If I Were Going...: March 2022

Haleakalā summit

So, now, let's talk about our Maui adventures on land.

Hawai'i has so many beautiful things to see

Ho'okipa Beach

Another "must stop" is Ho'okipa Beach Park on the north side of Maui. It's a requirement because it's very pretty ...

Beautiful sky, beautiful water

... it's a reliable place to see surfers ...

We saw surfers all over, but these were the only ones with waves

... and it's a good place to see Green Sea Turtles ...

Green Sea Turtle

Seeing Turtles depends on the time of day. Early morning and late afternoon are the best times and I've found them to be more reliable in the late afternoon.

Grumpy Turtle

That's when they swim back from the open ocean ...

Swimming Turtle

... to sleep on the beach ...

Lying in the surf as he makes his way to the sand

I've written about the Turtles before, so I won't belabor it here except to say that we stopped three times.

Using sand as sunscreen

Once no Turtles.

Just a pretty beach

Once lots and lots of Turtles.

What we were looking for

And once no Turtles at Ho'okipa, but one swimming in the surf ...

He just popped up and then disappeared

... at nearby Baldwin Beach Park, which is just 10 minutes east and is another place we usually stop.

Baldwin Beach

Although I won't go into much detail here about the Green Sea Turtles, I do wonder if surfers -- of which there were many at Ho'okipa Beach -- ever collide with them.

As if the coral wasn't obstacle enough

I mean, they are swimming in and out of their overnight haul-out right by where surfers are, well, surfing ...

Good form

... or trying to surf ...

Wipe-out!

Cutie Patootie

Every time I've been to Ho'okipa, I've seen, in addition to surfers, families gathering for picnics or to play in the surf on the rocky beach. This time, I noticed quite a few "hippie" babies. Children with deep tans, puka bead and unruly sun-bleached hair.

As a rather over-the-top safety-conscious mom, it was hard for me to watch little ones playing near what looked like dangerous waves and slippery, sharp rocks.

It was even harder to watch kids who weren't even double-digit ages paddling out to surf.

I couldn't believe how little this child was!

I wouldn't go out there. But we saw a few kiddos doing it. I guess you can't become a great surfer unless you start young.

A little bit older, but still young

And, seriously, people far more challenged than me manage to surf.

We saw the legs, but not the surfer

As I said, we went to Ho'okipa (and Baldwin) three times: once as we were starting the long drive to Hāna, once on the way home and one more time when Will visited.

Scott and Will at the beach

Both beaches are pretty -- Ho'okipa ...

Gorgeous

And, Baldwin Beach ...

Gorgeous again

The Turtles are cool to see ...

He looks thrilled to be there

Swimming ...

Swimming by the shore

Dragging themselves up the beach ...

It's a long process

And, sleeping ...

It's an exhausting process

On our final visit with Will, we got a surprise ...

A Whale!

A Humpback Whale breaching, tail-slapping and fin-slapping.

You can see a surfer in the foreground

Most of the Whales you see are on the south side in Maui Bay. This is the first I have seen off the north.

I think this is one Whale; it might be two

Road to Hāna (Actually Beyond)

I mentioned that we drove to Hāna, but that's actually a misnomer. We drove through Hāna and on past it to Kīpahulu in Haleakalā National Park.

The "Road" is famous for waterfalls

Initially, Scott really didn't want to go because he had memories of it being a long, scary, exhausting drive with very few overlooks for photographing the pretty scenery.

View of a taro farm from one of the few overlooks

Caty and I had had a great time when we went, but I was OK with going or not going. I was more interested in going back to Hosmer Grove in the summit area of Haleakalā National Park to see if I could see more birds.

But, somehow (I really don't know how), we found ourselves heading out on the "Road."

Ocean, streams and exotic plants

I have written about the drive in detail before, so I will spare you the long description. Synopsis: 620 curves, 59 bridges, 15 major waterfalls, seven beaches, one National Park.

Beachside cliff

We took this trip rather quickly and, although we discussed hiking to one of the waterfalls "everyone hikes to," we didn't. Again.

We were happy with the car-accessible waterfalls

We made a few stops along the way, but didn't really do much. I noticed that COVID appears to have taken its toll on banana bread and huli-huli chicken vendors. The best spots were no longer there. We did score some banana and some coconut bread, but they were not as good as the bread Caty and I got when we went.

Not much bread, but floral arrangements for sale

It's a good thing we had a picnic lunch, which we ate at what may be the only picnic table in the Kīpahulu part of Haleakalā (where the Seven Sacred Pools are). We didn't even explore that part of the Park. I guess the drive was the main attraction.

