31 Reasons to Love Maui
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Best of Maui V3:MNKO v.8 n.1 p.75-82 4/2/07 12:49 PM Page 2 MAUI STYLE Story by Shannon Wianecki Photography by Jason Moore | Ron Dahlquist Jack Jeffrey | Rob Ratkowski | Cecilia Fernández The Shaka List 31 Reasons to Love Maui Photo: Jason Moore 66 www.mauimagazine.net Best of Maui V3:MNKO v.8 n.1 p.75-82 4/2/07 12:49 PM Page 3 Welcome to Maui N o¯ Ka ‘Oi magazine’s first annual guide to what makes our island the very best, the most, the top of the heap. We asked our friends and families to help us name what makes life on Maui so superlative; the resulting compilation—from startling natural wonders to secret spots, treasured recipes and local traditions—revealed just how lucky we are. Use the following pages like a treasure map to the essence of this irre - sistible refuge. We whittled our lover’s litany down to thirtyish—some obvious, some whimsical choices—not listed in order of importance. After all, is it really possible to determine whether a Hawaiian honey - creeper ranks higher than a moonbow? We aimed for a balance of the ancient and up-and-coming, the budget-minded and high falutin’. We hope some will be new to you—a chance to fall in love with Maui all over again. Golden sand. Collect pillow-soft, gold - en granules between your toes at M¯akena State Beach Park. M¯akena, which means “abundance,” offers plenty of sandy real estate for everyone. (Three entrances off Paddle-surfing. M¯akena Alanui Rd., M a¯kena) The lone silhouette standing on a surf - board, paddling across the horizon, is poetry in motion—and an increasingly An unmarked trail skirting common sight, thanks to Maui’s water Red sand. Ka‘uiki Hill leads to secluded Kaihalulu giants Dave Kalama and Laird Hamilton. (Roaring Sea) Beach. The view is unlike They recently revived interest in paddle- any other in Hawai‘i: coarse red sand surfing, which may have ancient roots washed by crystal-blue waves, the feisty and definitely dates back at least as far as surf kept at bay by a row of jagged black lava rocks. (Follow the trail from Hotel the beach boys of the 1930s. Like Pilates H¯ana-Maui’s Hauoli St. parking lot, for big-wave surfers, it’s an intense core- H¯ana.) muscle workout and offers more speed for catching waves, better views of marine life, and an alternative activity for wave - Black sand. Let the blustery blowholes, less days. mysterious sea caves, and dramatic black sand at Wai‘ a¯napanapa State Beach Park revive your senses. (Off H a¯ na Hwy., H¯ana.) Photo: Cecilia Fernández Maui N¯o Ka ‘O i MAY 2007 67 Best of Maui V3:MNKO v.8 n.1 p.75-82 4/2/07 12:49 PM Page 4 P h o t o : J HI-5! a s o n M o o r We recycle! e Now if we can just get curbside service. Wo Hing Museum. Mana‘o Radio. Who Maui Swap Meet. Dig 50 cents During the autumn Moon Festival, from your coin purse for admission everyone is invited to nibble on sweet can remember what life was like to this part-farmer’s market, part- moon cakes (pastries stuffed with crafter’s paradise for everything black-bean and lotus-seed paste) and before Barry Shannon and Kathy from strawberry guava jam to place fruits and flowers on the Collins hit the airwaves? Thanks Hawaiian quilts. Get there by seven sparkling Taoist altar upstairs. The sharp—the best flowers and gifts go two-story museum, built in 1912 by to the dynamic duo and their ded - quickly! (Next to the Kahului Post Chinese immigrants, hosts annual cele - Office, Pu‘u n¯en¯e Ave., open 7 a.m. brations encouraging longevity and icated disc jockeys, 91.5 FM to noon every Saturday) good luck for all. On any day of the year, duck past the garden’s star-fruit broadcasts live jam sessions, tree to sit beneath antique woks and P h o t baskets in the rustic cookhouse-turned- o Michael McCartney’s Time : J a s theater. Every 20 minutes a film loop o n Machine, Paul Wood’s creatively M plays footage by Edison, shot in 1898 o o r when his crew came to the Islands. e themed musical musings, Hamish Marvel over black-and-white panora - mas showing old-time paniolos (Hawai - Burgess’ Celtic programs, and ian cowboys) wrangling cattle onto some of the funniest public ser - ships, and Honolulu’s first electric streetlights. (858 Front St., Lahaina, vice announcements on air. Com - 661-5553, www.lahainarestoration.org . Open 10-4 daily, admission $1.) mercial free! Hones’ promise , as Colins’s alter