Ride and Run Hike

Since we've moved into our treehouse hale, we've woken up every morning, looked straight out to the mountains in our backyard, and have had a deep aspiration to climb the many trails we see weaving and winding throughout. So, today we finally did just that! With Greg's free bike he picked up off the side of the road and got up and running, we cruised to the base of the mountains and found a mile long trail that takes you to the coast of Maui just between Lahaina and Kihei. Apprehensive at first, I sat on the seat as he peddled us to a back road to the highway, where we traversed. We spent the late morning and afternoon exploring the Maui country side and enjoying the breathtaking views from the top! 

With a handful of paths to choose from, we decided to take the direct line to the eastern spur of rock that seemed to point, finger-like, toward the cloudy sky. We followed a paved road until we came to a divided dirt path and decided to go left so I could see the reservoir Greg had found the day before, which had landscaped views of Lahaina harbor, the Pacific Ocean and the island of Lana'i below. Here, we found steps nailed to the face of a tree declaring we must climb!

We stepped back onto the washy dirty road and were officially adrift. It got hotter the more we marched on. Sweat plastered our hair and scalp and made our shirts unpleasant wherever they touched, so we did away with them and kept on, one riding, the other running. Our legs pushed forward without any thought on my part. The crunching rhythm of Greg's steps and the bikes wheels became background music, low and tedious. There was so much to see: whales splashing their fins at the shoreline, tons of twisted, brittle shrubs, and the homogenous plots of land. They all lulled me into a sort of daze, but I was still so aware of the mountains' silhouettes against the pale, bleached sky. I've been reading their outlines daily, I swear I could draw them blindfolded. The view seemed frozen in place. I constantly whipped my head around at the sight of more whales forming white foamy splashes with their tails.

Once we got to the end of the trail, which ended at the coast, scorching gusts of wind kicked up, blowing sand in our faces. We moved stiffly through some brush and thorns till we got to a busy road, awaited for an opening to cross and made it to a black sand beach on the other side where a family of whales was breaching just off shore!

To our dismay, our bike had acquired a flat tire from the thorny brush we tramped through to get to the beach, and we were left with a long hike back on our feet. It's funny how the mornings start cool and cloudy and minutes later, when the day has dawned, it is suddenly blindingly bright and hot enough to have us sweating. Our shoes were crusted with dirt and rocks, but we shook out the filth, reached into our pack for more water and went on our way, eventually reaching our quaint artsy neighborhood of Lahaina. 

Although the last couple of days here have been cloudy, we always find a way to keep ourselves entertained. And amused we've been with the many rainbows that have formed in arc of spectral colors over the mountains and oceans. Each one appearing opposite of the sun as a result of the refractive dispersion of sunlight in the tiny drops of rain and mist in the sky above. After our days of discovery, the sun sets and the night descends with the same speed as the day before, bringing a new day for us to take pleasure in!