While in Maui, Ben and I decided to trek the Road to Hana in our rental car. We rented a Ford Mustang convertible so we could enjoy the fresh air while zipping through the highways of the island. Little did we know the Road to Hana would be one crazy ride!
For those who haven't heard of it, the Road to Hana is the stretch of Routes 36 and 360 that connects the town of Kahului to Hana on Maui.
We started from our resort in Kaanapali and drove southwards towards the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm before continuing onto Hana. Instead of going clockwise around the island like most people seemed to do, we went counterclockwise and took routes 37, 31, 330, 360, and then 36. Surprisingly the drive took over 6 hours as we zipped through some of the smallest roads I had ever seen. I will forewarn anyone that wants to drive this particular route that this drive is definitely not for the faint of heart. We unexpectedly had to off-road with our convertible through gravel and unpaved roads (something you may not want to tell your rental company). Some of the roads were bi-directional but only one car could squeeze through at a time. This meant that we were constantly risking a head-on accident with another driver coming from the opposite end if we were driving too fast. Needless to say there was also a lot of hand-waving and backing up near the edges of cliffs to make it through parts of the route. Despite some difficulty and inconvenience in driving, the scenery totally made up for it. We rested at several waterfalls and seaside cliffs where we had lunch and spent the time to take in the view and smell of the ocean breeze.
For those interested in driving the Road to Hana, I highly advise to start as early as possible. The drive will be long but awesome! Take the time to stop at all the lovely waterfalls and really take in the scenery. Maui has a very diverse ecosystem and it was great being able to see how fast this changes during the drive. Going counterclockwise around the island also seemed like a good way to go against traffic since most drivers travel in the other direction. And for those who may not want to actually drive the Road to Hana but still get the experience, there is the option of tour buses. I'm not sure if the buses take the same routes we took but it does take tourists over to Hana.
