Molokai questions

[Momma Bear]

We've never been to Molokai before and decided to tack on a few days there after our time on Honolulu and Kauai. I've not been successful at finding any really good Molokai guide books - aren't there ANY out there? What are the must-see and do things we shouldn't miss? Which side of the island has good, safe snorkeling in early March? Do we need a 4-wheel drive vehicle or will the regular sedan that I reserved be sufficient? Any info and recommendations will be greatly appreciated! Mahalo!

 

[Luanne]

If you go to the sticky on the Hawaii board you can find some information on Molokai. You can also do a search on this board and find some older threads. Denise M has a lot of information on her website (that I used when we visited Molokai several years ago).

Molokai is the least developed of the islands. Since we were there one of the only resort areas on the island has completely shut down. This leaves no restaurants or grocery facilities except in the main town. I don't know where you were planning on staying, but if you stay anywhere other than town, you'll be driving a lot just to get supplies, or to find a restaurant.

I loved Molokai, the rest of my family wasn't so thrilled with it.

The one thing that I think is a "must do" is the tour of Kalaupapa. A formal tour is the only way you can see this.

I can't answer your question about snorkeling.

 

[DeniseM]

Here is my Molokai Trip Report.

The best guide book is Driving and Discovering Maui and Molokai by Richard Sulliven. You can buy it on the author's website at a nice discount. It's an over-sized book with beautiful photography, as well as being a great driving guide.

Molokai is VERY different than the other islands. The locals value their non-commercial life style and have actively fought development. The few big projects that were built, have all been shut down. There are no chain stores, no tourist attractions, few restaurants, and no major hotels or developments. It is very much a "do-it-yourself" proposition. You will want to get Richard's book and do a lot of planning well before your trip.

The main roads are paved, but many roads are dirt, so it just depends how much exploring you want to do.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Be sure to do the mule ride down to Kalaupapa.

DW (that's her on the mule in the middle photo) has a friend whose parents own a condo on Molokai, and they visit Molokai every year. They often do the hike to Kalaupapa on foot, both directions.

 

[Luanne]

Be sure to do the mule ride down to Kalaupapa.

That is your opinion. Dd and I did the "fly in/fly out" and we were very happy with that experience. I do not like heights and riding down that cliff on the back of a mule would have been pure torture for me. I think the fly in/fly out option was less expensive than the mule ride.

 

[DeniseM]

+1 - the flight was cheaper and not so scary!

Yes, Steve, I am afraid of helicopters and donkeys on steep trails, but not fixed wing planes.

 

[Luanne]

+1 - the flight was cheaper and not so scary!

I'm right there with you Denise. Even dd, who was about 17 at the time, didn't want to do the mules.

 

[Momma Bear]

Thanks everyone for the replies. Denise - I really enjoyed your detailed trip report! I ordered the book you suggesed too. I'm wishing now that I would have planned on more than 4 nights there. We'll be staying in a rental unit at the Wavecrest complex and it looks to be in a good location. TRO - We were thinking about doing the mule ride and will definitely do so if the weather cooperates. We both love helicopter rides and I think it's one of those rare opportunities that we wouldn't want to miss. It probably isn't any scarier than when we drove around the far north-west portion of Maui back in 2001 before they made the improvements to the road! (Anyone know if there have there been any mule trip accidents?)

Did any of you get an opportunity to see the sea cliffs? I was hoping there would be a boat trip like there is on Kauai.

 

[DeniseM]

We flew right by the sea cliffs in the plane when we were going to Kalaupapa - there is a picture in the trip report. You can see them well from the ground at Kalaupapa Bay, as well.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

TRO - We were thinking about doing the mule ride and will definitely do so if the weather cooperates. We both love helicopter rides and I think it's one of those rare opportunities that we wouldn't want to miss. It probably isn't any scarier than when we drove around the far north-west portion of Maui back in 2001 before they made the improvements to the road! (Anyone know if there have there been any mule trip accidents?)

Did any of you get an opportunity to see the sea cliffs? I was hoping there would be a boat trip like there is on Kauai.

AFAIK - there have been no accidents on the trail related to mule missteps. Mules are used because they are extremely sure-footed -that's why they are used as pack animals in difficult terrain. When you do the mule ride, they advise you to be patient if your mule suddenly stops on the trail and doesn't proceed immediately. The mules work out their steps in advance, and if they haven't figured out their path they simply don't proceed until they have worked out their steps. That's where the phrase - "stubborn as a mule" arises.

I believe there may have been accidents during mounting and dismounting. Particularly at the end of the day; when the mules return to the barn they are ready for their evening meal and they know where the chow will be waiting. Themules are accustomed to allowing the rider to dismount, then they immediately take off for the barn. So people are advised to remain on the mule until they reach the dismount station, where an employee assists with the dismount. But occasionally someone decides to dismount themselves, and doesn't do a clean dismount. So the animal takes off for the barn, dragging someone who still has a foot caught in the stirrup.

So - accidents happen when people act stupid and don't follow the rules.

++++

As far as viewing the sea cliffs goes - the best way is on the trail. Either by mule or by foot. The photos I posted above are taken from the trail, generally from the back of the mule.

If you are in good physical condition, you can hike out. It's a 3000-foot climb. As a hike, technically it's not much different from Mt. Si trail in western Washington, which a person in reasonable condition can ascend in about two hours (3200 foot elevation gain over 4 miles of trail).

In the summer the Mt. Si trail is the hiking equivalent of a freeway. And the trail is in better condition than the Kalalau Trail on Kauai. But it's a tropical climate, so don't underestimate the amount of water you might need on the trail.

There are also people who hike down and fly out; also some who take the mules down and fly back out.

I would not advise the mule ride for someone who has a bad back. The ride is jarring, and the trunk of your body will be tired at the end of the ride unless you are a regular rider on pack animals.