A very pretty place

As I said, I am not sure why we went.

We stopped at the very pretty and dramatic Koki Beach.

Lava Arch

It's between Hāna and Haleakalā and, while busy, wasn't too crazy, considering that it was a Sunday.

Scenes from Koki Beach

I was surprised that there were many, many Monarch Butterflies flying all over the place.

The dots on the bottom wing signify that it's a male

Scott took lots of pictures of the scenery while I occupied myself with the butterflies and with some Chestnut Munias in the parking area.

A bird I was looking for

I will talk about them later.

I did get some scenery shots as well.

The bright green of the taro farm

I wanted to go to Waiʻānapanapa State Park, where Caty and I had seen lots of Mongooses (indeed, we did see several running across the road during our drive on this trip) and where I had photographed a Brown Noddy.

Brown Noddy and Javan Mongoose from my 2019 trip

The drive off the main highway into the Park, while relatively short, is a very bumpy and narrow. It passes by some local homes, including one where an elderly man was sitting on the porch yelling at all the cars driving by. So, imagine our disappointment after the difficult drive discovering that the Park now requires reservations!

There is still plenty outside Parks

A sign on the highway would have been nice. Maybe even a sign 50 miles back at the beginning of the road!

Thank goodness Haleakalā didn't require reservations (except between 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. for the crazy "watch-sunrise-and-bicycle-down-the-mountain people and that's a different part of the Park). Even though I am used to National Parks near us requiring reservations during the busy summer, I didn't even think about the fact that the winter is a busy season in Maui. I need to remember to always check to see if Parks require reservations. It is becoming very common.

Haleakalā National Park

It can get confusing when talking about Haleakalā because, while the Park is contiguous, it has two distinct parts that are not reached by the same road.

Kīpahulu, which I just mentioned, is just past Hāna and is reached via the 50ish-mile long road along the north and east coast of Maui.

Reaching Hosmer grove and the volcanic crater at the summit of the mountain is a shorter drive on a much faster road.

The crater of the extinct volcano

I have written about this area before.

Endemic silversword plants on the summit

This time, our first trip up went only as far as Hosmer Grove (great for birding) because the weather was starting look a little iffy and Scott was hungry. I'll cover the birds in the next section.

Spoiler alert: I did see some birds; this is a Maui Amakihi

When Will came, we drove to the summit but skipped the Grove. The photographic opportunities at the summit are far better.

Will getting a shot of the crater

And, this time, it was relatively warm and not windy. I've been there when it was brutal (it is at 10,000+ feet), but this time was pleasantly cool. With a jacket it was fine.

A gorgeous day

We wanted to eat at the Kula Lodge. When we tried to eat there for dinner on our first trip up, we found out it serves only lunch (so much for leaving Hosmer because Scott was hungry). So, when Will came, we planned lunch there, even taking the opportunity to meet up with one of Will's Art Center classmates who now lives somewhere at the base of the mountain.

The Kula Lodge has an outdoor pizza oven, but we never have pizza

It was a pleasant stop on an otherwise hectic day. Normally, I am not big on leisurely lunches when there are places to go and things to see. But, at this point, I had pretty much seen all I wanted to on Maui. It was nice to chill out and listen to the guys reminisce.

An endemic 'I'iwi

Birds

I have put off talking about birding so that I could just cover it in one place.

When I went to Maui in 2019, birding was a major goal. I talk about it here. This time, I was content to just do some incidental birding.

Common Mynas at Baldwin Beach

When I was planning the trip, I realized that we were going the correct week to participate in one of the monthly guided walks Waikamoi Preserve (adjacent to Hosmer Grove) where some of the rarest birds are found.

'I'iwi

When I checked to make reservations, I was disappointed to find that the walks had not yet resumed after closing for COVID.

So, I didn't have much hope for seeing too many new birds. I didn't give up completely.

I looked everywhere we went and was surprised that almost the ONLY birds I saw were House Sparrows ...

Female House Sparrow at Baldwin Beach

... Common Mynas (everywhere!) ...

Common Myna at Big Beach

... Cattle Egrets ...

Cattle Egret at Waihee Coastal Dunes

... and Red Junglefowl (AKA wild Chickens) ...

I saw lots, but took no pictures; this is from 2019

Plus, I saw a smattering of Zebra Doves ...

Zebra Dove at Kīpahulu

... Spotted Doves ...

