Hello-- my wife and I are planning on taking an extended vacation in Kauai this August and September and were planning on using the time to also train for Kona. I know Kauai had some bad floods last year. Anyone familiar with the area currently?
Also, how are roads near Waimea? Good for cycling? Comfortable shoulders, friendly drivers, paved roads? If so, any specific routes anyone recommends that familiar with the area
Appreciate your help!
PS- dont ask “why not train in Kona for Kona”…cause Kona sucks as an island as soon as you take IM out.
Do you mean Kauai? If so, then be prepared for some of the worst riding on the islands. There is literally one narrow road that goes most the way around the island, virtually no shoulder in a lot of places. And since that is the case, it is also a very busy road for locals, and all the tourists that travel there. You best bet is to go out to Poipu and then up the volcano, that would be the least busy I would guess. There is a nice loop towards Hanelai call the the Sleeping Giant loop. It gets you off the main road for a little while.
Best to do more running and OW swimming while there, those are great, easy, and safe. It is a great island for surfing and nature, training for Kona, not so much…
Hello-- my wife and I are planning on taking an extended vacation in Kauia this August and September and were planning on using the time to also train for Kona. I know Kauia had some bad floods last year. Anyone familiar with the area currently?
Also, how are roads near Waimea? Good for cycling? Comfortable shoulders, friendly drivers, paved roads? If so, any specific routes anyone recommends that familiar with the area
Appreciate your help!
PS- dont ask “why not train in Kona for Kona”…cause Kona sucks as an island as soon as you take IM out.
Do you mean Kauai? If so, then be prepared for some of the worst riding on the islands. There is literally one narrow road that goes most the way around the island, virtually no shoulder in a lot of places. And since that is the case, it is also a very busy road for locals, and all the tourists that travel there. You best bet is to go out to Poipu and then up the volcano, that would be the least busy I would guess. There is a nice loop towards Hanelai call the the Sleeping Giant loop. It gets you off the main road for a little while.
Best to do more running and OW swimming while there, those are great, easy, and safe. It is a great island for surfing and nature, training for Kona, not so much…
I’ve been to Kauai many times with my bike. The safest stretch is from Kalaheo on west - the shoulder is pretty wide all the way to the end of the road (the turnoff on the dirt road to Polihale). You can also ride up Waimea Canyon if you go from Kekaha (i.e., don’t take the earlier road in Waimea - there’s no shoulder on that one and a lot of blind rollers).
But yeah, swimming and running are way better ways to spend your time on Kauai. The powerlines run from above Wailua over to Princeville is fun as long as you have a ride waiting for you in Princeville to take you to Anini afterwards to get hosed down (the trail is often quite muddy).
That being said, the Epic5 day on Kauai has you going all the way from Hanalei to the road to Polihale, and people lived to tell the tale. Of course, each rider has a support van.
Just go to Maui. It’s the best of the islands to train on.
Ideally a road bike is better, but I’ve taken my TT to Maui and had a blast too. Might want to put on a compact crank or get a big granny gear… some nasty steeps on Maui.
I’d consider mtn bike for Kauai rather than road – make an adventure of your trip. Road bike on the west side possibly as someone else noted, but that would be about it. Don’t think I’d want to ride Waimea canyon unless it was closed to vehicle traffic. You could drive it first and decide for yourself…
I’ve been to Kauai three times - stayed in the Princeville area twice and in Poipu this past summer. Poipu and the roads around there would be much better for biking - it’s off the main road that goes mostly around the island. You could do lots of loops or out and backs to get some mileage in. There is also some cool running on cliff trails in Poipu that I’d recommend - really cool along the ocean with Nene birds and other birds.
Maui is one of my favorite places to bike. Haleakala is cool, but it is not the highlight of the island, in my opinion. West Maui loop is phenomenal. East Maui loop (whole thing including the nasty road section) is what you find when you look up “epic ride” (but you want big tires for sure).
BTW, I used to diss the big island after going for Kona, but i grew a new appreciation for it after going back. Here’s the deal, Maui is great for biking but bad for trail running. Kauai is amazing for trail running, but is a non starter for biking. Big island is the total package, some great rides, amazing trail runs, and interesting adventure swims.
PS- dont ask “why not train in Kona for Kona”…cause Kona sucks as an island as soon as you take IM out.
You be trippin’
Kona is not the name of the island.
Tons of bike route combos.
Base out of Waikaloa:
Waikaloa to Hawi to Kohala Ridge to Waimea back down to Waikaloa. or reverse
Waikaloa Road up to Saddle Road to Mauna Kea.
South towards Kona IM route.
Base out of Kona:
North on IM route with variations linked to previously mentioned.
South out of Kona Bypass Road down to Kealakekua Bay return on Belt Road.
South out of Kona as far as you want, return.
Base in South Kona:
North on the highway towards Kona town with options to drop down to Ho’okena or Kealakekua.
Head South down to wards the HOVE. South Point Road = amazing. Narrowest shoulders but not bad traffic.
Wrap around eastward and drop to sea level at Whitington Beach Park.
Park at Whittington and climb towards Volcano and climb to 4000’ over 30 miles, return.
Park at Whitington and climb to Pahala and return on the high road back to Punaluu Bakery in Na’alehu and dive bomb back to sea.
Base in Hilo:
Climb south up to Volcano and up Mauna Loa road. Climb Up saddle road from east side. Head north along coast.
I just listed several hundred miles of good roads, well most the roads on the island.
The roads in Kauai are too narrow for comfort for me, especially on the north side.
The West Maui loop, and especially the northwest-to-north part of it, is probably the most beautiful place I have ever ridden. Haleakala is an interesting challenge, and worth doing once, but you’ll miss the scenery because of the effort.
West Maui I could ride daily for the rest of my life.
West Maui I could ride daily for the rest of my life.
ive ridden a bit on all them except for Oahu
West Maui Loop was my favourite by far. It wasnt even close. And we stayed in Napili so I just went down to Wahiee and back every day. It was perfect.
The roads in Kauai are too narrow for comfort for me, especially on the north side.
The West Maui loop, and especially the northwest-to-north part of it, is probably the most beautiful place I have ever ridden. Haleakala is an interesting challenge, and worth doing once, but you’ll miss the scenery because of the effort.
West Maui I could ride daily for the rest of my life.
I agree about the west loop on Maui. A few years back, we were in Maui for two weeks. I rode that loop every other day (clockwise one day, and then counter clockwise another day). I never tired of it. Its got some steep climbing, and narrow roads, but the scenery is incredible and its just way too much fun