Day 4 Hawaii-Road to Hana

Day 4

*The Road to Hana*

Tucked away on the windy/rainy side of the island is Hana. It, in fact, is so far removed from the rest of the island that in ancient times the island chiefs would keep this little spot as their own hide-a-way. It is so beautiful and desireable that some fierce fighting occurred over it anciently.

To get to Hana one must drive the crazy Road to Hana! It twists & turns through thick jungles, lush rain forests, over bridges, past waterfalls, and along cliff edges for some 50 miles! Now, that may not sound long, but it is so twisty & turny & narrow it takes most of the day to drive it.

Plus we stopped several times along the way to hike into the jungles to discover streams and waterfalls, to look at the beautiful scenery, and to take lots of pictures. That was Jaren's favorite part. Haha

This is our first stop(left). We hiked back to Twin Falls. It was so cool ~ really like being in an Indiana Jones movie: hiking through thick jungles, pulling away the heavy vines dangling from the giant trees overhead, walking through the water-up to our hips-until we got to the falls. I was just waiting for a big snake to bite my ankle! :) These falls reminded us quite a bit of Misol Ha in the jungles of the Chiapas in Central America. Jaren & Michelle jumped off the rocks, swung like Tarzan from the rope into the water and swam around.




Mmmmm... a delicious fresh fruit smoothie from one of the many little roadside stands. We loved stopping at these stands for fresh, sweet, ripe fruit and/or yummy smoothies.
Mango-Pineapple ~ scrumptious!

We stopped here at Kaaumahina State Wayside for a picnic lunch. As you can see the view is truly breathtaking!
Our next stop was very exciting: the Ke'anae Peninsula, which is a huge lava coastline. The giant waves crash dangerously and excitingly on the lava. The wind blew furiously and the waves splashed. It was so fun, and a little scary. :) But mostly really fun and exciting.

We ended the long drive at the Oheu' Gulch: Seven Sacred Pools, where we swam and jumped off the cliffs.
It was a really fun day!