Day #11 - Above the clouds and under the weather...

Day #11 – Rain started our day and ended our day. Not a lot – just drizzles. But enough to remind you that even in a beautiful place like this there is bound to be a little rain. Plus I think all of us are starting to feel a bit weary and fighting off some sickness. For me it never left; for the others, well, I think some sniffles are going around.
It was a very low key morning – Craig fixed another bacon and egg breakfast and then he and his father headed out to find a hair salon for Doris; she now has an appt. tomorrow morning. While they were out they found an arts and crafts place and Craig finally found the turtle necklace he’d been looking for (do you call it a necklace if a man wears it?) He got me a matching one too. (I) Jeannie spent the morning reading and trying to contact my doctor back home. We missed each other but I did make my follow-up appt. for the Monday after we return and at this point, it can’t come soon enough. When you feel as lousy as I did today all you want is the comfort of your own home and bed, even if the temperature outside is freezing.
By mid-day we headed out for a dollar menu lunch at McDonalds and then we began the trek to Haleakala. This is the 10,000 foot mountain/dormant volcano on the island that is a must-see drive. Normally, folks go up to watch sunrise which is what we have done in the past, but that takes a lot more stamina than any of us have at this time so we opted for an afternoon visit. The weather is at least 30 degrees colder up there. And there were a lot of clouds on and around the mountain so the views from the top were not as spectacular as they could have been, but still, well worth the trip. It is quite something to literally be above the clouds! On our way up and back we spotted white ducks, a goat standing on top of his shed, multitudes of cattle wandering on the mountainside (some even crossed the road in front of us), and more hair-pin turns than you can count. Once we reached the summit we were at 10,023 feet. And trust me, you feel every bit of that height. The air is thin; the vegetation changes the further up you go so that by the time you reach the top, it looks more like what you imagine the surface of the moon to resemble than anything else. We enjoyed the trip but it was nice to get back down before sunset.
For dinner we made a Costco stop for replenishing and then a quick trip to the Wal-Mart and Krispy Kreme. Then the 45 minute drive back to the resort. I slept the whole way back. All are headed off to bed early as you can imagine.