Maui – ‘Iao Valley, Ancestors, Pā’ia, Haleakalā, and Beer

Today was book-ended by two of Maui’s classic landmarks: ʻIao Valley and Haleakalā Crater. First up was ʻIao Valley, which is just a few minutes away from our house. I’ve been here several times but I always enjoy visiting and reading about the history of the valley, especially the battle that was fought here between Kamehameha I and Kalanikūpule.

Later that morning, we visited my grandparents’ and great-grandparents’ graves. We laid flowers down and noticed that someone (probably my brother or nephew) had left a golf ball for my grandpa, who was an avid golfer. The place where they are laid to rest has a nice view of ‘Iao Valley and their old house on the hill. 💜

For lunch, we headed over to Paia Fishmarket in Pā’ia. It’s a popular restaurant with a few locations in the islands, but it wasn’t too busy today and we got a nice table to enjoy our lunch. We’re eating so good on this trip!

Next, we headed upcountry to Haleakalā Crater. The park has a truly otherworldly feel to it. What a fun place for photographers! Someday I’d like to hike into the crater and even stay at one of cabins or campsites there. Wouldn’t that be awesome?

On the way down from the park, we stopped at Mahalo Aleworks in Makawao for a beer and a bite. The sun was setting and the view was really cool because you could see the ocean on both the north and south sides of the island. Very neat!

We got home in the early evening in order to get ready to fly back to the mainland the next day. I did take some time to set up my tripod to take a photo of Kahului and the airport with planes taking off and landing. I think it turned out pretty good!