October 30th, 2022
At the beginning of the blog, we stated that we didn’t have that much planned for this trip and were planning a lot of much-needed downtime. Today is probably the epitome of that as really we didn’t do anything!
Kapalua Coastal Trail
The morning started and the blustery showers had started back up. But we still wanted to get out for a hike. Well, we say hike, but we mean a gentle stroll along the Kapalua Coastal Trial. We headed out from the condo along the front of Napili point and then along the beach at Napili bay. Heading through the Napili Kai Beach Resort to pick up the trailhead.
The trail is not long and meanders along the coast with some really nice views and pretty wild scenery. The first section is very sanitized as it passes in front of the plush Montage Resort and Coconut Grove homes, overlooking the stunning Kapalua Bay. Heading up the hill you get amazing views of the Cliff House and the sumptuous Coral Gardens of Namalua Bay.
Here you cross Bay Drive which leads to the $60 Million house, Nine Bay Drive, one of the most stunning properties on Maui. Imagine spending $60 million on a house and having thousands of tourists walk across your drive every day! We guess you would console yourself in the infinity pool overlooking the Whales playing in the Ocean! We are saving up, but are still a few million $ short…
From here the trail enters the wild and rugged Hawea point. A protected bird nesting area with some really impressive rock formations that resemble dragons teeth. Although the actual Dragons teeth trail is the next headland along these are just as impressive, even more so. These natural formations occurred when the lava hit the cooler ocean and was pushed back by the waves. Or so the Geologists think, it happened 500-300,000 years ago so they are not really sure.
We followed the path out to the headland and then back toward Oneloa Beach where the weather took a nasty turn. A large rain burst moved in and we were stuck out in the open in some really heavy downpours. This wouldn’t really be a problem but in shorts and t-shorts and sunglasses that quickly fogged and misted up, with my rather expensive camera out in the open (It’s shower proof, but this is more than a shower) we decided to hunt for shelter.
Huddled up behind a large rocky outcrop we hid from the rain for 10-15 minutes as the storm passed. Not sopping wet we picked up where we left off and headed towards Oneloa Beach again. But as we were coming over the headland, more dark and ominous clouds were brewing over the foothills of the mountains. We figured they would follow a similar path to the last burst so decided to cut the hike short and followed the same route home.
The trial is far from arduous but offers some really nice coastal views. It’s well worth checking out if you are in the area.
Napili Bay
We were now low on supplies, we were out of Maui Brewing Big Swell IPA and Pineapple wine, so it was time for another heartstopping trip to Safeway. We also wanted to pick up some Swimmers Ear meds for my worsening ear infection.
We stocked up on supplies and meds and then headed back to an afternoon of chilling at the resort. This meant Kate taking some much-needed pool time to top up the Tan, while I wandered around to Napili Bay to do a spot of snorkeling. My ear infection was pretty bad, but I just can’t stay out of the water.
The left side of the bay was pretty poor. The surf was pretty heavy, about my limit for heading out, so manageable, but at this level, there is little to see. The water is very cloudy and you can’t really see any further than a few feet.
Heading to deeper water and the outer edges of the reef things cleared up. There were loads of reef fish, Snappers, Triggers, Tangs, and all the usual suspects, along with loads of turtles. If followed the reef to the end then made the long swim over the sand to the right-hand side of the bay. Here I followed the wall out to the edge of the headland, even carrying on past the end following the headland underwater.
Out at the far reaches of the reef, it was very exhilarating. This is wild ocean territory, and there is a large, blue, expanse of ocean off to the outer edges of the reef. I had planned on following the reef right around into Kapalua but the surf was really crashing on the shallow water and it would have been too far and too extreme to swim far enough out to get around safely.
Instead, I just explored the Napili side and then headed back to the shore. It was quite a swim at this point. Overall it was a decent snorkel but there was nothing out of the ordinary on show. Admittedly ordinary for Maui is pretty stunning, but it was definitely one of my more average snorkels.
Hotdogs
Back at the Condo, I joined Kate in a lazy afternoon. Simply relaxing around the resort and getting things ready as tomorrow was our last day in Napili.
The first time we visited Napili, on our Honeymoon, we were in Hawaii on the 4th of July. We had a dinner cruise booked for the evening but had hotdogs for lunch. Ever since then, we have made it a habit to have hotdogs when in Maui. It’s not a glamorous meal but it has a nice meaning for us.
So this evening we fired up the Resort grills and cooked up some dogs. We had got some ready-cooked wings from Safeway and baked some Tollhouse cookies for dessert. We were basically just happy actually having a relaxing day, doing as we pleased, and not having to go anywhere.
Quite the change for us! And naturally, our local neighborhood Puddy cat showed up for some food as well.
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