# Driving around the Maui west mountain.



## RSchwartz (Sep 3, 2010)

Two years ago my wife and I attempted to drive around the western mountain range on Maui, starting in Kapalua, with some difficulty.  There are truely great views on this drive but much of the road seems to have single car restrictions and God help you if you meet someone head-on with little room to pass.  This happened to us in 2009 and we had to back down a portion of the mountain until we reached a bit wider area in the road.

We would love to try this drive again but fear a similar situation.  Besides renting a compact vehicle, does anyone have a suggestion on the best way to drive the western/northern mountain on Maui?  We will be back there next March.


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## rickandcindy23 (Sep 3, 2010)

We have done the drive along the north side of Maui the last few years and enjoyed the drive immensely.  The freaky side is going toward Kapalua, on the kai side of the road.  That was a drive the kids did in two cars with us in the back seat of our son's rental car.  It was quite an experience.  Going from Kapalua, you have a few moments where you cannot see around the bend and have to cling a bit to the mountain while making sure no one is coming around.  We noticed wider turns for the people on the kai side of the road this last time, so maybe they have improved the road from our first time in 2005.    

The scariest drive on Maui is beyond Hana on that road.  I didn't like it at all and Rick was perfectly comfortable driving it.  He made fun of his mom and me the entire time.  Too many hairpin turns, blind curves and too easy for someone to run you off the road.   It was bumpy and narrow, and I had a difficult time enjoying the beauty of the dry side of the island, because I was too worried about falling into the ocean.


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## DeniseM (Sep 3, 2010)

You are supposed to honk before entering the blind curves, and also listen for on-coming traffic.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Sep 3, 2010)

rickandcindy23 said:


> The scariest drive on Maui is beyond Hana on that road.  I didn't like it at all and Rick was perfectly comfortable driving it.  He made fun of his mom and me the entire time.  Too many hairpin turns, blind curves and too easy for someone to run you off the road.   It was bumpy and narrow, and I had a difficult time enjoying the beauty of the dry side of the island, because I was too worried about falling into the ocean.



I can't imagine driving to Hana without doing the drive beyond Hana as long as the road is open.  That is the best part of the drive!!!!


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## MOXJO7282 (Sep 3, 2010)

We did the north side this past Feb and its not for the faint of heart but overall we thought the very bumpy road at times, was well worth it. It had a hand full of very beautiful vistas, one that was as nice as any on the south side of the road.


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## pharmgirl (Sep 3, 2010)

bumpy or potholed or all rock roads are bothersome but what i REALLY didn;t like nor ever want to experience again was the possibility of driving over the cliffsor having to back up on those cliff edge roads for both past hana and west mtn rds


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## rickandcindy23 (Sep 3, 2010)

T_R_Oglodyte said:


> I can't imagine driving to Hana without doing the drive beyond Hana as long as the road is open.  That is the best part of the drive!!!!



So you and Rick are both crazy.  I get it now.   

The road was closed back in April for our trip, and I was so happy!  We drove a little beyond Hana, to see the farms and such, and when we got to a certain point, Rick turned around.  I was relieved it was closed this time and hope it's always closed during our trips.  Mom is 82, and I don't think she needs that kind of excitement.  :rofl:


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## learnalot (Sep 3, 2010)

We did this drive when we were there 3 years ago with no problems.  My husband was just looking at the map and wanted to check it out, so we went and took our time.  Savored the experience.  No problem.  However, when we were there in July this year, it was CRAZY!! There were all kinds of people driving like maniacs, especially headed west from the Kahului side.  Definitely tourists, not locals.  And while I don't have any scientific evidence, I have a theory that it has to do with the "Maui Revealed" book, which by the way, gets slammed by the locals if you check out the reviews on Amazon.  And I get it.  It's hard to articulate exactly, but what we saw on the road being discussed in this thread was a striking, almost cavalier lack of appreciation or respect for the surroundings.  It was pretty disturbing.  I can understand why the locals are upset.  (We were driving mid-afternoon on a Monday, probably about the same time we did it the last time we were there.)


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## rickandcindy23 (Sep 3, 2010)

Some of the maniacs were frustrated locals, behind all of the tourists who were taking their time.  I doubt Maui Revealed is causing people to speed along that road. 