ego, Tita, would say. Maui Friends of the Library Bookstore. Forget Borders. Next time you need a juicy read, venture past the Pu‘u n¯en¯e Sugar Mill. Follow the enigmatic signs (“BOOKS, THIS WAY”) through once-thriving Pu‘u n¯en¯e, now a ghost town. Behind the old schoolhouse, the volunteer-run bookstore is a jolly, tin-roofed shack filled floor-to-ceiling with books discarded from local libraries. Score dog-eared volumes of Shakespeare, Milton, and the occasional Hawaiian collectible for just 10 cents a pop. Warn - ing: after hunting for rare editions, you may have to chase chick - ens from the roof of your car. 68 www.mauimagazine.net Best of Maui V3:MNKO v.8 n.1 p.75-82 4/2/07 12:50 PM Page 5 MAUI STYLE ISLAND ISSUES Maui N o¯ Ka Demigod Maui. Unsurprisingly, many Maui res - idents feel a kinship with our island’s namesake. Ouch Idealistic, slightly mischievous, ready for a chal - Story by Tom Stevens lenge —he’s just like many of us! We aren’t the only ones smitten with Maui’s supernatural antics—the Maoris, Tahitians, Samoans and Tongans all tell sto - Nothing’s perfect. ries of his strength and daring . but we can stake Not even Maui. special claim. According to legend, Maui and his To millions of enchanted admirers, moon-goddess mother Hina lived at Ka‘uiki in the island comes as close to perfec - H¯ana. It was from our peak, Haleakal a¯ , that Maui tion as nature probably allows. But snared the sun. And all summer long, his magic even this best of all possible worlds has a few shortcomings. fishhook Manai-i-ka-lani (elsewhere known as the Admittedly, any list of “Maui worsts” constellation Scorpius) can be viewed high in our would provoke snorts of hilarity else - sky. Maui used the star-studded fishhook to pull the where. I once made the mistake of Hawaiian Islands up from the sea. complaining about island traffic to a visitor from that other famous island, Manhattan. He burst out laughing. “Traffic? Where?” he sputtered, beating his fists on his thighs to con - tain his mirth. “You call this traffic?” Drawing Class at Hui No‘eau. Point taken. The following list of P h Indulge your inner Da Vinci or o Maui “worsts” was the best I could do t o : Degas. Learn to scribble with the R on a cloudless, 80-degree day. o n 1. Worsening traffic. Although still pros. At this C.W. Dickey-designed D a h laughable by big-city standards, our l estate, professional artists Kit Gentry q u i ever-thickening traffic may be one rea - s and Kirk Kurokawa teach begin - t son Maui slipped, for the first time in a ning and life drawing classes. (2841 dozen years, from the coveted Baldwin Ave., Makawao, 572-6560, Bamboo Forest at Waimoku Falls. “World’s Best Island” status bestowed www.huinoeau.com) Follow the mossy boardwalk into the by Condé Nast magazine. shade of the bamboo forest. Listen to the Maui’s worst traffic jam? P ¯a‘ia, hollow clatter and whistle of canes Makawao, K ¯ihei and Lahaina vie daily knocking together in the wind. Take a for that distinction, but the most mem - orable stoppages occur whenever refreshing plunge in the amphitheater brush fires close the pali road to pool of the thundering, 400-foot- Lahaina. Seasoned West Maui high waterfall. (At ‘Ohe‘o motorists now pack blankets, food Gulch in K ïpahulu; and water in their cars for occasional follow signs from the overnight stays on Honoapi‘ilani High - National Park Ser - way. Which brings us to: 2. Worst-kept promise. It has been vice parking lot.) 30 years since Hawai‘i’s state govern - ment agreed to develop a Lahaina bypass that could ease West Maui traffic congestion. During that same period, the state authorized construc - tion of tens of thousands of West Maui residential and resort units. The bypass is still a fantasy, but develop - ment continues apace. Which brings us to: 3. Dueling hospitals. Concerned about Maui’s sole, often-overbur - Photo: Cecilia Fernández dened hospital and what could hap - Lei courtesy of Jane Kuloloia pen during an epidemic or disaster, Seed lei . Flower lei may be gorgeous, but lei ‘ano‘ano last longer. separate citizens’ groups in West and South Maui have submitted proposals Collect and sew your own with help from Laurie Shimizu Ide’s to build regional medical centers, book, Hawaii’s Seeds and Seed Lei. Continued on page 73 Maui N¯o Ka ‘O i MAY 2007 69 Best of Maui V3:MNKO v.8 n.1 p.75-82 4/2/07 12:50 PM Page 6 MAUI STYLE 1Spa5 go’s ‘ahi poke cones.