Camping Trip To Kipahulu
November 11-12, 2005

Last weekend we loaded the Tracker with a cooler full of food, our camping gear and headed down the Hana Highway to the Kipahulu Camping area at the Haleakala National Park on East Maui.

Along the way, we stopped at the Village of Keanae (Photo above) for a quick snack by the ocean. We noticed that the baseball field in Keanae has well maintained restrooms, which is always good information to have on the road to Hana.

The Coastline in Keanae

We tried to go to the Kahanu Garden on Ulaino Road (near the "Blue Pool"), but so it happens, it was closed for Veterans Day. Nonetheless, we picked up some breadfruit that had been left on top of the rock wall by the entrance and headed to Waianapanapa State Park (Black Sand Beach), where we cooked the breadfruit on our portable gas grill and had it for lunch.

We continued on to Hana, where we stopped to do a short hike up to FAGAN'S CROSS, which overlooks the town of Hana and Hana Bay. The hike is about 1.5 miles roundtrip with a 500 feet elevation gain. It is paved all the way and cuts trough a grazing field which at the time was occupied by what seemed to be hundreds of cows.

Fagan's Cross as seen from the trail.

Gwen at Fagan's Cross.

Town of Hana & Hana Bay from Fagan's Cross.

Juan at Fagan's Cross. Alau Island is seen in the Background.

Found some fresh Guava at Fagan's Cross

After leaving Hana, we headed to Haleakala National Park on East Maui. The Kipahulu camping ground is right next to the Pools of Oheo, also known as the "Seven Sacred Pools" (Note: There are more than seven and they were never sacred). The campsites are available for free and without reservation on a first-come, first-served basis. You can drive your car right up to the campsite and there are picnic tables and charcoal-fired grills.

Arriving at Kipahulu Campsite.

If you use the park grills, you must bring your own charcoal and I recommend bringing your own cooking surface for the park grills are old and rusty. There is no running water, no shower facilities there is only one outhouse. You must bring enough water for drinking, cooking and doing your dishes. You may also want to bring a camp shower or else you may have to drive about 20 minutes to Hamoa Beach or Hana Bay and use the public showers at the beach.

Rocky shore is dangerous and they mean it.

View of the Kipahulu Campground. Faint outline of the island of Hawaii is visible at the horizon.

Gwen makes herself at home in Kipahulu

Night time at Kipahulu is quite an experience. The campground is next to the rocky shore, so the sound of the waves crashing on the cliffs dominates the night. During the daytime the Big Island of Hawaii is visible in the distance and at night, it was dark enough and clear enough that we were able to see the faint lights along the coast of the Big Island, some 60 miles away! We used our portable gas grill to cook chicken and sweet potatoes. Insects are a constant nuisance, so repellent is a must. Once the moon went down over the horizon, it got impossibly dark. Cloud cover impeded us from seeing the stars, though.

Having Breakfast under the rain.

Being the east side of the island, it rained in the morning. Even then, we managed to use our grill to cook a hot breakfast and brew some coffee. Unfortunately, due to high water, we could not swim on the Pools of Oheo.

The Pools of Oheo (Seven Sacred Pools)

We packed our camping gear and headed back to Hana, where we spent a couple of hours at Hamoa Beach, enjoying the boggie-surfing. Then, after stopping for shave ice at "Halfway to Hana" and at Nahiku Road for coffee, we headed back home. Aloha!

October 30, 2005
Po'olenalena Beach, South Maui.

Today, we decided to visit this beach, which we had not had the chance to explore yet. Po'olenalena Beach is in Wailea with beach access just south of the intersection of Makena Alanui and Old Makena Road.

This beach runs north-south and is about half a mile long. It is bracketed by lava points at each end. The beach is also divided into north and south sections by a smaller lava point near the center (See photo). The north end is smaller and more secluded because public parking is by the south section and access to the north section requires walking down a short, narrow trail and climbing over the rocks on the center lava point.

We decided to go to this north section because according to our guide, the lava point at the north end (a.k.a. "White Rock") offered great snorkeling. But what our guide book did not say was that due to the secluded nature of this beach, it is also a popular destination for those who like sun-bathe and swim in the nude! Oh, well!

Anyway, imagine our surprise when we got there! Yes, it was difficult not to look, but then again, after a few minutes we felt it was no big deal. Although the water was crystal clear, the sea was somewhat choppy, and the swim to white rock looked a little long. In the end we did not go any snorkeling because of the high surf near the rocks. We did take advantage of the waves by the sandy shore and spent about an hour surfing on our boogie boards. It was a great time.

This beach is very good. The views are great. No, I don't mean the naked people! (Not necessarily, at least!) I mean the views of Molokini, Kaho'olawe and Pu'u Ola'i (See photo). Though we did not stay that late, this west-facing beach should be a great place to watch the sunset.

