I am learning that having a blog with a full-time teacher job is going to be quite the time challenge. But here I am! Finally having some time to sit down and update the old blog. I currently have about a dozen blog ideas in my drafts, and I’m hoping to publish all of them within the next few months. But as promised, here is my story of adventuring through the magical Pipiwai Trail on Maui a few weeks ago!
Every time I go to Maui, I tell myself I have to do one adventurous thing. Over the years I’ve found myself getting into vacation mode and just sitting…sitting by the pool, sitting on the beach, sitting on a lanai…and while there is absolutely nothing wrong with vacation mode (we all need it every once in awhile), I have to remind myself that I am also on a beautiful island surrounded by amazing nature and I need to get out and see it! And so, I make sure to find a cool spot to visit every time I’m on the island.
This year, I decided on Pipiwai Trail. I’ve been once before, after a long journey on the Road to Hana, and I remember it was my favorite thing I’d done that day. And since the boyfriend had yet to experience it, I told him we needed to go. We picked a day early enough in our trip that we knew we’d still be getting up super early, rented a jeep for the entire day, and decided we’d set out early enough in the morning to be back by early afternoon and still have time to enjoy some pool time (HA!).
Now, Pipiwai is not that easy to get to. It happens to be on the east side of the island, and there is one road that passes by it. One. So, you can either drive the infamous Road to Hana and plan to spend hours on a winding road, or you can take the “back” side of Haleakala and still spend a few hours in the car, but cut down on time and only have to drive some questionable roads a handful of times. No big deal. From our resort, it would take about two to two-and-a-half hours to reach Pipiwai. If we took the Road to Hana, it would take three. At least. So it was settled – we would leave the resort about 7am, reach Pipiwai by 9, spend a few hours there, and be back by one, at the latest. Sure thing.
Of course nothing in life goes according to plan. We finally managed to leave the resort around 8:30-9am that morning. Sure enough, our GPS told us it would take approximately 2 1/2 hours to reach Pipiwai. The road there was incredible. I wish we had stopped to take pictures, but we were both anxious to get to Pipiwai…and about 45 minutes into the drive I realized I had to pee…and there aren’t really any stops along the backroads of Maui…so we pressed on. Without pictures. But trust me – it’s breathtaking. And only slightly scary to be on the passenger side looking down a cliff into the ocean. It’s fine.
We got to Pipiwai at around 11am. I was a genius and forgot to pack any kind of hiking backpack, so Griffin the Saint got to carry his camelback along with my stuff. But thankfully my camera bag has a long enough strap I could carry it cross-body style. However, I would definitely recommend packing the following:
- Sunscreen
- Bug spray
- Water, water, and water
- Camera (hi, do you see these photos?)
- Cash or credit card to get into the park
By the time we reached Pipiwai, the parking lot was already pretty crowded, but the trail itself did not feel that way. I would absolutely recommend hiking Pipiwai in the morning. It is the last stop for many Road to Hana tourists (those who still have the energy to drive past Hana once reaching the tiny little town), which means it can get pretty crowded in the afternoon. Even though we were there later than we planned, it still didn’t feel overwhelmingly crowded by any means.
The hike itself is manageable for people of all walking abilities and hiking experience. It’s about 1.8 miles one way, and we saw people in full hiking gear, and we saw people in swimsuits and flip-flops. I highly recommend good walking/hiking shoes. The first part of the path is mostly uphill, and it’s pretty rocky. Definitely not steep, but you still notice you’re going upwards. I wore my knock-off Chocos that served me well throughout Thailand a few years ago, and Griffin had his trusty Nikes. Any good walking shoes will do.
The first must-see stop on Pipiwai is of course this enormous banyan tree. It looks like something out of some fairytale story and it’s a great photo-op. The only disappointing thing about this stop is over the years, people have begun carving their initials into the tree’s beautiful branches. Please…do not be those people. This tree is a living thing, totally beautiful and awe-inspiring without humans defacing it. Take some pictures, climb on some of it’s lower branches if you must get the cool Insta selfie, but please, do not deface it. Why would you want to anyway? Just look at it…
Along the trail, we saw many beautiful waterfalls. I can’t get enough of Maui waterfalls. Some famous ones along this trail are Makahiku and Waimoku Falls. We didn’t catch a glimpse of Makahiku, but we did make it all the way to Waimoku at the end of the trail. Read on for that experience.
And of course, about a mile into the hike, we reached the most famous part of Pipiwai – the Bamboo Forest. Even having seen them before, stepping across a bridge and immediately being immersed in bamboo is still enchanting. The first part of the forest you are still walking somewhat uphill, and as you can see from the photos it’s still a bit rocky. But as you continue further, you’ll notice the walkway that they continue adding to. Due to flooding in the area over the years, they’ve slowly been adding these walkways to make it easier to get to Waimoku Falls. Sure, they help make the trek easier, but they also make for some more beautiful photo opportunities. Definitely take the time to wander slowly through the bamboo. Try to find a place to be still, and you’ll hear the wind blowing through the bamboo, creating a really cool sound. Stop and take it in. You won’t regret it.
And finally, after almost two miles, we reached the famous Waimoku Falls. Towering over 400 feet, the falls cascade beautifully down a cliff and you feel like you’re in some kind of adventure film. We found ourselves coming out of the forest and into the sunlight (hence the sunscreen being a necessity). We walked over some more walkways, crossed over a stream, and finally reached the end of the trail. We got as close as the park will allow. There’s a reason waimoku means water that cuts or breaks in two. People have tried to stand under the waterfall in the past, and obviously, standing under a 400-foot wave of crashing water is not the smartest or safest thing to do. And, being in a rainforest, the falls can sometimes become treacherous. The sign was close enough for us. We snapped a few photographs, scarfed down some granola bars, and headed back through the trail. Worth it.
Another stop-off near Pipwai Trail is the Seven Sacred Pools. Had we been more energized and not so anxious to get back to the resort for more to eat than some granola bars, we would have spent more time exploring the pools. However, we still managed to hike the short walk down to the pools, snap a few photos of the ocean and the pools, and then tiredly made our way back to the resort. I didn’t include any photos of the Seven Sacred Pools because by the time we got down there, it was pretty overtaken with many people swimming and enjoying the day. Therefore my pictures just turned out okay.
We made it back to our hotel around 3:30-4pm, exhausted but happy. The day turned into a longer one than expected, but it was oh so worth it.
I would absolutely recommend the Pipiwai Trail and the Seven Sacred Pools to anyone traveling to Maui. Whether tacked on to a day along the Road to Hana, or if you’re wanting to make your own adventure out of just Pipiwai like we were, you can’t go wrong adding this majestic location to your Maui itinerary.