+++

There are no regular helicopter tours. Of course you could probably charter a helicopter; I don't know if there are any charters available at Molokai airport

 

[Momma Bear]

Seeing as how neither of us have been on a horse in over 25 years, we'd better ride one way and fly the other. Thanks for the idea!

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Seeing as how neither of us have been on a horse in over 25 years, we'd better ride one way and fly the other. Thanks for the idea!

Oh dear!! I suspect that I may have been too dramatic and have unduly frightened you.

Let me be totally explicit that the unless you have some really significant issue involving heights, etc., there is no reason to shy from the mule ride. This is not a ride that requires any degree of horsemanship; that fact that you have not ridden a horse in 25 years is of no import. If you can ride a pony at a county fair, you should be able to ride the mules.

Almost everyone who takes the mule down takes the mule back out. DW, Bro, SIL, and I hadn't been on horseback more than five times combined in 25 years, and we were fine with the mules. On top of that DW has had arthritis for over 40 years and she had no problem going down and coming out on the mule. SIL has had to deal with similar issues, and has some pretty severe vertigo issues as well. And she was perfectly fine with the mule ride.

Now, if I had an arthritic back that prevented me from doing even routine tasks, I would not take the mules. It is about one hour of bouncing and jarring each way. But if you can do an activity such as weeding a garden or raking leaves an hour or so, riding the mules simply would not be a problem.

In general, if you can ride the mules down you can ride them out. If you have a physical limitation that actually might be a concern, you will know immediately from past experience that a mule ride is out of the question. If you don't know immediately that it's out of the question, the mule ride will probably pose no problems for you.

 

[Kel]

We stayed at Ke Nani Kai on Molokai for a week last year (November). We had a great time. I agree with the others that you have to go to Kalaupapa. We hiked down and up. We are in our early 50s and in good shape. We actually met our tour guide on the hike down. She hikes down and up every day that she works. It was a beautiful hike and we got some great photos.

We had a regular sedan and it was fine for where we went. The dirt roads with red clay can be pretty slick when it rains. I don’t have a book to recommend.

The locals were very friendly. The beaches were beautiful. Many times during the week we were the only people on some beaches. That was incredible.

We had a couple of meals at the Hotel Molokai. The food was good. I would probably stay at the Hotel Molokai the next time we go. Molokai Pizza Café had really good food. We liked their pizza better than any pizza place near our home. We were told we had to go to Kanemitsu Bakery. We thought the baked goods we tried at Kanemitsu Bakery were greasy. But, other people seemed to love the place.

I would go back. Have a good trip!

 

[jlr10]

I rode the mules down and back to Kaluapapa and had never been on a horse or mule before. Since I am very short I felt like I was pretty far from the ground. I didn't even pretend to lead the mule just gave a gentle push with my heels and held on. Although I held on hard enough to get blisters it wasn't really needed, I was just nervous. The only issues I had was when my mule passed other mules on the trail by pushing its way -although the trail is not real narrow it wasn't really wide enough for this to be a comfortable thing. The other issue was I could not get my mule to stop at the end. He was done for the day and was heading for the barn. But the mule wrangler grabbed him and made him let me dismount.

My husband, who had no desire to ride a mule, hiked the trail down and back. He thought it was a somewhat stenous hike back up but felt the hike down was harder as the trail is set up for the mules to have good footing which is not the best for humans which made it hard on his knees.

Note there is an age limit for going down. The muleskinner's wife watched our son while we went (prearranged before the trip.) He had a great time as she worked the day out for him to enjoy the things he liked.

While there we enjoyed a hike in Halawa valley to the falls (using local guides to prevent stink eye) and had a great time. The trail was fairly easy with only one river crossing that had a cable guide. It was the highlight of our activities on Molokai.

We also tried to drive to Kamakou Preserve but only made it so far because of the condition of the road. If we visit again we would try this trip but with a tour with someone else driving who was more comfortable with the road (very rutted an only big enough for one car.) But the views were beautiful and we could see down to the valley where the people were thown out of the ship when they were taken to Kaluapapa.

We enjoyed our 5 day trip here, and found that, for us, 5 days was just about right. Our favorite part was the people. They were some of the friendliest we have found on the islands. Everyone stopped to ask where we were from, what we wanted to do, and suggestions on how to enjoy their island. But as Denise M mentioned this is not really a tourist resort destination, it is a place to see beauty and meet interesting people.

 

[jlr10]

I was looking at the website for the Kaluapapa and the tail is currently closed due to flooding in April of 2010, which destroyed the bridge on one of the switchback. Although it is scheduled to be open shortly the mules need to be reconditioned for the new bridge and trail before they begin again. Even with Hawaiian time this should be fine by March, but before then I would recommend checking before going.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

We enjoyed our 5 day trip here, and found that, for us, 5 days was just about right. Our favorite part was the people. They were some of the friendliest we have found on the islands. Everyone stopped to ask where we were from, what we wanted to do, and suggestions on how to enjoy their island. But as Denise M mentioned this is not really a tourist resort destination, it is a place to see beauty and meet interesting people.

Our experience on Moloka'i was quite similar. If you read reviews and reports, thought, there are a lot of people who say they found people on Moloka'i to be unfriendly.

I think much of this has to do with the attitude and expectations you bring to Moloka'i. If a person comes to Moloka'i acting like a tourist and expecting it to be like an undeveloped Maui, that's likely to generate a negative reaction. But we smiled a lot, took things easy and soaked in the island, and we found people almost unfailingly nice.

 

[DeniseM]

I thought the people were charming and cordial - everywhere we went, locals approached us and were very friendly. Many people made suggestions about things we might like to see or do. They are proud of their island, and rightfully so.