, watch out for those big waves that can wash you overboard in a flash!!

Then comes the scary part of the road.  Barely wide enough for a small car (don't drive your Cadillac Escalade on this road), you will skinny between lava cliffs on one side and a 1000 foot drop off on the other with grass so high you can't see anyone coming.  GO SLOW!!!  The hairpin turns here are like no other ... put it in low gear!!  Constantly keep in mind where the wide spots are.  I had to back up about a quarter mile before skimming the mountain side and pushing the other car's rear view mirror closed in order to pass.

Once through the first narrow section, it opens up to this beautiful old church.

Around the corner and up the hill, you get a beautiful view of the village of Kahakuloa.  They are a very tight-knit isolated community who probably continue the myth that you can't drive here.

Another long section of scary scary narrow road with extremely tight turns, you arrive at Julia's banana bread stand.  Support the local community and stop here if the one parking space is open.  The bread wasn't as good as the one we found up the side of Haleakala, but the cold drink was refreshing and relaxing after that drive!!

Here the road finally widens to a car-and-a-half-width, allowing everyone a big sigh of relief.  I passed maybe 4 cars the entire 25 miles.  Again, if you are not a brave driving soul, just go part way, turn around and return through Lahaina!!

The first stop on the way out of the valley, Kaukini Gallery, sported this welded scrap horse that I fell in love with.  A perfect addition to my garden it was not to be ... prices were just too crazy!!   That $14,000 koa wood rocking chair you were looking for is here!!   It is however a nice place to stop and see the wares of over one hundred local artists.

It was a long hard day ... lots of climbing, hiking and hot sun!!  If you still wish to make this drive, take food, lots of water and sunscreen along with your hiking shoes and bathing suit.  You won't regret it!!!

Getting Blown Away!!!

There's several meanings to those words, getting blown away ... surprised, excited, amazed ... but yesterday you had to take it literally.  The weather here is much less than desired.  In fact, it is the worst I have ever experienced here on Maui!!!  Pele must be a marathon runner and have lungs of steel, because it has blown at over 20 mph for the last 24 hours and threatens to continue for the next ten days.  Luckily, the small town of Kihei is nestled in the crook of the south end of the island.  The many inches of rain that have fallen in Kahului and Lahaina towards the North and in Hana on the East, have missed us entirely.  THAT's a good thing!!  Unfortunately, with this much wind, the ocean is rather angry, making swimming and snorkeling impossible.

Oh gee ... I guess we just have to go shopping!!!  So off to Tommy Bahamas we went where we tried on clothes worn by the rich and famous.  Too bad they were terribly out of our price range.  We came home with nothing!!  Next up ... Hilo Hatties!!!  While the wind is blowing, so is my luck.  Nothing there either, but we did get the scoop on the best place in South Maui for Shave Ice.  This one is called Maui Sunset, full of guava, passion fruit, mango and orange syrup over vanilla ice cream.  A snow cone over ice cream???  YES!!!  You just have to try it!!  Some are definitely better than others however, as Patty Chance knows from our last trip, so check with the locals for the best in the West.  This one rated an A+

We stopped at the Farmers Market for some macadamia nuts, but were at the very edge of the rain storm.  In two seconds we were soaked, bringing an end to our shopping spree.  Back at the condo, the entire fence by the parking lot is covered with Lilikoi vines (passion fruit) and these beautiful flowers.  From each flower comes a fruit that looks like a lime (yellow when ripe) that makes the best jelly ever if you have the patience to get all the seeds out.  It's like taking all the little black seeds out of a kiwi fruit!!  Tedious at best!!

It has been so overcast thus far that sunsets have been nonexistent.  Finally last night, Pele blew enough clouds away that we got some color in the sky.  The ocean, usually flat and smooth, is very rough and was covered in whitecaps all day.  Here you see about 2 foot waves!!

This is one of my favorite images of Maui ... except usually the palm fronds aren't going crazy like they are here.  The plan had been to get some night images of the palm trees and stars, but with wind like this, the camera would be buffeted too much resulting in blurry pictures.  

