treadnorth: Maui 4

So I’m still piecing together all that I’d like to record our recent Maui trip. Here’s the next entry, which I have to say I’d classify as my favorite experience of the trip, since it was cycling in a beautiful and adventurous locale with my favorite bike.

Where we left off in the last Maui post was putting my coupler Long Haul Trucker together at the summit of Haleakala, riding down from the summit, and spending another night at Hosmer Grove Campground.

The original ride down was pretty fun, and I planned on continuing down from the campground all the way to the ocean in the morning. When morning came, I was feeling pretty sore from the hiking we had done in the past couple days, but still excited to get out again on the Trucker. I was however, feeling a sort of cyclist’s guilt that so far my riding plans only included going down, with really no climbing. I enjoy climbing, and feel that descents should be earned. Most who ride Haleakala hire a tour company to rent them a bike and give them a van ride to the summit, and then all the riding is coasting and drooling over scenery without having to put forth any effort. As a matter of fact, most the rentals I saw were actually single speed mountain bikes with road touring tires, which I’m sure are purchased in mass at the cheapest price one can find a bike with disc brakes to hold up to the constant coasting and braking. Me, I joined the few roadie hardmen that were out climbing the route on their carbon in full race kits, only I was the slightly pudgy Minnesotan in a mixture of wool, lycra, and touring shoes slowly grinding on a big fat coupled touring bike. J I did get a ton of ataboy’s along the way, which was motivational. I was determined to climb from Hosmer Grove around 6,700 feet to the summit, which is at just above 10,000 feet. My GPS, combined with MapMyRide.com rated the climb at a Category 1, which is nothing to scoff at on a light road bike, and on a Trucker with a standard road triple crank, it was a heavy breather.

The scenery was largely the same for the majority of the climb, since as soon as you are above Hosmer you are above the effective tree line, and the terrain is larger covered in rock and shrubs. The park service maintains signage at each 1,000 foot increment, so it was nice to see the progress tick by one sign at a time.

Looking down at Hosmer Grove:

Climbing on the heavy bike:

Obligatory coupler shot...So many places to go...

Time rolled by along with miles and elevation, and I eventually reached the summit. Alison had driven up there and met me, and we had a bit of food and relaxed for a bit before I adjusted my layers for the descent. It was chilly up top, but now I would be descending from 10,000 feet to 0 feet over the next couple hours, and the temperature would surely be changing with the descent. I settled on a clothing setup that would let me shiver too bad, but that I could stay comfortable down low in too. I’d eventually meet Alison again on the way down to shed a layer or two.

The Trucker's first time at 10,000 feet....

The LHT with the Haleakala Crater in the background...

The way down was fantastic, and I was glad I earned it with the climb. It was surreal to be cycling above clouds- a scene I’m used to from flying, but don’t see often from the saddle. I wondered what it would feel like to climb the full 10,000 feet. Perhaps someday. The first set of miles took me back down what I had just climbed from Hosmer. It consisted of a whole lot of switchbacks, so a lot of braking and controlled cornering. I was thinking along the way about how much it would suck to have a front tube blowout around one of the many corners, and I must have jinxed myself, because not five minutes later it happened. Through reflexes formed from many years of various riding adventures, I kept the bike upright as it tried to pull out from underneath me, and I brought it to a stop without going off the side of the road, which would have resulted in a very unpleasant tumble down a lot of talus. I’m glad it didn’t come to that; I’ve had enough surgery.

Changing tubes...

Back in business, smiling above the clouds...

Descending, descending, and more descending...

I was able to swap tubes and get rolling in short order, and continued my way down the volcano. Soon I was passing through a mix of rocky and forested terrain, still switch-backing quite a bit. I reached the elevations where the mountain and clouds were mixing, and things got very humid and hampered by low-visibility. Alison was following me in the car at this point, which was nice considering my bike lights probably didn’t do a whole lot of good in the think innards of the cloud cover. I rode pretty cautiously and made my way below the cloud bases as quick as I could to get back into motorists field of vision. Aside from the traffic worries, riding in clouds was actually a lot of fun.

After exiting the clouds, I found myself on the gentle slopes of lower Haleakala, and the riding turned to pretty comfortable upcountry Hawaiian roads, with a mixture of forests, farmland, and cattle fields. It was nice and warm, and I could have ridden in this type of area for a long time. A good lengthy tour of Hawaii would be great.

Look closely and you'll see me in the roadway below...Alison took this photo from a switchback above...Maui Mountains and the Pacific in the background...I got to stare at them both the whole way down...

From mountains to lush farmsteads...

I cruised the easy slopes for quite a while, and ended up in the coastal town of Pai’a. A good place to dip a wheel in the ocean and finish a ride started in an environment totally different but only a two-hour span away. A few different people on the beach commented on the coupled Surly as I waited to meet Alison. It’s amazing how many bike fans there are in the world, and how recognized the Surly and S and S brands are.

Traffic? Must be back to Pai'a...