2021 Hike 4: The King's Highway (Maui south shore) and lighthouse

This shore hike was beautiful, but I’m definitely not sure why it was classified as “easy” on AllTrails. This trail was flat, and was about 2.5 miles in, but the entire trail was volcanic aggregate and scramble…my feet felt like they were going to fall off at the end of the day after going 5 miles round-trip!

Brook and Patrick on the volcanic scree trail

The trail starts off at the end of a heavily pitted gravel road that reinforces the reason why there seem to be so many pickup trucks on the islands. Our rented Nissan Sentra handled it like a champ though! (By the way, you should never purchase a vehicle that used to be a rental car…just sayin’…)

There are a couple little canopies along the trail that border sandy beaches, but most of the trail is on what used to be lava fields.

Because of this landscape, I uttered a phrase that I never have spoken on any hike thus far: “Thank God it’s raining!” In the final quarter mile back to the car, the sky began to clear up, and the temperature climbed…and climbed… These lava fields are incredible and wonderful, but they hold a lot of heat, and can dehydrate you quickly of you’re not careful.

At the end of the hike, we got to the “Lighthouse.” Perhaps my expectations were more calibrated to the coast of Maine, but this was definitely not what I expected. Definitely good for a laugh though, and a great, if rocky, hike!

Brook and Patrick next to the lighthouse