Did I mention Cyndae has two houses here in Makawao??  She has been looking for something bigger for her family, so today we will check out the local real estate!!  Now where did I put that umbrella???  I remember seeing it on the table at home ..........

Everything Purple!!!

There's nothing like being in Maui ... sunshine, beautiful scenery (except for the flaming red skin of the Haolies, burnt to a crisp as they ride in their convertible mustang) and the rain complete with winds and raining coconuts!!!  The weather hasn't really been bad and the winds keep it much cooler than usual!!  This is the view from my condo patio.

With Cyndae in tow, having arrived around noon from Honolulu, we headed upcountry looking for the color purple ... a lavender farm which recently received some rave reviews on a cooking program.   Even with my trusty iPhone map, we immediately got lost, but sometimes that can be a good thing.  We ran into this lovely lady who just opened her roadside stand on the side of the mountain.  I slammed on the brakes and squeezed into the one small parking space.  That's when we discovered we were lost ... she asked if we were going to the winery.  Uhmmmm NO!  We are headed to Alii Kula Lavender Farm.  After dispensing her great wisdom of the area (we're going the wrong direction) she told a few jokes, which warranted the purchase of a couple of loaves of VERY good banana bread and nut brittle.

This far up on the Haleakala volcano, the weather is wonderfully cool and the vistas spectacular.  You can actually see the water on both sides of the island valley, although not quite visible in this picture. Believe me, pictures just don't do it justice!!

A few minutes later up a very steep narrow jeep trail, and we have no jeep, we made it to the Lavender Farm.  Thirteen acres of different varieties of wonderful smelling lavender plants!!

We opted for the tour ... turned out there were only two of us ... and learned everything we could about the purple stuff, including it's uses for insect repellant, it's healing qualities as well as the ever popular relaxing benefits and how it can be used in cooking.

The varieties we saw include Spanish, English, French Grey and ornamental, each with it's distinct fragrance. Crushing the buds releases amazing smells and keeps you bug free for hours!!  It seemed to NOT be working very well on some bugs however, as their citrus trees were all very sick.  One interesting aspect of lavender is it's lack of need for water.  There is no irrigation here and all drinking water has to be pumped up from the desalination plant 3500 feet below in the valley.  That makes it WAY to expensive for plants.  The temperature changes at this altitude provide dew enough to keep everything green and beautiful.  This garden is sustained by taking cuttings from healthy plants that are replanted in as little as three months.  

The farm also grows some orchids, LOTS of proteas and some interesting varieties of things I've never heard of!!  I'd tell you but I can't remember, there were so many.  Maybe there's a lavender for memory loss!!!

This Medusa is one ... the flowers bloom on the end of 6 foot longs stalks.

The original Owner Alii passed away three years ago, but his son continues his legacy with his original way of pruning avocado trees.  That's the spider looking tree behind the arbor.  Even short people can harvest the fruit since all the branches are within reach of the ground.  

If your lavender is dying, we were told it's because it needs a haircut often and not much water!!  I overwater and never prune ... so THAT's why they died!!!

There were lots of little sparrows flying around the lunch table looking for handouts next to the big sign that said don't feed the birds!!  This one posed for some bread crumbs!!

Inside the little store were samples of every single product they sell and you can taste the edible ones as many times as you want ... including the lavender brownies!!  No, not THOSE kind of brownies ... but dark chocolate lavender infused wonderful morsels of yumminess!!  With purple frosting!!!  Since I'm trying to learn to cook better, I loaded up on the culinary lavender.  By the way, some is NOT good to eat, so don't go out to your plant and chop some off for your brownie batter.  You might be sorry!!!

My final thoughts ... that was a profitable trip up the mountain, I loved that place.  Cyndae's thoughts ... Yeah, profitable for the lavender store!!!  Nothing was cheap, but everything was well worth the expense.

Starving, we stopped at Fatburger in Pukalani for the best burger ever!!!  Tons of bacon and smothered in cheese ... MY kind of burger!!!  Dan, you would LOVE this one!!

I'll see if I can get some fish for you today ... we're off for some snorkeling down south!!  That is if the winds and waves die down a little!!

The Maui Saga ... Do You Know What Time It Is???

