Zip trekking in Maui

Chillin' on the beach and snorkelling has occupied most of our time, but we decided to try something new this time round. Neither of us have ever been zip lining and we thought that scenic Maui would be a great place to give it a go. On a previous trip we tried booking, but couldn't find an available slot, so this time we booked earlier. After some research and relying on our trusty Maui Revealed guide book, we decided to book with Flyin' Hawaiian Zipline.  They have a bunch of great reviews on Tripadvisor and are rated number 1 in Maui Revealed, so that was enough of an endorsement for us.

Flyin' Hawaiian offers 8 zip lines ranging from 250 to 3600 feet in length and covers about 2.5 miles stretching from Waikapu to Ma'alaea. There is some hiking involved between zip lines, with all of it uphill hiking. Flyin' Hawaiian is located at the Maui Tropical Plantation and in addition to offering the zip line tour, they also provide restoration/conservation for several indigenous Hawaiian flowers and trees which are endangered. They only have 3 tours a day with 10 people maximum. This is one way in which they feel they are able to preserve the natural habitat. When the company first started, each tour group would plant a new tree or plant as part of the tour and now they have moved to watering these trees and plants as part of the tour.

The day started out with an ATV ride up the mountain into the scenic Waikapu Valley to the safety briefing and practice zip line. I was apprehensive at first, but quickly got over any fears after the practice run and was excited to "zip on" the rest of the lines. The views of Maui during the course of the tour are absolutely stunning. You get unparalleled views of both the North and South shores as well as the majestic Haleakala.

We had 3 guides with us, Jasmine, Matt, and Xavier who were fabulous and made the day a lot of fun. They were very easy going and also helped to dispel any fears or anxieties. Our guides informed us that Maui was experiencing one of its worst draughts in recent history. As our luck would have it, just as we arrived at line 1 and with no method of escape outside of riding all 8 lines it started to rain a little, and then a little more and then it just opened up on us and poured down till we were soaked through. This didn't stop us from having a blast and enjoying each and every line and the beauty surrounding us. The rain lasted through 4 lines and then stopped. With all the rain during our tour, we didn't need to water any of the trees and plants afterall. Our guides did a great job of educating us on the habitat and the importance of their conservation mission.

With each an every line I got more and more comfortable and by line 5 didn't feel that I had to hold onto the bar through the whole ride. In fact at this line our guides gave us the option to "freestyle" our ride and most of us decided to zip backwards. That was a pretty cool experience as I even managed to bend backwards so my head was upside down. The longest line was the last one at 3600 feet and was a thrilling 60 seconds. It was over much faster than I was ready for. Our guides told us that on some of the lines we'd reach speeds of about 55 miles/hour. FUN!!!

After the last zip line, we got to experience another very thrilling ride in an ATV down the mountain. Thankfully our driver was very experienced because at times it felt like we might drive off the side of the mountain, but I think he was doing that on purpose. This ATV ride was much better than any roller coaster I've ever been on! Z was surprised at how much fun I thought the ride was because I'm pretty chicken when it comes to roller coasters.

The whole experience was so much fun and well worth the money. And as an keepsake we got to keep our aluminum water bottles which they provided at the start of the day. I would highly recommend this particular zip company for anyone interested in zip lining and I would definitely do it again. The tour takes about 4 hours because the zip lines are single lines and with 10 guests and 3 guides, it takes time for everyone to get through them. But to be honest, it didn't feel like that amount of time went by. The time went by way too fast!! What an awesome experience and one of the best things I've ever done!