ATP! Somebody get me more ATP!

I really enjoyed my stay on Moloka'i. The ride to the east end of the island was great. I also rode out to the west end. There were some hills, which weren't to bad, but it was crazy hot so I had to stop several times. I camped at an isolated spot next to a gorgeous beach.


It rained most of the night and off and on during the ride back to the ferry. I got soaked but at least I didn't over heat like the previous day.

It was Christmas day so the main town, Launakakai, was really quiet.



I took the ferry back to Lahaina on Maui. It was a rough, crazy ride! I stood in a corner on the top deck and got soaked with sea water as the ship plowed through the choppy waves. I got a roller coaster ride to go with my ferry ride.



Sam picked up a really annoying tick during the ride to west Moloka'i. At every pedal stroke, regardless of which gear he was in, he would tick loudly, and I could even feel the jarring in my feet. I had to ride with music all day to block out the incessant noise. Luckily there is a bike shop in Lahaina so I was able to get him fixed. The problem was the bottom bracket, the piece that goes through the bottom of the frame and that the pedals attach to. The mechanic took it apart and greased it up, which solved the problem. It's so nice to have a smooth ride again.

Today was tough ride. I rode around the rest of West Maui from Lahaina to Wailuku. The road was spectacular but really, really hilly. There were two hills that I walked because they were so steep and long. The views were fantastic with lush green, jungle valleys and a coastline studded with rocky cliffs and crashing waves.


Part of the road narrowed to a single lane for a good 10 miles. The pavement was in pretty bad shape, adding to the already challenging ride.



Luckily, the trade winds weren't blowing much, though there were a few sections with a brisk headwind.

I've definitely got my climbing legs back which is a good thing since tomorrow I'm riding the road to Hana, which is similar terrain to West Maui but a longer ride. It'll take four days to ride to Hana and around the rest of the east part of the island. After that, I'll finish off this trip with a climb up Haleakala and, hopefully, an overnight backpacking trip into the crater.


-- Post From My iPhone

Riding the trade winds

I took the late afternoon ferry to Moloka'i, a choppy 90 minute ride. The moon and stars were out as we bobbed along. I was a bit nervous about getting in to Moloka'i after dark, but past experience has proven that I always figure something out. I waited for the few cars at the dock to leave, turned on the rear blinker and put on my headlamp.

There is next to no traffic on this island so it's ideal for night riding. The stars were out and my headlamp gave enough light to clearly see the shoulder. I rode a few miles and then stopped at the Moloka'i Hotel to have dinner. I talked to the manager who gave me a deal on a room. So, I got to sleep in a gigantic bed after having a glorious shower.

I decided to stay another night at the hotel and ride unloaded out to east Moloka'i, a 60 mile there and back ride. I took off around 8, after a nice breakfast, and rode the flat, quiet King Kamehameha highway. It was flat for a good 20 miles, so I cranked out the miles in no time. There were some great ocean views along the way and it wasn't too hot.


I passed one of Father Damien's churches.


The Father came to the islantoon the late 19th century to take care of lepers who had been exiled to a leper colony on the island. He ended up contracting leperacy and dying from it.

There were some interesting fence posts by the road with a definite Hawaiian flare.


After 20 miles of easy cruising, the highway turned into a single lane road and began a climb over a headland. It was steep and hot but had great views. After the hill, the road ran down to a pretty and isolated beach at the end of the road.


I had lunch, went for a swim, and cranked back up the hill. It wasn't too bad until the last half mile or so where the hill had some pitches that were up to 20%. I pedaled almost all of them but ended up walking the last one.

Once I caught my breath, I cruised back down to the ocean and picked up the gusty afternoon trade wind at my back.

I got back just in time for a perfect sunset in paradise.




-- Post From My iPhone

Lazy days

I'm currently sitting in a neat little restaurant in Lahaina, drinking a mai tai. Notice the sunny beach and ocean in the background.



I'm not that big a fan of rum, but this is pretty good!

It's crazy hot and the sun is as bright as it is at home in late July. The buildings in Hawai'i often have no windows and are permanently open to the outside cuz, well, it's ridiculously warm all the time.



I rode into town early this morning to go on a whale watching cruise for 2 hours. We saw at least a dozen humpbacks, some so close that we could hear them blow. One of them was slapping it's flukes on the water. We saw several competition groups, which are two or more males battling it out to impress a female. They were diving, blowing bubbles, and head butting each other. I got some great photos with my new, nice camera. Here is what I got with my phone. Too bad there is no zoom on the iPhone.



I've spent the rest of the day wandering the shops, waiting for the evening ferry to Moloka'i. I bought some souvenirs including a pretty turtle sarong to wear over my bike shorts like a skirt to reduce my otherwise freaky bike tourist appearance.

