This is a photo heavy post. Because LOOK AT IT.

I arrived in Maui at 9 PM on a Monday, after about 24 hours of travelling, exhausted beyond words. I’m staying at Banana Bungalow, where the average age is 20 and I’m an old fart. But the appeal is that they run a free tour every day of the week, to different parts of the island.

The tour every Tuesday is the road to Hana, but since I arrived at 9 PM, I missed the sign-up. So the next morning after fitful sleeping, I sat around feeling out of place and annoyed. Because I’m OLD.

But then after striking up a quick conversation with two dudes from Calgary and Germany, we decided to rent a Jeep and hit the road ourselves. I mean when two strange young men invite you on a road trip after just meeting them the correct answer is always “yes.”

New friends!But I digress.

The road to Hana is a series of 500+ switchbacks and hairpin turns along the coast. If you are prone to carsickness THIS IS NOT FOR YOU.

You can start out around Paia, an adorable little surf town, and begin your journey along Highway 31.

THE LIFE.There’s a lot of road etiquette to keep in mind before you go. At some points the road narrows significantly and you might come up against a massive vehicle and squeezing past is a white-knuckle experience. When it comes to crossing bridges, you’ll have to yield to the other driver.

Those videos of stunning women with their windswept hair driving in their Jeeps with the top down? Yeah, all a sham.We made a few stops at various beaches along the way, including Koke Beach.

I mean it wasn’t spectacular or anything, but still better than 90% of beaches in Canada.

Them waves though!And then we trespassed onto someone’s private property. (Haha, I wrote “pirate property” first. Arr.)

Once you reach the Kipahulu area, you can drive onwards to Haleakala National Park. You should take the time to check out Oheo Gulch (Seven Sacred Pools).

We, however, hiked the 2-mile Pipiwai Trail trail to the Waimoku Falls and missed the entire Seven Sacred Pools thing. But the falls were TOTALLY WORTH IT.

GAHHHHHHHWe didn’t start our hike until late, and then on the way back it got dark. It was slightly terrifying and every time a bush rustled I got nervous, shone my flashlight at the source of the noise, and then gracefully stumbled across the trail. Don’t do this.

“Is this the tree from Avatar?” “Probably.” 

The boys wanted to tell ghost stories. I made them stop.

If you’re going: prepare for a FULL DAY TRIP. We left around noon, took our time, and didn’t get home until 11 PM. Driving at night on that road is maybe easier in some ways, since you can see the other vehicles coming around the corner. But again: terrifying.

Pack food and plenty of water. There are food stands along the way, but nothing substantial.