The Maui Goodness

Divers:  When visiting Maui, make sure to do a couple of dives.  We suggest having ProDiver Maui show you the best locations.  For more information, check out their Maui scuba diving page.

A couple of tips: If you plan on diving in Maui, please make sure you don’t go up to Haleakala Crater close to the time because of pressurization.  Haleakala goes up to 10,000 feet, so it acts much like a plane flight for divers.

Also, take a look at some Maui Scuba locations on the Maui Information Guide.  Have fun and be safe!

On Friday June 20th, 2009, Willie Nelson received the Maverick Award Tribute at the Celestial Cinema in Makena during the Maui Film Festival.  He sang a few songs and played the guitar (shown in this video) between movies.  His music and good spirit were welcomed under the stars by thousands of Maui locals and visitors. 
The first film to be shown was Splinterheads about a young man in a small town that falls in love with a beautiful Carnie.  The second film as One Peace At A Time (world premiere), a touching film about what we can do for our world in crisis.  In this film, Willie Nelson, among notable others, has a short insightful interview.  The last film was also a world premiere of Cash Crop.  This film explored the many defining characteristics of a booming marijuana economy in Northern California. The Maui Film Festival is an incredible event to experience.

Every year, local Maui residents anticipate the fun and excitement of the festival.  Those visitors lucky enough to be here for it all claim that Maui has the best film festival in the world.  Enjoying warm weather under the stars with a sunset over the ocean, then watching great movies with friends in the grass can’t be beaten. (One warning though:  If you plan on watching more than the first film, we suggest bringing a jacket and/or blanket.  It can get a bit chilly later on.)

Willie Nelson was awarded this tribute for “courage in his convictions, the ability and willingness to stand the heat, and protect our collective constitutional rights to artistic and political freedom of expression.”

On May 17th, 2009, the bad-a$$ ladies of roller derby got together on Maui for a battle royale.  The roller derby bout took place at the Boys and Girls Club in Wailuku between the Oahu and Maui teams.  Though (as you can see in the pictures) it was fiercely competitive, both teams played with the best of intentions and sportswoman-like conduct.

The event was fantastic!  Around 200 people showed up for the festivities, not including the paramedics standing by.  Along with many excited fans, the event had a great DJ and snacks and water available.

The Derby bout went off without a hitch and without any serious injury (though most grown men would be in tears after suffering some of the falls that these brave and talented riders took.)

Keep kicking butt, Maui!  We’ll be at your next bout and hope you get even more exposure.  What you do is inspiring, and offers some serious entertainment.  Time to turn off the football game on TV.  There’s something much more exciting going on at a Maui parking lot near you.

Recently, a few of us had the opportunity to attend a beautiful wedding at the Sugarman’s Estate in Makena, South Maui.  Everything went off without a hitch and we thought we’d mention some of the highlights.

This is one of the most beautiful properties on the island, and we we’re overjoyed in being able to spend some time on it again.  For weddings, it’s perfect.  The sunset over the water is set up perfectly for photos and general guest enjoyment.  The property is very large and able to accommodate hundreds of people with sprawling green lawns and very large trees with ample shade.

Our favorite part of the wedding was without doubt the food.  Maui Catering was provided by Maui Executive Catering, of whom did a smashing job.  We’ve been to many weddings in Maui, and the food can be hit or miss.  These guys did an unbelievable job.  We thought we’d peak in and take some photos of their crew and kitchen area while at work and ask their service staff some questions:

Aloha!  We’ve been noticing how well you all work together.  How did this catering company pull together such a great team?

“Jeff and Jason (Owners of Maui Executive Catering) work harder than most people we know.  They’re great to work with, and I think that’s why good service staff is drawn to work with them.  They take care of their crew and make it fun for everyone.  It’s a nice change to work for them as opposed to some lesser-organized companies.  Things just seem to go like clock work.”

The food has all been delicious.  You’ve put out some pretty exotic and attractive presentations.  Is this normal?

“Yes, another perk of working with them.  All of their chefs are classically trained and well-educated.  Most have gone to the Maui Culinary Academy, one of the best in the world.  They really take pride in their work.  I often notice that they’ll put in excessive prep time for some of the most minute details just to add an extra flair.  Yep, pretty normal for them.  They use top of the line gear, and don’t mind experimenting in order to find the perfect flavors for a dish.  I’ve heard more than once from guests that they don’t want to mess up their plates by eating.  But then once they take a bite, it’s over with.  Nobody leaves hungry, that’s for sure.”