Those who are willing to put up with naked people walking around, should check the north section of the beach. (We hope to go back there someday to actually do some snorkeling.) For those who want a normal, nudity-free beach experience, the south side of Po'olenalena beach will be just fine.

Aloha.

Just a silly joke I read...

"There are only 10 kinds of people: Those who understand binary and those who don't"

Aloha!

Hiking Trip To Waihe'e Trail.

(A.K.A. "Swinging Bridges Trail")

Today, we visited the Waihe'e Trail on West Maui. This trail is located a few miles west of Wailuku along the Kahekili Highway. It is on private land, but the owners allow free use of the trail to the public, they issue free permits to hikers who call their number.

There is a catch, though: Even though the trail owners allow free use of their trail, for parking and access to the trail you must go though someone else's private land, unrelated to the trail owners, and they charge you a fee to cross inside and park in their property, before the trail head. Fees are $6 per adult, Kamaaina rates are $3 per adult. Hope that was not too confusing.

The Waihee Trail takes about 90 minutes each way and it is not very steep. It requires crossing a stream at a couple of places and it has two swinging bridges. It starts as a narrow dirt road open to 4WD vehicles and then it narrows down progressively after the swinging bridges. The trail follows an old irrigation canal which parts of it are still in use, other parts abandoned. Some old abandoned structures, as well as modern stream gauges are seen along the way.

The trail offers great views of the Waihe'e Valley. There are fresh fruit trees, as well as coffee trees. We ate fresh Lilikoi (Passion Fruit) and Guava. There were many mango trees, but sadly, mangos were out of season.

Near the end of the trail we found a nice pond of clear water to take a dip. As usual, the water felt real cold at first, but you get used to it after a couple of minutes. Also towards the end, the valley opens up and reveals a tall waterfall in the distance.

Following are some selected pictures of the trip.

Gwen at the first swinging bridge and me, at the second swinging bridge.

Some of the views along the trail.

Here I am, foolishly climbing on a slippery, fallen tree spanning across the trail. You can almost hear the "VONAGE" music playing... "Woo hoo!, Woo hoo hoo!". Don't worry, I did not fall.

An Old Control Gate at the Irrigation Canal. (Below). Parts of the irrigation canal, as well as some of the water tunnels, are still in use.

Found some fresh guava. This brings back memories of my childhood in Puerto Rico, where guava trees were common in my family's farm, and we ate them fresh, straight from the tree.

Gwen enjoyed some fresh, juicy Lilikoi (Passion Fruit), that we found along the way.

Taking a dip in the Stream. (Below) The water felt very cold at first, but it felt great after a couple of minutes. It was a very refreshing break from the hike.

A View of the Waihe'e Valley Near the End of the Trail. Notice the clouds are starting to roll over the ridge. The tall waterfall is on the valley on the left of the picture, but by now, it was covered by clouds.

New Job.

Good News! I quit my old job doing land development and civil design at Austin, Tsutsumi & Associates (ATA) at the end of September, and the next Monday, I started my new job with the County of Maui's Department of Public Works, Wastewater Reclamation Division (WWRD). There was nothing wrong with my old job, and I am grateful that ATA opened the doors for me on Maui when I needed it the most. But this new job with the WWRD involves design and construction of industrial facilities. So, even though this new job requires me to "deal with all the crap going down in Maui", I am happy to be at a job that is compatible with my 13 years of experience at my old job back in Ohio.

Aloha!

"WORD VERIFICATION" has been turned on.

Notice to Blog Visitors: In order to prevent spammers from posting fake and unwanted comments on my blog, I have turned on the "word verification" feature, which will require legitimate posters to type a key word shown on the screen in order for their comment to be posted.

Thank you for understanding, thank you for visiting my blog and I apologize for the inconvenience, though feel free to blame internet spammers for it. Aloha.

Juan Rivera

Holiday Travel.

We will be leaving the island for the Holidays to visit our friends and family in Columbus. We will be there Dec 23 to Jan 3. Hope to see you all there!

Aloha!

Busy August
August is coming to a close, and what a busy month it was! Here are a few highlights of the month.

Trip To Honolulu.
On the first week of August, Gwen attended a week-long conference in Honolulu as part of her job. Coincidentally, her good friend from grad-school, Leyla, was getting married the same week, thus I traveled to Honolulu to join Gwen so we could attend Leyla and Andy's wedding. They got married on a beautiful day at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel, overlooking the ocean and Diamond Head. At the wedding we had the chance to share with all of friends back on Oahu and we had a terrific time there.

After the wedding, I traveled back to Maui the next day to return to work and Gwen completed her conference in Honolulu. At the end of the week, Gwen came back to Maui and we attended my employer's (Austin, Tsutsumi and Associates) summer dinner at the Makawao Steak House in upcountry Maui.

