13 Crossings, how do I love thee?
Let me count the ways…Actually, while I would say 13 Crossings aka Makamakaole
Trail is nice, it isn’t any more interesting than some of the other ‘wet’ hikes
around Maui. In fact, if you do like ‘wet’ hikes, the kind of hike you’re going
to get wet on, then 13 Crossings is about as easy as they come. (At least until
the very end when you have to climb up one waterfall to get to the next. And
even then you can climb more ropes and apparently go on and on and on…) The
easiness of this trail – 3 miles out and back – makes it less interesting than
some other hikes, particularly the wet hikes found along the Road to Hana which
often offer ocean views. 13 Crossings offers no such view and the waterfall
scenery is tame for a fellow such as myself coming from Oregon. The waterfalls
are nice, sure, but that’s all they are. Nice. The pools of water up this way
are cool, which is a nice respite from the easy bake oven that is Kihei so it’s
not like this hike is without its plusses. Oh, and the trail does have a
section of small bamboo forestry which, you guess it, is nice. If there is
anything else to note, it’s worth mentioning that if you come to a large boulder
Nice.
forking the stream into left and right paths, go right. You can still go left
and you will still be taken to a waterfall and swimming hole, but it’s not the
one every other blogger talks about. Actually, it’s a little curious that no
one else mentions this fact. Maybe they’ve got better trail instincts as I
always seem to find myself going left when I should be going to the right. I’m
sure that means something deeper than I am willing to think about.
Wrong waterfall.
Picturesque. That's why I took a picture.
Directions: Go about 1.5 miles past
mile maker 6 on Hwy 340; mile marker 7 is MIA. Look for a hole in a fence on the mountain
side of the road just before the road takes a sharp bend. Go through the hole
and almost immediately begin your first stream crossing.