The bartending provided by Maui Executive Catering was professional and friendly.  Their bartender and barback were fun and had the skills necessary to handle a crowd of thirsty guests and do it with style.  It seemed everyone by the end of the day had suggested that they loved the bartender and really enjoyed his humor and fun-loving attitude.

Great job, everyone.  We’ll be recommending you in the future!

To learn more about them, visit Maui Executive Catering.

Maui’s favorite springtime event, the 36th annual Seabury Hall Craft Fair was held today Upcountry.  This much anticipated event did not disappoint.  Every year, the craft fair is held the day before Mother’s Day and for good reason.  The event was packed with visitors and residents looking to pick up something unique and locally made for Mom.

Seabury Hall had fun for all ages: kids enjoyed the pony rides provided by Piiholo Ranch, the large double slip and slides, and the jumping castles, while adults shopped, looked at classic cars, enjoyed local food, and danced to the live bands.

Art on Maui has always been the major focus of the event, and again this year dozens of talented artists gathered to show and sell their goods.  Everything from glass blowing to photography was featured at the many booths.  We’ll make sure to come back next year, and we’re glad so many people came this time.

Don’t worry!  You can still do the road to Hana, but you can’t go all the way around for 4-5 weeks (Maui time.  That could be a lot longer.)

The Paihi Bridge is undergoing repairs again.  This means those that are looking to go to Oheo Gulch (7 sacred pools) will have to drive the back way,through Upcountry’s Kula.  Basically, Hana is now 2 trips: 1 through the lush rainforest past waterfalls and dramatic green coastline, and another to the Tedeschi Winery, Upcountry, and the drier arid back side of Haleakala to Seven Sacred Pools.

This isn’t the first time that this bridge has been closed to traffic, and I assure you it won’t be the last.

Maui’s Big Beach (Makena Beach) is finally getting lifeguards!  Today, over a dozen lifeguards trained near the second entrance as a lifeguard tower was put together.

The dangers at Makena State Park are SERIOUS!  The shore break is extremely powerful even when there’s little to no real swell in the water.  Incidents of injury and death have become common place on Big Beach.  Finally, we’ll have some professionals to take care of the many visitors that are unaware of the dangers.  Read more on Big Beach Dangers.

Funding for the lifeguards at Big Beach had been approved back in July of 2007. It’s taken 2-3 years for us to see the reality.  Due to impedments from the DLNR (the Department of Land and Natural Resources), it seems that we’ve had to wait this long for action.  It’s a shame that this should happen, seeing that many people have been hurt and some killed during their stagnation.

After watching the actions (and inaction) of the DLNR over the last few years especially, it’s fair to say that the interest of Maui residents and visitors are not at heart.  Many of their actions bare little effect and only harm the tourist industry and local Maui residents’ way of life.  If there ever was a time for reform among the DLNR, it is now.

To our future lifeguards: Thank you for taking on this difficult task.  Though you’ll be working pretty hard to keep people from hurting themselves, you will be lucky enough to be the only ones making a living on Big Beach. Not a bad life!

Want more information on Maui Beaches?  We’ve got plenty at the Maui Information Guide along with accommodations, activities, and other helpful information for visitors and residents of Maui County.

After many difficulties, the Hawaii Superferry has finally been put to rest… for now.

The Hawaii Supreme Court struck down a new law that allowed the Alakai to run operations in Hawaii waters without an official Environmental Impact Report (EIS.)

The Hawaii Superferry ran its last voyage between Maui and Oahu on Thursday March 19th, 2009.  236 employees were laid off, and no future Hawaii service can be expected without an EIS. The Alakai, which ran for over a year and booked over 250,000 round-trip voyages in that time, will be leased for commercial use outside of Hawaiian Waters or by the US military. Hawaii Superferry President and Chief Executive Tom Fargo has hopes that his vision of an interisland ferry system can be met in the future by his organization, though the possibility of this happening is doubtful at best.

Concerns for the environment as well as danger to our visiting Humpback Whales has raised concerns particularly with both Kauai and Maui residents.  Protests and legal action have ensued from environmental groups after the state exempted the Hawaii Superferry from having any type of environmental review in 2005.  Controversy has grown seeing that the State had dealing with the Hawaii Superferry as far as investments.

From the beginning, the Hawaii Superferry has been a Maui Lawyers dream situation.  This will continue to be litigated over for years if the owners feel like putting the time into it.  Though it looks like they’re going to pursue other ways of making money.  The way things have been going, we can’t blame them.