Sea to Summit

 Hawaii is amazing for many reason, the one we enjoyed today was that in a matter of hours you can go from sea level to over 10,000 feet. But more on that later.

The morning started as others have and will likely continue to . A stop at the local coffee shop today I had a chai latte and a monster cinnamon roll.  I don't think it would have been as good cold, so I'm glad I was able to heat it up. I came back and ate on the balcony watching the waves roll in. After breakfast J and I took a walk on the beach. The section was have access to is about a half a mile 1 way, so it's a nice peaceful way to start the morning. 

We came back and relaxed for a few hours before heading to lunch at Paia Fish Market I cannot recommend this place enough!  You pick your fish, your preparation and your side.  I got Blacked Ahi with home potatoes and J had fish tacos.  After Lunch I went next door to Breakwall shaved Ice co. for the mandatory shaved ice.  While I could have gotten a "Grown up" version here with rum, I decided at high noon, alcohol was not in my best interest so I stuck to my 3 favorite flavors- Mango, Coconut and Watermelon. 

J picked up a very expensive cold brew from starbucks (I thought they were overpriced on the main land, but this is ridiculous), before we headed to our chocolate tasting. 

Our tasting at the ku'ia factory included a history of the farm, its a very wealthy man's retirement project gone wild, learned that the factory is powered by dozens of solar panels backed up by 5 Tesla batteries, and finally that all of the net proceeds go back into the maui area, that it's very wealthy founder doesn't take a salary but is invested in growing the island economy.  

The chocolate tasting portion itself was a great experience.  We each got 9 5g portions for a total of 45g of chocolate which is probably too much, especially given that it's all 55% cocoa solids and higher, but it was a fun treat.  I especially loved their fruit chocolates.  All 3 fruit combos are grown on the island turned into a powder and incorporated into the chocolate.  Guava and Mango were my 2 favorite. 

After the chocolate tasting, we came back to the condo for some much needed rest before our evening adventure. 

Around 3:30 we got on warmer clothes, packed our coats and headed out for the summit sunset.  The drive from our condo to the summit took about 2 hours and was full of dozens of switchbacks. I am so thankful 1 that we had a jeep and 2 that J took on the driving I know it must have been draining for him.  I on the other hand am seemingly unable to stay away if I'm in the passenger seat.  So I slept much of the drive up and back down. 

When we reached the summit we took a short 0.5 round trip hike to glean some better views before settling in to watch the sunset.  We opted to take the roof of of the Jeep and sit on top to take in the sunsetting.  I'm glad I brought a wrap and my coat and wore long pants because I was still cold, but what an amazing sight it was to watch the sun disappear beyond the horizon. I've included a time lapse video below so you can enjoy the sunset too. 

The drive down was filled with breath-taking views and a worry of what to do for dinner as nearly every place in Maui seems to close at 8, which is about when we would just be getting off the mountain. So I did what any reasonable person would do and ordered Pizza for Pick up. We ended up getting dinner from Marlow a little woodfire pizza place in the upcountry. Very esthetically pleasing interior, but it was just about closing and I was just happy to be getting food. J got pizza and I got 2 very large meatballs with bread and sauce. I could only eat 1 last night but will certainly enjoy the left overs later. 

It took another hour to get back to the condo where we quickly got ready for bed and fell asleep. But what a great way to spend a day. 

Signing off for now

C