When I rode through the Navajo Rez back in '99, I met a Navajo elder,who was a shaman, on the way to Canyon de Chelly. He spent quite a bit of time talking to me, telling me his life story. He told me that I deserved his respect because I had worked hard to see his home. I wasn't a tourist, I was a traveller. He told me that since I travel carrying my home and posessions strapped to my bike, the turtle must be my spirit totem. He told me to always wear a turtle when I travel to acknowledge my totem animal, which I have done on every trip both biking and backpacking since then. I currently wear a sea turtle necklace that I bought on the Big Island last Christmas break that I also wore all last summer on the ride to Inuvik. I also have a soapstone turtle that I bought in Minnesota during my cross country bike ride in '96 (before I travelled the Rez) in a leather pouch that is tied to Sam's handlebar with other little travel mementoes.





Sam posed with the biggest Banyan tree in the world. This thing is huge with long aerial roots that have dropped down and established new trunks. Sam is posing in front of one of the newer trunks. The original trunk is back by the couple sitting on the bench.





The ferry is about to load! Off to Moloka'i.
-- Post From My iPhone

Location:Front St,Lahaina,United States

West Maui

It poured rain all last night but had pretty much cleared up by this morning. I got going around nine and made my way over to highway 30, which heads over to West Maui.

It was an easy ten or so miles across the valley to Ma'alaea with a fierce trade wind at my back which I was grateful for but made for a hot ride. There were great views of the ocean and Haleakala I spent several hours exploring the Maui aquarium at Ma'alaea. It was quite nice with sea turtles and a deep tank with sharks and rays. They even had cute little puffer fish, the source of TTX, the sodium channel blocker, that supposedly is what was used to make zombies.

I signed up to go whale watching tomorrow from Lahaina for a couple of hours. I saw lots of humpbacks from a lookout today, spouting and breaching- pretty cool! You can't see the whales in this picture, but you can see Haleakala, a nice shield volcano across the bay.


Riding this section of West Maui reminds me of the scablands in Eastern Washington. It's really hot, the sun is blazing, there are basalt outcrops all over, and there is only scrubby vegetation.

I'm currently camped in a campground a few miles south of Lahaina. The ocean is about 20 feet away and it's cooled down to about 70 degrees. Life is good!




-- Post From My iPhone

Aloha!

Greetings from balmy Maui! The flight yesterday was long but uneventful. Boxing the bike was easy and my airline was really friendly and helpful in total contrast to the debacle in August in Edmonton.

They are charging way more to fly the bike now- $175! It used to be around $50-$90. They also charge for every checked bag and even the food on the airplane. Oh well, flying Sam is spendy but it's still way cheaper than a rental car.

As I was boxing Sam, I heard someone calling my name. It was Cam Matthews, one of my former physical science students and peer tutors. Both he and Beau Day now work as baggage handlers at the airport.

Sam, the bike, and my other checked bag were AWOL last night when I arrived so I took a cab to the Banana Bungalow, the hostel where I had reservations.



There was a party going on when I arrived, so I got to meet lots of people right off the bat including a bunch of people from Ashland.
The dorm rooms here are pretty bare bones but adequate. The advantage of staying in a hostel is that it's really cheap and there is usually a really interesting group of people around. They have a kitchen and laundry, too.

The airline called and is going to deliver Sam and my gear this morning. I'm currently hanging out waiting for my wayward bike to show up. Once I get everything sorted, I'll head into town to pick up some food and a filter for my camera lens. I'll also have to find some methanol for my stove. On the mainland it's easy to find in the form of gas line antifreeze. Finding the stuff here is a bit more challenging.

I also want to ride up Iao valley today which is supposed to be really pretty. I'm staying one more night and the will head out to ride around West Maui. I'll take the ferry to Molokai and Lanai'i and then come back to ride the road to Hana and up Haleakala. I brought a lightweight backpack so I want to do an overnight hike on Haleakala maybe next week.

My bike finally arrived intact. I put it together and headed down into town. I found a camera store which was right next to a bike shop. I had the shop give Sam the once over since had developed a few rattles from the flight. I found Heet at Walmart and bought food for a few days. It's warm so I'm on the peanut butter diet since nothing else will keep in the panniers like it did in BC and theYukon.

I went down to the beach and watched some kite boarders.


It started raining on the way home but it really didn't matter since it's so warm. The last of the Dempster dirt finally got washed off my gear!

I didn't have time to go up the valley but will still be able to do it later since I'll be coming through here again.
-- Post From My iPhone

Location:Akulikuli Way,Wailuku,United States