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Maui Surf

Maui is the world mecca for a wonderful span of watersports. Allow me to elaborate on two local favorites; surfing and windsurfing.

Ocean lovers from around the globe pursue these naturally powered paastimes energized by Maui's ideal tradewinds, surf, sun, and pure enthusiasm.

It's estimated that over 17 million people around the globe surf on a regular basis. Proportionately, most are from the United States and Australia. Seventeen million shining happy people can't be all wrong.

Centuries ago, ancient Hawaiians held surf competitions and, much like today, the best athletes were hailed as great warriors, heroes and celebrities.

It is humbling to know that surfing has been around long before any of us where born, while windsurfing, on the other hand, is a fairly new sport, not having been invented until 1967 by two Californias; Hoyle Schweitzer and Jim Drake.

As Mr. Drake so eloquently states "Windsurfing is still young and just hasn't grown up yet. I for one will be pleased with windsurfing the more it attracts women, couples and children. There is no better way of seeing a sport than through children's eyes."

Although still in its infancy, windsurfing (or board-sailing as it is less commonly described) has gained rapid popularity in the past three decades.

Maui ha become the windsurfing hub of the universe and Hookipa Beach Park (just past Paia town on Hana Hwy.) is the main site for numerous world-class competitions.

The world's top men and women live or train on Maui, including American Super-Star/Wave Champion Robby Naish along with seven-time world cup phenomemon Bjorn Dunkerbeck from Spain, and among top women, Jessica Crisp, from Australia.

Hawaii's famed Jerry Lopez and David Kalama are two examples of how greatness can be achieved. Over the years, they have acquired the ultimate skill levels at both surfing and windsurfing.

Each sport complements the other perfectly. There is something to be said for the sheer simplicity of surfing. Yet, I msus admit, nothing surpasses the sensation of wind and wave power combined.

Magical Maui

There's no place like it! No wonder they call Maui Amrica's Magic Isle.

Although you see "Aloha State" on our license plates, Hawaii promotes itself as "The Health State" or "Health Capital of the World." The best longevity statistics in the U.S. are no accident. A hang-loose lifestyle, sun, sea breezes and clean air contribute to a population for whom healthy living are household words.

We'd like to share that resource with you, our honored guest. The following offers a kaleidoscope of activities and natural wonders that can invigorate the body and soul.

From the summit of Haleakala, the world's largest dormant volcano, to the sparkling shores of Maui's many white sand beaches, you can enjoy countless outdoor activities along with shopping or dining at more than 200 island restaurants.

Our Hawaii Visitors Bureau statistics show that 51% of all U.S. visitors go snorkeling or scuba diving. This is Maui's most popular activity, with good reason. A simple face mask opens a window on a new world of breathtaking splendor. It's an interactive experience between man and fish, a reversion to our primal origins as creatures of the sea.

Today cheaper pineapples from the Third World has forced Lanai to diversify into tourism. Now the major employers for the island's population of approximately 2000 people are two five-star resorts where you can golf or luxuriate, isolated from modern life, cocooned in a time-warp that echoes the plantation life of a century ago.

A bonus for staying on Maui is having easy access to Lanai and Molokai. These neighbor islands enjoy their own unique society and ambiance. Molokai is the way Hawaii used to be: mom and pop stores, farming, fishing, hunting. Known as "The Friendly Isle," for its legendary hospitality, Molokai is accessible through flights from Kapalua and Kahului airports. Ground tours are available including visits to Father Damien's mission at Kalaupapa.

There are few day trips in the United States that can compare to Haleakala Volcano. Haleakala (meaning "House of the Sun") is a vast eroded valley of volcanic rock formed 1 million years ago. Eruptions as recent as 800 years ago created lava flows and cindercones that rise up to 1000 ft. off the valley floor.

Haleakala Visitor Center at 9,745 ft. offers interesting exhibits and views of multi-hued cindercones reaching skyward, towering peaks embraced by silvery clouds and panoramas of the Big Island's snow-capped volcanoes, Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea.

Your starting point at the 10,023 ft. summit is part of Haleakala National Park, a 28,655 acre preserve that rivals Costa Rica and the Amazon in ecological splendor.

The park is home to nene geese, dark rumped petrels, mystical silverswords, over 70 species of rare endangered insects and species of exotic birds found only in Hawaii.

Haleakala National Park ranges through 5 distinctly different climate zones. Naked rocks of the subalpine summit blend into rainforests and rocky shores at Kipahulu. Nowhere else could you find such a concentrated variety of ecosystems.

Rainforests covering the windward north eastern slopes of Mt. Haleakala act as giant collectors for a 200 million-gallon a day Maui watershed. But deep beneath the forest canopy lurks a devastating threat to the equilibrium of the ecosystem – pigs!

The feral pig is the rainforest's worst enemy. Highly prolific packs of wild pigs are ravaging the spongy mosses of the forest floor, rototilling rare plants, loosening the soil so it gets washed away in the heavy rain. When the native plants disappear so do the insets that pollinate and feed on them. Some insect and nectar eating birds are down to as few as a dozen specimens as it becomes harder and harder for them to find the blossoms, spiders and bugs they have thrived on for millennia.

Fortunately the National Park Service, the State of Hawiai and The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii have recently invested millions of dollars in an ambitious fencing program that barricades the most precious rainforest areas against pigs. In the nick of time many of Maui's bird, insect and plant species on the brink of extinction are being saved.

There are 960 native plants in Hawaii, 91% of which are found nowhere else. The rarer ones cling to life at higher elevations in Maui's pristine valleys where rainfall exceeds 200 inches a year. The more inaccessible an area is to man or pig, the more rare plants and birds are present. Mist-shrouded bogs, purple ponds and precipitous cliffs are home to obscure botanical wonders that are vital links in a delicately balanced evolutionary chain.

Visitors can best appreciate Maui's biodiversity by soaring above the rainforests in a helicopter. The mosaic of 'ohia, sandalwood and koa trees punctuated by roaring waterfalls is an unforgettable sight to behold. Most helicopter companies will videotape your flight over the forests, capturing a bird's eye view of God's most beautiful creation, paradise on Earth.

A helicoper tour will reveal America's ecological crown jewels. You will be enriched by Nature's blessing.