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Road to Hana Guide: Seven Sacred PoolsThe phrase Seven Sacred Pools was developed as a marketing term for the pools and waterfalls at Oheo Gulch. This area is the reason visitors continue beyond the town of Hana when driving the road to Hana.On the south side of the Haleakala crater, Oheo Gulch is part of Haleakala National Park. You can make this a short stop or an all day visit along the Hana coast.
Wailua Falls
After you leave the small town of Hana on the way to the Seven Sacred Pools, you will see more waterfalls including Wailua Falls at Mile Marker 45.
Wailua Falls is the perfect Hana waterfall to stop the car, jump out, stand by the side of the road, and shoot a great one hundred foot waterfall picture. You can also hike down a short path to the base of the falls. Start looking for the Oheo Gulch signs and large primitive parking area for your car at Mile Marker 42.
The Lower Pools
The trail from the parking lot down toward the ocean is relatively short and easy. But if you want to view the entire group of waterfalls and pools, be ready for a long hike uphill on the Pipiwai Trail.
The Upper Pools - Pipiwai Trail
The rough trail UP the mountain (where most of the pools are) is often damp and slippery - the high rainfall makes for the waterfalls and lush vegetation. This is the Pipiwai Trail. The hike is not a casual stroll - it is two miles each way with a gain in altitude of 800 feet.
Visitors and locals hike, swim and sunbathe in the pools beneath the waterfalls.
The Makahiku Falls Overlook on the Pipiwai Trail provides a unique photo opportunity. When hikers go to the top of Makahika waterfall and climb into the pool, they can see over the waterfall with no visible barrier - so the pool is called the Infinity Pool. Because of the difficult hike, you get to enjoy the relative solitude of the waterfalls compared to the crowded roadside waterfalls along the road to Hana.
Eventually an unusual bamboo forest surrounds you on both sides of the trail. The end of the trail is well marked for you to turn around and descend the 800 feet in almost two miles back to the trailhead.
Oheo Gulch / Seven Sacred Pools VideoClick on the PLAY button in the image below to view a Seven Sacred Pools video of our hike on the Pipiwai Trail.
The video below shows how far you will be hiking if you decide to visit all the falls and pools. Click on the PLAY button in the image below to view a 'birds eye' perspective video provided by a Maui helicopter tour company.
Road to Hana - Haleakala BacksideOctober 2008 Update - The Piilani Highway has been REOPENED so you can now once again continue on around the island during your Road to Hana trip. This road was closed after the October 2006 earthquake in the channel between east Maui and the Big Island due to potential rock slides. For that trip, see my page reach the road to Hana along the backside of the Maui volcano Haleakala.
Return to Road to Hana from Seven Sacred Pools |
Keep on hiking the slippery trail for more waterfalls, large pools, wandering cows, a large banyan tree, and bridges over the Pipiwai stream and Oheo stream that the trail has been following.
My Road to Hana Pages
Road to Hana Overview
Road to Hana Guide
...Road to Hana Best Stops
...town of Hana
...past Hana at Seven Sacred Pools
...past Pools on Piilani Highway
Road to Hana Beaches
Maui black sand beach
Hana beaches
Planning & Options
Drive the road to Hana?
Or take a road to Hana tour?
Road to Hana Waterfalls
Watch and View
Road to Hana videos
Road to Hana maps
Road to Hana pictures
Road to Hana Tours
If you want someone else to drive on a road to Hana tour, you have several options:
• Temptation Tours includes a breakfast and beachside lunch, road to Hana stops at waterfalls and beaches, then turnaround at Hana and stop at windsurfing Hookipa Beach on you return trip.
• Valley Isle Excursions is a luxury tour - customized high roof large window 12 person vans, large captain's chairs, and a lunch served with silverware and linens.
• Roberts Hawaii includes a box lunch and a trip all around the road to Hana and beyond. Roberts Hawaii is a value priced company and works with several cruise lines.
If you want to talk to someone right now on Maui about a road to Hana tour, call Barefoot Tours toll free 877-489-3054 (they are on Hawaii time). 
Even if you are on Maui or Hawaii now, or soon will be, they can get your tickets to you by email, fax, mail, or even delivered to the Road to Hana tour operator for last minute ticket reservations.
Tell them Randy Willis sent you and recommended that you ask about their low price guarantee.
I have several free Road to Hana Maui maps on these web pages that you can print and take with you to Maui.
If you want a traditional folded Maui map, I recommend purchasing the folded version of the Frankos Maui map ($6) to give you a good orientation of the Road to Hana.
What makes Frankos maps unique? Descriptions and tips are written right on the map.
So you don't have to read about a destination in a Maui book, then locate that destination on a map.
It's like you scribbled your own personal vacation notes all over your own personal map.
Franko also has a laminated Maui map (great to use as a placemat at home or during your Maui vacation), folded and laminated Maui dive and snorkel maps, and a 6"x9" laminated Maui fish ID card.
If you purchase the map in advance of your Maui vacation, you can spread the map out for some trip planning on the long flight to Maui.
So for a few bucks, you can get some Maui specific maps that focus on what you want to see as a vacationer, rather than a focus on advertisements.
You can just print this page and other pages on this site to build yourself a pretty good free Road to Hana Guide to take with you to Maui.
If you would prefer to have a more conventional printed book, or just want a lot more detail than is provided on these pages, try the Road to Hana category at my Maui Vacation Guides page. They include:
General Maui travel guide books such as Maui Revealed, by far the largest selling Maui guide book, that include Road to Hana maps and chapters.
Specialty books such as Hana Highway: Mile by Mile with Hana maps
Traditional Maui folded maps such as Frankos Maui Guide Map that highlight the Road to Hana
