Waimoku Falls

Jonathan by the waterfall

We made it to the top of the trail!

hiking through bamboo forest

Happy family (John Harrison did really well in his carrier, relaxed most of the way, and didn't start to get unhappy until the hike was almost over)

David and John Harrison sitting on one of the Banyan tree limbs

David, John Harrison, and Jonathan by a large Banyan tree

(above--view from the road to Hana)

Yesterday we drove to the East side of the island near the town of Hana to hike up to Waimoku Falls, a 400 foot waterfall that cascades down a sheer lava rock wall. David and I spent the first few days of our honeymoon in Hana and hiked the same trail six years ago. Hana is unlike anywhere in the Hawaiian islands that we have ever been. There is one hotel in Hana, a few condos, and a handful of rental homes; I think that there are about three or four restaurants, a general store that sells a little bit of everything from groceries to tools, and some of the most lush, beautiful scenery in the world. Hana is idyllic, peaceful, and makes you think that you have stepped back in time. The main road to Hana is supposedly the curviest road in the world and has over 50 one way bridges. In many places, what separates you from the sheer ocean cliffs is some dense green foliage. We drove the road to Hana while James and Caroline were here, but decided to take a quicker route. This quicker route is probably even more dangerous than the road to Hana as it is poorly paved or gravel in many parts, is only wide enough for one car in many parts, had numerous steep dropoffs, and only has a few signs of life set among the desolate, wildness like landscape. The ocean side of the road yielded some spectacular views while the mountain side reminded me of the Children of Israel wandering in the wilderness. We didn't actually drive into Hana as our destination was the trailhead located at Haleakala National Park. We hiked the 5 mile round trip trail to Waimoku Falls in about 2.5 hours, not too bad considering David was carrying John Harrison on his back, we had rain during some of the hike, the trail involves a 700 foot ascent, and we stopped at many of the lookout points. The hike is amazing and takes you through a dense bamboo forest, across creek beds, and over bridges that yield amazing views of the river and ocean. We also hiked down to Oheo Gulch and the Seven Sacred Pools, a natural waterfall and freshwater pools area (water flows from Waimoku Falls down the mountain into the pools where it then flows into the ocean and the freshwater and saltwater mix). We swam in one of the pools before heading back to our condo. We were all exhausted when we got back and I was in bed before 8:45!