I'm a little "rummy" today, so if something doesn't make sense, hopefully it will be better tomorrow!! Before leaving home, my Direct TV quit entirely, having been shot at by the neighborhood brats, causing me to pay for another dish.  I suppose there's good in this as I now have the all magical Genie and can record things I never wanted to record in the first place!!  I was rather shocked however, to see the repair guy standing on TOP of this rather flimsy ladder to make the repairs!!  Holy fall-and-break-your-head, Batman!!!

Then he had to update this spaghetti wire mess since the Magical Genie required different wiring.  I was a little nervous when he hit it with side cutters, snapping several of the black ones in half and leaving them dangling.  In the end, the system will work for my puppies and house sitter but of course is costing me double what the last system did!!

It's funny ... it doesn't seem to matter how many alarms I set or how many Advil PM I take ... when an early rise is in the schedule, I wake up at 1:00, 1:30, 2:10, 2:30 ... until I finally just get up.  THIS time I woke up the DOGS!!!  Weren't they surprised ... and very questionable about why I was feeding them at 3:30 in the morning!!  On the road by 4:15 a.m. it was a pretty breezy drive to the Sacramento International Airport because no one in their right mind is up and driving this early on a Saturday morning.  

After sluggishly making it through half of the eighteen switchbacks for the security check, I was picked to walk right up to the TSA precheck line.  Usually this is an honor bestowed by some computer ghost who types TSA check on your ticket, allowing you to NOT unpack or take off anything!!  It was so nice, that when I found out you can actually pay $89 to register with TSA and ALWAYS get in this line ... that I'm signing up!!!

Thirty minutes later, my friend Cyndae showed up to join me for a few days.  Miss Cyndae gets to fly free on the family plan ... her dad is a retired Hawaiian Airlines pilot and her brother is a pilot on the inter-island flights.  Due to a cancellation, she even got to sit in first class with me.  WOWZA ... if I knew what first class was getting all this time, I certainly would have put more effort into flying this comfortable route.  REAL silverware ... cloth napkins, yummy blueberry muffin with fresh fruit ...

Followed by an omelet with portuguese sausage and fried potatoes!!!  When breakfast was done we had hot towels to wash our hands.  Now THAT'S service I could get used to!!!

By now I'm exhausted but still can't sleep.  I had a 76-game run going on my Soduku App that ended abruptly when I made three very dumb mistakes because I just couldn't think straight.  Maybe a 5-Hour Energy drink will help!!!  After landing in Honolulu and having a three hour layover (not sure how that happened ... I'm guessing it's because I'm cheap, even though the ride was free, and the later time sported a lower fee).  I was up in the air again just in time to head back down and land in Maui on a 15 minutes inter-island flight.  Here's Honolulu bay from the window, leaning over an 8-yr old flying to visit her relatives.  We had quite a talk as she explained everything about ALL her flights to Maui!!

Of course the car rental didn't go so well because I was tired and just wanted to go lay down somewhere ... the place was packed to the brim as 4 plane-loads of people were trying to find transportation.  Note to self ... next year, go for the more expensive car rental dealer ... they will be less crowded.  This Thrifty-Dollar place doesn't have enough people or enough cars!!  One full hour later, I drove off in a Ford Escape junker car that I'm embarrassed to drive and embarrassed to tell you cost me $900 for two weeks!!!!!  I suppose it's good to have a badly dinged up vehicle ... makes you look like a native so you are less likely to have stuff stolen ... but really, the seats are so dirty I didn't want to sit down.  I wanted to go back and complain, but knew it would be another hour and my temper wouldn't hold long enough!!

There is a three hour time difference here ... which pretty much means you have to stay up another three hours, waiting for everyone else to go home so quiet can be attained.  Twenty hours later, I was finally in bed.  That didn't last long however, as the dive shop employees up the hill don't know how to handle air tanks ... and the clanging began at the usual 4:00 a.m.  On another note ... at least I had all my belongings.  Miss Cyndae actually left her wallet on the plane.  Thanks to her quick thinking (and airline pilot) brother, they returned to the Honolulu airport to find it in the security office.  Whew ... that was a close one!! 