Spotted Dove at Big Beach

... and Pigeons (I didn't photograph any Pigeons; sorry, Pigeons).

Last time I was in Maui, I also saw lots of Red-crested Cardinals. I saw only one this time and didn't get a photo. I did manage to get decent photos of two birds I saw last time but was unable to get good shots.

Red-crested Cardinal, 2019

At Koki Beach, there was a big flock of Chestnut Munias. On my last visit I had seen one on a golf course and taken one unrecognizable photo through a curved windshield. The ones I saw this time were still tricky to shoot because they were in deep grass, but I persevered.

Chestnut Munia at Koki Beach

Far more successful was an encounter with a flock of Java Sparrows that we noticed on a backyard feeder when we had to stop for some road construction in Kaanapali. The feeder was right by the road (the house had a high fence). So, I jumped out of the car and snapped away, capturing these cute little guys as they fluttered ...

Not endemic, Java Sparrows were introduced from, well, Java

... posed ...

Even though it was dark under those trees, I got great shots

... and ate ...

Thanks, local residents, for having feeders!

I even saw a juvenile, which I has not seen before ...

I saw only one youngster

Thank goodness for road work!

These cute guys are fun to watch

At Hosmer, I took the short walk to the overlook where I had seen lots of 'I'iwis and Maui Amakihis before. When I got there, I noticed that most of the close-by flowers were gone, so all the birds I saw (and I saw a lot) were far away. But, back by the parking lot in a big bush right by the restroom, there was a very cooperative I'iwi ...

One of Hawai'i's prettiest birds

... a slightly less cooperative Amakihi (for a moment, I thought it might be a Maui Creeper, which would be a lifer, but it wasn't) ...

Just an Amakihi, but a cute one

... and, an even less cooperative Warbling White-Eye ...

Deep in the bush, it was hard to see and even harder to photograph

You might notice that my previous blog called this a Japanese White-Eye.

eBird listing

Apparently, the correct usage has changed (although I suspect Japanese White-eye is still used locally). That happens fairly often, especially when country names or people's names are involved.

But, notice that the scientific name references Japan -- japonicus.

I did get very excited when I thought I had seen a new bird. I saw a purple and black Pheasant and assumed it was a Kalij Pheasant, a Himalayan bird that had been introduced to the island for hunting and now lives on the slopes on Haleakalā. It flew before I could photograph it, but later I saw another and got a couple of shots before it flew off.

Was this a new bird?

I was so excited and even logged it on eBird. When I got home, I looked closer and realized it lacked the crest found on the Kalij.

On close examination, you can see the difference, but they look alike; Photo: eBird

Instead it was a melanistic (dark-pigmented) Ring-necked Pheasant. Bred in Europe as a special target for hunters, these birds were later introduced to Hawai'i. Not a new bird, but a new morph.

Two different Ring-necked Pheasants

As you can tell from the above photo, I also saw a regularly colored Ring-necked bird in the same area.

Another look at the more traditional one

I quickly corrected my eBird submission before having to suffer the indignity of a "you may be mistaken" email from the ever-vigilant Cornell staff (actually, they are quite polite and very helpful with tricky birds).

We saw no Nēnē on Haleakalā, where they are supposed to be, but we did see one near the Costco parking lot in town.

Out-the-car-window cell phone shot; Photo: Scott Stevens

So, no new birds, but a couple of photo redemptions.

So glad I got this one!

Miscellany

On our last day on the island, we explored a little in between check-out and our evening flight home. This included a trip to Kepaniwai Park and Heritage Gardens in the Iao Valley.

The natural scenery is stunning

Scott had taken me there several years ago because he was captivated by the multi-cultural buildings and statues.

A Japanese and a Catholic shrine

I had always pronounced it the way he did when he took me there -- EYE -OH. I found out (and should have known because I can pronounce other Hawai'ian words) that that is wrong. It is EEE-OWW, like "meow" without the "M." Always learning!

The Park seemed a bit faded, but it's still a pretty area with trees ...

A large banyan tree

... flowers ...

The gardens were a bit sparse, but had a few pretty flowers

... statues ...

The park honors Hawai'i's many cultures

... and wildlife ...

Banana Spider

Normally, when I blog, I post lots of photos of food (generally taken by Scott). This time, we had lots of yumminess, but most was take-out or food truck fare (COVID ...) and wasn't all that pretty, so we didn't photograph much. But, there was lots of great seafood that I had (at the risk of sounding like Bubba in Forrest Gump) fried, in a burrito, seared, in a taco, in a spicy pineapple sauce and on a salad ...