I personally will not stop at the banana bread lady's stand now, after she gave us the ol' stink eye during our first stop.  The bread was good, but expensive and not worth the dirty look. 

The locals are bitter that Daugherty wrote all of the details of that drive and really don't want that much traffic.  

The road was very quiet during April, which is a great time to go to Maui, apparently, because we didn't see crowds anywhere we went.  I loved that time of year, even though the whales are gone.


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## barefootnAR (Sep 3, 2010)

Drive carefully and pray a rock doesn't fall on that rental. Managers at the OGG rental offices will tell you that the rental companies consider these restricted area ..around the one lane west lobe road and past Kaupo on the south Hana road..which means if you drive these your have broken your rental agreement....another way to say you'll buy the car if an accident happens...ouch


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## Kauai Kid (Sep 3, 2010)

Remember the 25 yr old with a testosterone overdose driving a jacked up 4x4 *ALWAYS* has the right of way, especially over haole visitors.:hysterical: 


We didn't care for the drive past Hana at all and would turn around and see the beautiful scenery from the other direction.


Sterling


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## LisaRex (Sep 4, 2010)

In '06, we drove the West Maui mountains counter clockwise during our hiking tour with a guide named Bryce.  We were in a 10 person passenger van and I sat up in the front seat (because I get motion sick). Let's just say that I was glad that he was driving.  I was shocked at the lack of guard rails and the one-way stretches that would require one driver to back up on that road. Yikes!

Since then we've driven the route as far as the Nakelele blowhole, from our Westin villas.  During our June '08 trip, I noticed that they'd improved the road significantly, adding guard rails and blowing out sides of the mountain so that the hairpin turns weren't so hairy.  Not sure if they've completed the entire route or not, but what they did was very nice.


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## csalter2 (Sep 4, 2010)

*I Took The Road Less Travelled*

I traveled on the west mountains for quite a bit of it this July. However, I saw too many red rocks as I was driving and decided to turn back. I went pretty far too. My wife and I did stop a few times. We saw the blowhole mentioned earlier. Yes, there were some nice views, but I just did not want to chance it. The falling rocks scared me. Plus, there were not many other people travelling the road and I was scared we could be stranded in the middle of no where. I felt it was best to be safe than sorry.

We also drove the road to Hana. My personal opinion is that it it overrated. Yes, there were some nice spots, but not for all the clamoring I have heard people talk about. I drove to the pools, saw the caves, etc. etc. But those were no big deal for all of the driving. I did enjoy the beaches there though. 
The best part of that day for me was dinner at Mama's Fish House.


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## fnover (Sep 4, 2010)

pharmgirl said:


> bumpy or potholed or all rock roads are bothersome but what i REALLY didn;t like nor ever want to experience again was the possibility of driving over the cliffs having to back up on those cliff edge roads for both past hana and west mtn rds



We used to do this drive all the time, go to Julia's for banana bread and continue around the island (in both directions) until 3 years ago when we met an oncoming van going up as we were going down a one lane road, not wanting to get into a who has the right-of-way argument we backed up until we reached a turnout and the van passed, to say this was scary is an understatement. 
I checked with the Maui police and was told that there is no law or rule regarding the right-of-way it's just who wants to yield.
Needless to say we don't go to Julia's any more for banana bread.


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## Conan (Sep 4, 2010)

We did it all (just back from Maui today - - fighting jet lag after flying OGG-LAX-JFK).

We did Hana (clockwise) all the way around - - traffic is lightest on Sunday morning, especially if you start out from your timeshare no later than 7:00.   Our only problem was we made such a day of it, the sun was low in the sky and directly in the driver's eyes as we finished the loop heading west from the National Park (a/k/a Seven Sacred Pools).

Another day we drove West Maui (also clockwise) from Kapalua, and on from there in time for lunch at Mama's Fish House.  There are a couple of miles of very narrow roads and blind curves but we wouldn't miss it.


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## dioxide45 (Sep 6, 2010)

We will be in Maui in about five weeks. We plan to stick to the paved two lane and larger roads :whoopie:. It just isn't worth it.


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## Ricci (Sep 10, 2010)

I've driven around both mountains many times and I LOVE the adventure.  The scenery around the west mountain is much prettier, imho.


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