Road to Hana after diving

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txdiveman

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Is it safe to drive to Hana after scuba diving? Is the road to Hana considered "going to altitude?" I'm trying to figure out which days to dive and which to do non-diving activities
 
There was a thread this spring or summer to which I posted some altitude info, but it seems to have disappeared in one of the crashes. While Hana is at sea level, to get there you do go above 1000'. Somewhere around 1400' IIRC. So technically you go to altitude, although not all that high.

You don't get to that altitude immediately, particularly if you stop for lunch first, or hang out for a while watching the surfers and windsurfers at Ho'okipa; so in real life there isn't any problem about diving in the morning and driving to Hana that afternoon.

If you really, really want to calculate it, you can do so using the NOAA Ascent to Altitude tables and the USN dive table. You can check the altitude by using Google Earth. Check the area a few miles past the Ke'anae Peninsula to see what sort of altitudes are involved.

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It will be a long day if you are combining both a two tank trip and a drive to Hana and back in one day. There isn't really all that much in Hana. The real attraction is checking out the waterfalls in the rainy section, and picking a few spots to hike up alongside a creek in the rain forest, and just generally enjoying the view.

Often, when showing houseguests around, I'll just take them halfway or so and spend the extra time hiking.

It's worth the side trip to check out the rugged shoreline at Ke'anae Peninsula. The Bamboo Forest is another one of my favorites.

Charlie Allen
 
However, while we at Kona this summer, the folks at Jack's mentioned that one of their DM's got bent while making the drive. She had apparently done this as a commute for months, and the odds finally caught up with her.

No other details available.

Note that there are two roads to Hana, and one has a higher pass than the other.
 
However, while we at Kona this summer, the folks at Jack's mentioned that one of their DM's got bent while making the drive. She had apparently done this as a commute for months, and the odds finally caught up with her.

Are you sure you don't mean Hilo? Jack's is on the Big Island, as is Hilo (and the opposite side of the island from Kona).

Hana is on Maui. :)

Note that there are two roads to Hana, and one has a higher pass than the other.

2 roads to Hana????? must be a secret from us Hawaiianz,,,, unless you mean the dirt road that usually washes out

There *used to be* two roads, but since the earthquake, the one that goes around the south of Haleakala hasn't fully opened again, unless I've just missed the news.

Apparently, it's not that bad -- when there's no rock slides. :)
 
I've done the full loop around a couple of times. Just like the loop around West Maui, although some maps show it as dirt, it really isn't all that bad.

Due south of Haleakala there are maybe 5 or 10 miles of what looks to be "oiled" road. Not quite pavement, but not a dirt or gravel road. Quite a few potholes to dodge around, but not all that bad. No problem at all in a Honda Civic. Of course, that's not very relevant since the Oct 06 ?? earthquake that damaged a bridge and shut down the southern road to Hana.

It's a very different sort of landscape south of Haleakala --- very dry, little vegetation, wide open spaces.
 
The latest recommendations are based on going to elevations of 2,000 feet or higher after diving.
 
However, while we at Kona this summer, the folks at Jack's mentioned that one of their DM's got bent while making the drive. She had apparently done this as a commute for months, and the odds finally caught up with her.

No other details available.

Note that there are two roads to Hana, and one has a higher pass than the other.

Jack's has never had a DM that commuted (from Hilo or anywhere else). There was a diver (a man, not a woman) who went to Waimea after diving and experienced DCI symptoms. But that's it. He did end up in the chamber. So I always recommend being conservative with drives over 2,000 after diving.
 

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