59

 There is a reason why the Road to Hana is also known as divorce highway. Thankfully for J I am just super thankful that I had him to do the driving, even if I was clinging on for dear life half the drive.  

59 refers to the number of one-lane bridges that exist just the the way down. I should say we took a different route on the return through the south part of the island and it was no less dyer.  I would like to ask Maui county a few questions though (However if you grew up here and can answer any of these feel free) 

1. How am I to "yield" to on coming traffic when I cannot SEE the oncoming traffic?
2. How is it legal that you have a road narrow when it's already a single lane? 
3. How many accidents a year happen on these roads?
4. How the hell does a school bus do it/what is that training like?  

We got going around 8am and made it as far as Paia by 9.  We didn't do much stopping on the way down as frankly it's rude to sit in a 1.5 lane road and wait for a parking spot, plus everything clearly stated private property, so I have no idea where anyone was actually going.  We did stop to see a few waterfalls.  

The drive on its own was breath taking. The wild-life and plant life were incredible and the ocean views were a cherry on top. 

We arrived in Hana, and I spent not as long as a could have, but plenty of time on the black sand beach.  I completely understand the draw of this place, and would like to come back in the future and actually spend the night or nights here. 

We got a bite to eat in Hana at the Hana Ranch.  I wouldn't recommend. It wasn't bad, but it was over priced and if you go on a weekend there are plenty of food trucks, they just weren't open for us for lunch today. Though they did have a quite a collection of Ukuleles on the wall. 

For our drive home we did not go back the way we came.  Instead we did the south road. Because yes you CAN drive south of Hana, though it's not for the faint of heart.  The first 10 or so miles were single lane-not that you could see to the other side to know what's coming; and the road is a rock face on one side and a cliff drop off on the other. We averaged 10 miles an hour on this road, and we certainly went slower than that at points.  

When we visited South Africa several years ago, we were warned about the "South African Back Massage" aka the road is just rocks and sand have fun!  Well today we experienced the Hawai'ian back massage on Oheo Gulch.  After you get passed the first 10 miles outside of Hana that are frankly death defying, the next 15 still leave a lot to be desired.  They were paved at one point in time, not sure when that time was.... After that you hit modern pavement and the drive becomes much more enjoyable. Which I'm thankful for. I got to enjoy all the views the whole time, I was the passenger, but J had to focus, the whole time.  So I'm really thankful that the roads got better and he was able to enjoy his surroundings. 

After all that driving J and I really needed a beer. So we stopped at Mahalo Aleworks for a quick drink on the way home.  I had the Mango Sour and J had something with Hops.  The Mango was assertive but the tartness wasn't.  I always appreciate finding a new sour.  The brewery is beautiful.  It's located right next door to the pizza place we went to last night, and is equally as esthetically pleasing. 

After beers we wandered the next hour home.  After 8 hours in the car we decided to walk to dinner at The Beach House Bar & Grill where we both had Ahi BLTs for dinner.  They were huge portions for the price and so yummy- See photo for HALF the sandwich. 

After dinner we walked back to the condo to watch the sun set from our balcony. 

That's it for Tonight.

Signing off for now

-C