Today I start the adventure ... slowly, with lots of cups of coffee.  I think I'll just hang out at the pool for awhile ... and sleep!!!

A Big Change Of Pace!!

I'm headed for pineapples and sun!!  Flying out to Honolulu Hawaii, then a puddle-jumper to Maui where I'll spend the next two weeks eating WAY to much fish and fresh fruit!  It's tough, but somebody's got to keep the economy rolling!!

I don't really fly much, but when I do, it's usually on Hawaiian Airlines.  It only took me one year to figure out how to do it at NO COST!!  Thats right ... I fly FREE to Hawaii every year.  The first year, I paid about $350 for a round trip ticket.  Last week the price was up to $750!!!  That's a pretty crazy increase.

Here's my secret.  I got an Hawaiian Airlines VISA card which gives me miles for every dollar I spend.    As the ticket prices went up, I had to charge more to the card to get the free flights.  It was THEN that I discovered if I charged practically everything to the card ... fuel, food, DMV fees, property taxes, insurance ... everything you can imagine ... that I could get FIRST CLASS tickets!!!  It's not that I'm buying more stuff ... I'm just charging more to the card and reaping the rewards.  Of course the main requirement is that you pay it off every month!!  I put enough in savings to cover everything I spend ... so a quick transfer each month to pay it in full, reaps huge rewards for me!!

The offset to this, and the main reason I use the card, is because the timeshare I own has raised it's maintenance fees to triple what they were originally.  Anyone want to buy a timeshare REALLY cheap???  I realize they are doing repairs, and the State of Hawaii has decided it needs more money, so they have raised the property tax a lot, but it's getting out of hand!!  Seems the government headquarters in Oahu collect (and usually keep) all of the property tax from EACH island!!!  Most islands get back a lot less than they contribute!!  There's that government at work again!!!

Anyway, I'll be basking in the sun, snorkeling in the warm water looking for turtles and sting rays and hopefully doing some night photography with my new camera, so come back and see a tour of Maui!!

A Big Gold Strike!!

Miss Jessie Jane is doing well after another emergency trip to the Vet.  I now own the northeast corner of the building and am considering charging rent!!!  Her front leg swelled up like a balloon, but after careful examination, they think it is an inflamed muscle from the original "incident", whatever that was, since it was too dark for me to see!!  Loaded up with meds, she's sleeping quietly on the couch!!

Columbia was originally settled in 1850 by a group of miners caught in a rain storm who decided to check out the streams while their clothing dried.  In 1852 there were over 150 stores and shops open for business and by 1853 the "Gem of the Southern Mines" had a population of 25-30,000.  The gold mined here helped finance the U.S. government and the Union Army during the Civil War.

This is one of my favorite buildings in Columbia ... the Wells Fargo Office and Courtroom.  Originally the American Hotel in 1851, built beside a kerosene/lamp sales business, it burned down (no surprise) and was rebuilt of brick.  The small stores on the bottom changed hands and ranged from a clothing store, to jewelry sales to the striped pole barber.  The owner at the time became a Wells Fargo agent, kicking everyone out and making it his office.  The Courtroom soon followed and is used today by the National Park Service as their Constable's Office.  When Wells Fargo closed down, Mr. Conlin and his two sisters lived in the building until 1945 when the State took over.

The Stagecoach concession runs every weekend and takes you on an authentic ride around the countryside.  On the second Saturday of each month during the summer, they have living history events with lots of people dressed up in the costume of the day.

Across the street is the Pioneer Emporium.  In 1854 it was a two story saloon with 12 rooms upstairs for "rent".  No mention is made if they were rented by the hour or by the day!!  Of course it burned down almost immediately and was rebuilt in 1857 as the City Hotel (more than one hotel here had the same name).  By 1861 it was the Post Office/Bookstore and in 1865 became the Union Restaurant.  Not to say that the building codes were non-existent and buildings cheaply built, but it collapsed in a wind storm in 1876!!  By 1899, this wood structure was built by Mr Brady whose name graces the top and it again became a Post Office.  Twenty five different people have owned this lot from 1851 to 1947 when the Park Service remodeled it for concessionaires.

