Today we woke up at 2 in the morning to get ready for our trip to Halekala. It is a crater at an elevation of around 10,000 feet. It was formed as the island of Maui was being formed. Since then it has eroded and gotten smaller, but it is still known for some of the best sunrises in the world. Our tour bus picked us up right in front of our hotel at around 2:45. Katie was practically a zombie at that time, but we managed to get a spot in the front row of the bus before passing out. After about a 40 minute drive, we got to a gas station where the bus driver provided us some coffee and some breakfast rolls. Then we headed up the 37 mile road to the top of Halekala. It is one of the steepest ascents in the world, and even though some of the passengers probably didn’t appreciate the bus driver talking on his microphone the entire way up, he did point out the burning sugar canes fields below us, as well as some of the visible planets and satellites in the sky. Eventually we made our way up to the visitor center at around 9,000 feet. Even though it was a full moon, we could still see just about ever star in the sky. But it was also freezing. They say the temperature drops 3 degrees every 1,000 feet. At 4 in the morning, at 9,000 feet up, and with heavy gusts of the trade winds on top of the crater, it was literally freezing. Luckily, I brought two heavy sweaters and we both packed pants. We also stole some blankets from our flight, which we used as make shift scarves. And the struggle with the cold was worth it. We were above the clouds and got to see the sun’s reflection form the belt of Venus. Before 6am, it was all over. We watched the glowing sun rise up over the clouds and give light to a new day. It was definitely the most beautiful sunrise that I have seen. After that, we headed up another 1,000 feet to the summit. We got our picture taken in front of the elevation sign and walked around a bit. There’s a huge science center up there with super computers and gigantic telescopes and cameras. You can also see some of the mountains on the big island, about 80 miles away. We lucked out with such a clear day and great visibility. We got back to the hotel before 11am and took another nap.
Later in the day we decided to go snorkeling. The day before, I swam all the way to the other side of the black rock and saw some large schools of fish and wanted to show Katie. I didn’t think that she would be up for it since you have to swim across a deep stretch of open ocean to get there, but she agreed to. We rounded the black rock, quickly swam on the outer edge of the cove, and then out into the open water. The tide was much stronger in the afternoon, the water was really choppy, no one else was in site, and the visibility wasn’t as good, but we could still see a good 50 feet and were able to see the large schools out there. But instead of continuing on, we decided to seek some shelter in the coral cove. When we got there, we spent a good 15 minutes swimming around before another turtle came out of nowhere. Katie and I were the only people around, and the sea turtle was feeding on some plant matter attached to the black rock. We just floated around with him for a good 30 minutes. We also saw a million different kinds of tropical fish, some crabs, a couple sea cucumbers, and even a puffer fish. But the turtle stole the show. We were able to get very close to him without threatening him or scaring him off. He kept an eye on us, but was very content with us being in his presence. A couple of times he even swam towards us. Katie and I were both so excited to have that moment. It may be cheesy but it’s kind of deep, witnessing such a beautiful creature in nature without disturbing it.
Tonight we are going to Teppan Yaki Dan’s at the Sheraton. The hotel has a program where if you decide to not have your room cleaned on any given day, and then agree to eat dinner at 5.30 or 9pm, you can get a 40 dollar credit towards dinner. Today was the perfect day to participate since our schedule is all messed up anyway from our early morning trip. The restaurant was like Benihana’s in the sense that they cook your food at your table in front of you. We shared the table with 3 other couples: honeymooners from Bellingham, WA, anniversary couple from Portland, OR and vacationers from Boston, MA. We had good conversation and were happy to be seated with such fun people! Kevin chose the Filet Mignon and Pacific Lobster and I had the Filet Mignon and Teriyaki Chicken. Thank god I got the combination—the Filet Mignon was the best steak I’ve ever eaten. It was melt-in-your-mouth good. I even told Kevin that it was “the first steak I’ve ever eaten where I didn’t want or need ketchup.” Kevin’s lobster was delicious as well. He cooked it just right; it wasn’t overdone or chewy. We’ll definitely eat there again when we return to Maui.
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