On August 15, I celebrated my 41st birthday along with some of our closest friends here on the islands. (See Previous Blog Entry)

Gwen's Trip to San Diego
As part of her job, Gwen had the chance to travel to San Diego for a few days. She visited another friend from grad school who lives there. Gwen reports that she had great time there, enjoyed authentic mexican food and almost made it across the border to Tijuana, Mexico.

Camping Inside the Crater of a Volcano
So, What am I to do on a long weekend while Gwen is in San Diego? Well, I decide to go on an adventure of my own and camp inside the crater of the Heleakala Volcano. This adventure took place August 19-20, 2005. Friday, August 19 was a day off from work in celebration of Hawaii's Statehood Day. That morning, after packing my new backpack with 35 pounds of camping gear, including seven liters of water, I drove my car up Haleakala and after obtaining a camping permit and watching an instructional video at the Park's Visitor Center, I drove up to the 8,000 Ft elevation mark, where I left my car at the Halemau'u trail head, the eventual end of my hiking trip. From there, I hitchhiked a ride to the summit of Haleakala, where I began my journey inside the volcano at the Sliding Sands trail head, about 9,200 feet above sea level.

While not really cold, the weather inside the crater was moderately windy and cloudy. Soon after starting down on the trail, clouds made it impossible to see back to the summit, or down much further down the trail. Even then, on occasions the clouds would break long enough to reveal the contrast between the red bare soil and the green where some vegetation manages to live in spite of the harsh conditions.

Inside the crater, the ahinahina or "silversword" plant is a common sight. This plant is found only in Hawaii and lives only on the high elevations of Maui. They can live up to 50 years before they bloom and die. The plant on the photo is a rare sight of such plant, which is about to end its long life after blooming.

The old native hawaiians did not know silver, thus they had no word to describe silvery things. Therefore, when they discovered this plant they used the word "ahinahina" which simply means "gray-gray".

The Ahinahiha was once endangered and while they are a common sight inside the volcano, they are still protected by law. People are not supposed to touch them or even stand close to them lest their shallow roots be damaged.
Hiking down Sliding Sands Trail, the weather continued to deteriorate, with a persistent drizzle that got my jacket, shorts and my shoes wet. Still, the workout I got from hiking kept me warm. Visibility was poor most of the time. Finally, as the trail approached the bottom of the valley, the clouds opened, revealing the extent and beauty of the Haleakala Crater. The picture on the right is taken from Sliding Sands Trail, approximately three miles from the trailhead, looking west towards the Paliku Campground.
Once I reached the valley, I had to make a choice as to where to continue. My original plan had been to continue on towards the Kapalaoa Cabin and explore as much as possible of the crater valley before heading back to my destination, the Holua Campground. That would have added about four miles to my journey.

Given the fact that it was already getting late in the afternoon, and that my 35 pounds of gear were starting to put some strain on my back, it was easy to decide to go directly to the Holua Campground, some 3.8 Miles away. I figured that it would be easier to get to camp early, set up my tent and then explore that side of the crater without the burden of my camping gear. Sounds good in theory, right? More on this later.

Continuing towards the Holua Campground, the trail passes between two volcanic cinder cones, Ka Moa o Pele and Halali`i. The point on shown here is about 1.6 miles from the Sliding Sands Trail split shown on the previous photo. This trail junction between the two cinder cones can be seen here, with Ka Moa o Pele on the right and Halali`i on the left. At the sign, is the end of the Halemau'u Trail, which will take me to the Holua Campground and eventually back to my car the next day. On the background is the southern ridge of the Haleakala Crater, looking towards the Kipahulo and Kaupo Valley areas.

To reach this point there is an approximately 135 feet climb from the bottom of the valley, which is the only real climb of the hike trip before reaching the Holua Campground. Here the weather started to deteriorate and once again my clothes, which by now were dry, started to get wet in the cold, persistent drizzle. By now, all I wanted was to reach the Holua Campground and take a nap. From this point, the landscape changes from dry and barren to wetter and greener. I continued hiking past the Silversword Loop and finally, after four hours of hiking, tired, cold, wet and under the rain, I saw the Holua Cabin. I followed the signs to the tent campground, set my tent and looked forward to get dry and warm.

I had previously said that my plan was to set camp and then explore the crater without the burden of my gear. I had also envisioned going on a night-time hike, looking at the stars and perhaps seeing the Milky Way across the sky.

Well, by now the rain had ruined that plan. What happens next is that after changing to dry clothes and eating dinner consisting of two cans of tuna, two packs of pilot crackers and two hard-boiled eggs, I had to spend the next thirteen hours inside a 6' x 3' tent, just trying to stay warm and catching a few hours of fitful sleep. The rain finally stopped around 2:00 AM and I managed to take a peek outside. I was hoping to see lots of stars in the sky, but that was not possible with a full moon in the sky.

