Ironman & Sugarlips 2005 "Hawaiian Family" Road Trip

December 5-12 Maui, Hawaii

Road Trip Day Two

Kihei to Kapalua

The west coast of Maui is strictly beach front with 30 miles of mildly curving roads and scenic views of vast blue water. The best part of riding was the beautiful and consistent 80-degree weather. The 30-mile stretch of coastline fluctuated between 2 and 4 lane highway so the going was easy. There were about 7 heavily traveled intersections that required caution but for the most part the excursion was trouble free. Our main mission of the day was to ride as far as we could with out hitting “red dirt” and to visit Napili Beach. The resort sits adjacent to the Kapalua Golf Course, which is a favorite of the Ironman’s and also host to the 2006 Mercedes Challenge Golf Tournament held in January of each year.

The traffic was mild and the only real danger was the threat of sunburn, so we took the opportunity to invite Grandma Linda for the first few miles of coastline. JillMarie and Lily followed in the rental car as the “chase vehicle”. Lily loved to point and say “Daddy, Yama, Momo!” At 16 months old Lily was officially a part of a road trip and she loved every mile! Grandma obviously was also enjoying herself so we continued onto Honokowai Beach to relax and watch the surf. The beaches were clean and uncrowded, and with a slight breeze blowing it was a refreshing stop before heading out on the road again.

Yama was thrilled to be on the bike and wanted to ride the rest of the way to Kapalua, which was only about 10 miles. We arrived in time for lunch at Napili Beach. The Sea House Restaurant is located directly on the beach and serves incredible food. We were lucky enough to be seated for lunch when a 10-minute rain shower blew in.  This was our only experience with rain for day 2. How’s that for timing! After lunch, we were able to cruise the golf course and the Ironman got to see where he’d be playing during our next visit to the island. The course, which looked very challenging, has a scenic view of the ocean, with immaculate manicured greens, and a quiet breeze that whispers, “Come play….”

As we turned around to head back down the 30 miles of coastline to Kihei, Yama automatically put her helmet on so we decided to give her the whole experience of riding roundtrip. With time still left on the rental we took the roads slow on the way home and topped off the day with a trip to Baskin & Robbins. The Ironman got to enjoy a 40-minute solo ride from Kehei to Kahului to return the Road King back into the dealership. With a warm tropical breeze, 2 full days of riding and knowing that there were only 2 states to ride to complete the goal of all 50 states, the bike seemed to move a little faster on the open road. Alaska & North Dakota seem so far away when riding in 80-degree weather in December.

Tomorrow we will take the rental car on the scenic Hana Highway with the family. We were told to be cautious if we took the bike since there are 54 one-lane bridges, continuous 10-15 mile per hour curves, sheer cliffs, and numerous cars on the 52 mile stretch that takes 2+ hours to travel. This is a drive that the entire family will enjoy, so we decided to travel by car this trip, and include it in our travel log to experience it on our next visit. Day 3 will re-cap The Hana Highway adventure through a different windshield, but from the motorcyclist’s point of view.

Lily gets to go!
"Yama" Gets to go!	Off to Kapalua
That's a palm tree	Napili Beach
Napili Beach	Kapalua Golf
Maui HD	Sign @Maui HD
Click to see Dec 7, 2005	Click to see Dec 9, 2005