Hawaii, here I come
The prospect of doing 3 massive climbs in 3 days beckons.
I’m off to catch up with a mate in Hawaii. We met doing the Haute Route last year. Mark was doing the triple, and I was doing the Iron (just two weeks). He’s as tall as a mountain, standing 6 foot 6 inches high, and I’m a measly 5′ 10″ at most. And most of that is torso. Having very short legs is a distinct disadvantage on a bike, but I’ll give anything a crack.
So after shooting the breeze for a couple of weeks last September, we quickly discovered that we’d both love to climb the volcanoes of Hawaii. The one that we talked about most was from Hilo to Mauna Kea. This is the holy grail of cycling mountains. It stands 4200 meters high. It’s a giant. The other two volcanoes are smaller, but challenges in their own right.
Haleakala, or mountain of the sun, is a mere 3,100 meters tall. It dwarfs most hills in the world but is apparently quite friendly. The road up is sealed all of the way, unlike the road up Mauna Kea.
I sit the lounge at Auckland airport waiting for the plane. I’m privileged to be able to undertake such an amazing adventure.
Landed. Flight was ok, but Air New Zealand really need to lift their game. They’re heading down the Ryan Air route. It’s a race to the bottom. Staff were friendly enough, but the seats were crap, and the bolt on services were insane. Maybe this is being written after a lack of sleep and unfair, but it’s the way I felt. There’s a reason I won’t ever travel Ryan Air, and on those shorter Air NZ I might be dooming the same.
Anyway, the bike and myself landed safely, and it was only an additional US$35 to take my bike to the other islands.
Next stop on this journey is Kahului, Maui. Will be great to catch up with last years Haute Route roommate, Mark Cozens.