Other than that, the only thing that brought some sense of pleasure to the night was when the quietness was broken by the calls of birds flying through the valley.

By 5:30 in the morning, I was just happy to be able to step outside the tent to stretch my legs and get my back off the uncomfortable sleeping mat.

My reward for a long, restless night finally came with the light of dawn. By now, the weather was clear and sunrise came in spectacular fashion. The red and orange colors of the crater rim in the distance, contrasting with the blue sky and green foreground made it for a nice start of a new day. Still, I knew that ahead of me laid the rest of the Halemau`u Trail, with its 1400' climb before reaching the trailhead where I had left my car yesterday. Nene Geese, the endangered species that is also Hawaii's State Bird, has a home in the crater. I counted about 30 Nene flying around that morning.

Morning at the Holua Campground included a pleasant surprise. A group of ladies camping at the Ranger's Shed next door were kind enough to offer me hot cup of coffee and and a hot breakfast. Turns out that these ladies work for the County of Maui. One of them works at the Human Resources Department and actually knew my name from my previous engineering job applications with the County... We had even spoken on the phone before! Small island! The last thing on my mind when I set out to go camping is that I would go to the most remote part of Maui and someone there would know my name.

I am so happy they were there to make my morning so much better and to help me get off to a good start on my way out of the crater and back to my car. My original backpack load, minus three liters of water, minus most of the food, still felt heavy on my back.

From the Holua Campground, it is 3.2 miles to the the parking lot; A lot less than the 11.6 miles of yesterdays hike, but the last leg of today's hike involves a brutal 1400' ascent from the valley up to the trailhead thru a series of seemingly never-ending switchbacks along the side of the mountain. The photo on the left shows the above-mentioned mountain side from about a mile away.

Once on the switchbacks, I found out the climb was not as brutal as I expected. Maybe it was the great breakfast I had. Maybe I was just happy to be near my car. In any case, the views from the mountain were about the best of the whole trip. As I climbed up the mountain, each switchback offered a better view of the valley below. Finally, after about three hours, I made it back to my car and I was on my way home. I was happy to complete my adventure and I am looking forward to do it again sometime.

To See All Photos of the Haleakala Camping Trip, Click on this Link:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jrivera64/detail?.dir=/f5f4&.dnm=b88c.jpg&.src=ph&.tok=ph0C1iDB7DegP4dW

Snorkeling Trip To Molokini

The August adventures concuded with a trip to Molokini Island, off the coast of Maui for a morning of snorkeling on one of the prime snorkeling spots of the island.

Here are a few selected photos of the trip.

Arriving at Molokini. We Traveled to Molokini aboard the "Four Winds II" catamaran, which operates out of Maalaea Bay on Maui. On the way there, we say a full moon over Barber's Point in Maalaea.

Snorkelers at Molokini. (right) and Gwen having fun in Molokini. Although we have seen places with more diverse marine life, we did enjoy the visibility, which was at least a hundred feet. We did see a shark, and that was a highlight of the trip.

Diving down. Gwen took this photo from the lower deck of the boat, which had glass windows.

To See All Photos of the Molokini Snorkeling Trip, Click on this Link:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jrivera64/detail?.dir=/1275&.dnm=dbc5.jpg&.src=ph&.tok=phFv2iDBL4c1ObEV

Another Year.

Last weekend I had the distinct pleasure of celebrating my first birthday as a resident of Hawaii, along with my soulmate Gwen and a few of our friends from work and Church.

It was a great afternoon of food, drinks, karaoke and friendship. I thank God for all our new friends here on Maui, for our health, for my wife and for my daughters Laura and Diana who were here just a few weeks ago and who I miss terribly already.

And yes, those are 41 candles on the cake!

Aloha!

To View All the Birthday Photos, Click Here:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jrivera64/detail?.dir=/54c0&.dnm=3baa.jpg&.src=ph&.tok=phZ3PqDBb4x6HiM5

Latest News!
I am happy to report that I passed my Structural Engineer II (SE II ) Test! I will soon be registred as a Professional Structural Engineer in the State of Hawaii, which will enable me to do the kind of work that I enjoy the most and in which I am most experienced at. It is a happy day!

Aloha!

Our First Anniversary.

Gwen and I recently celebrated our first year of marriage with a romantic dinner at Mama's Fish House, one of the finest restaurants on Maui. We are thankful to God for our health and for all he the blessings He has bestowed on us so far. We are also thankful to our friends and families for all their prayers and support. We miss you all!



Celebrating Our First Wedding Anniversary



Trixie at Home

In other news, Gwen's cat, Trixie, finally made the trip from Columbus to Maui, and is now happy at her new home.

Aloha!