Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
www.pilianikopefarm.com
)
is a boutique coffee operation that offers tours and a
rustic tasting room.
If you're a coffee aficionado, stop in at either of these farms for more info on the
industry and a sip of black elixir. Better yet, buy some beans to take home with you.
Pioneer Mill Smokestack
Set at the bottom of Lahainaluna Road, this lonely site once housed an enormous sugar
mill that employed tens of thousands of island workers over the course of a 139-year span.
All that remains of the legendary mill now, however, is this 200-foot concrete smokestack
which was once the island's tallest structure. During the plantation era, over 40 planta-
tion camps were scattered from Olowalu to Kapalua, and the hills constantly rumbled with
the sound of rocks being moved, cane being hauled, or the crackle of cane fires illumin-
ated the sky. With the closure of the mill in 1999, however, the aging structure was torn
down and the smokestack was in dire need of repairs. Not wanting to lose an island land-
mark (for years also a navigational marker for sailors), the Lahaina Restoration Foundation
made it its mission to restore the site and protect the historic icon. Information placards
are scattered about the site, and those interested in helping protect the smokestack can par-
ticipate in the “buy a brick” program to raise funds for additional renovations. Engraved,
personalized bricks start at $125. For more information you can contact the Lahaina Res-
toration Foundation office at 808/661-3262.
While visiting the smokestack, also stop in at the
MauiGrown Coffee
(277 Lahain-
aluna Rd., 808/661-2728,
www.mauigrowncoffee.com
,
6:30am-5pm Mon.-Sat.) store for
a bag of Ka'anapali coffee and an explanation on how 350 acres of former sugar land have
given rise to a new chapter of West Side agriculture.
Sugar Cane Train
The historic
Sugar Cane Train
(975 Limahana Pl., 808/661-0080,
www.sugarcanetrain.com
,
$23 adults, $16 children) continues to be the island's only train
ride and as such remains a novelty. It's a misnomer, since there hasn't been any sugar-
cane since Pioneer Mill shuttered its operations in 1999, and the six-mile route now wraps
its way through residential backyards and industrial construction sites. Nevertheless, the
old-fashioned trestle is still the highlight of the trip and provides a few views looking
out toward the water. The train ride is popular with young children and those with a love
for trains, and the narration provides a decent history about the plantation era of Lahaina.