You can imagine my disappointment to read that the Johnson Livery Stable, which of course is my second favorite building, was built in 1988 or 89 for a movie set.  It even has tin-lined wooden water troughs.  No matter, it fits in well with the Old West Theme!!

I laughed out loud when reading through the building history list ... a comment "This stupid computer won't let me type in 1889" brought me right back to the present day!!  I do have to give it up to the Parks Service for keeping Columbia alive and kicking.  They are working to open more of the buildings and allowing more concessionaires in order to bring in more revenue.  Thankfully, they are also keeping those businesses pretty much in the theme of the Old West, including a leather store and a blacksmith shop.  

Columbia Kate has moved to town, opening a women's clothing/jewelry/gift store in this beautiful house.  Around the corner they have a bakery with excellent mini quiche and wonderful walnut-dream bars, along with cookies and drinks.  You can buy a snack and sit in the back yard, pretending it's 1889!!  Across the street Kate's Tea House is also open for business with lots of star ratings!!

Although not the original Jail, this one did suffice in later years to keep the bad guys locked up.  Originally built to house explosives used in gold mining, it became a two cell dungeon with the only light being from the food pass-through up until the 1930's.   

So many buildings and so much history ... from Sheriff sales for delinquent taxes to Fire sales ... it's fascinating how many times each building changed hands over the years.  Armed with my new map and history log, I think I need another road trip to the Old West!!

Fire!! Fire!! Columbia Building History

The back road to Columbia is a beautiful one, especially if you take a shortcut through the Red Hills.  With the recent rains, the flowers are in full bloom.

Lupine is thick alongside the road, which is NOT RV friendly.  It's a narrow single lane road with several steep "dips" allowing water to cross the road that will hang up your undercarriage leaving you stranded.  From here, you pick up Hwy 108 North to Sonora.

When I got to Columbia, the big parking lot was full, but if you continue up Broadway Street, you can park behind the City Hotel.  I was surprised to see a lot more buildings open for business.  It seems the Park Service is actually doing a great job of restoration and repair, allowing many new concessionaires to open.  They were also nice enough to provide me not only with a map showing the locations of each building, but a very old dog-eared copy of the history of each.  Since I'm all about the history, I'll provide a quick note on the most interesting buildings.

This is the Douglas Saloon ... built in 1851, it was the Columbia Market.  It burned in 1854!!  Fire seems to have been a real problem for this little town.  With all the buildings built of wood, they didn't last long.  The building changed hands, it was rebuilt of wood and burned again in 1857.  THIS time it was rebuilt of brick ... the building you see here ... and rented as the best saloon in California.  It had an aviary, many paintings, fish tanks, pool tables and also operated as a stage depot.  Every couple of years it changed hands, resulting in Seiberts Saloon, the American Saloon and finally the Old Stage Drivers Retreat, which stayed in business until 1954.  In 1968, it again became Jack Douglas' Saloon, which it remains today.

The Firehouse began life as a grocery store.  The mortgage was sold to three people in order to get the money required to build and operate the store.  After changing hands several times, it was sold to the Tuolumne Fire Company, later named Columbia Fire, who then moved to a larger building on Main Street.  This old building housed Papeete (a fire engine) which was eventually moved to the larger building, and Citizen (another fire engine).  Funny how they named their fire engines ... maybe after the people who paid for them???  The tall stand with the bell on top was used for hanging and drying the fire hoses.  Seems they were kept pretty busy with all the wood structures burning to the ground.  In many cases, the burned lots were purchased by miners who cleared the fire damage and mined for gold before selling them again to merchants.

This was a surprise to find ... there was a German Bowling Alley in town, recreated here for your pleasure and fun.  You DO need two people however ... someone has to set the pins up.  

An update on poor Jessie.  If you're squeamish, don't look.  Her rather small tear ended up being quite a stitch job.  She's home now, happy as can be as long as you don't touch her.  The cone-on-the-head deal was a no go, so I'm just trying to keep an eye on her.  Her skin looks funny, but it's just the natural dalmation-like skin color under her hair.  She should be good as new in a couple weeks.