Food · West Maui Scenic Drive
A treehouse-style stand for soft banana bread on the coastal drive.
Overview
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The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
West Maui Scenic Drive Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for West Maui Scenic Drive. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the West Maui Scenic Drive audio tourRecorded for this place
Kahakuloa: Banana Bread and Shave Ice“You’re coming up on the snack stands in Kahakuloa village. Julia’s Best Banana Bread is the bright green, treehouse-style stand, and the soft, moist loaf is the reason to stop.”
Plays as you drive up to Julia’s Best Banana Bread in the Parkwolf West Maui Scenic Drive Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Julia’s Best Banana Bread is a small roadside bakery stand at mile marker 13 on Kahekili Highway in Kahakuloa. Its bright green, treehouse-style stall is a grab-and-go stop on the West Maui drive, known for a soft, moist banana bread. Come for a snack, not a sit-down meal.
The recipe came from a teacher whose banana bread Julia tasted at meetings. She asked for it, and it became the stand’s signature. That small origin story gives the stop more character than another roadside snack counter.
A friend built the current green stand sometime in the 1990s; the earlier setup had no roof. Its bright, treehouse-like shape is what makes the bakery easy to pick out along the road.
Beyond Nākālele Blowhole, Kahekili Highway winds along steep sea cliffs and has no guardrails in places. If narrow cliffside driving or motion sickness is a concern, decide whether to continue before you reach that stretch; this quick food stop isn’t worth pushing past your comfort.
Wildlife
152 sightingsHumpback WhaleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
71 sightingsHawaiian Monk SealMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
23 sightingsSpinner DolphinMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
401 sightingsGreen Sea TurtleMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
14 sightingsHawksbill Sea TurtleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
92 sightingsWedge-tailed ShearwaterMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across West Maui Scenic Drive. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyKahakuloa Head Trail0.1 mi · 10 min · 0.3 mi awayA tiny coastal walk, if ranch access is confirmed.
ModerateOlivine Pools Trail0.4 mi · 45 min · 1 mi awayA short lava scramble to tidepools on an exposed coast.
ModerateʻŌhai Loop Trail1.2 mi · 54 min · 2.3 mi awayA short coastal loop with a long look at Kahakuloa Head.
EasyʻŌhai Overlook Trail0.1 mi · 15 min · 2.3 mi awayA quick paved lookout over Maui’s rugged north coast.
ModerateMakamakaʻole Falls Trail (13 Crossings)2 mi · 2 hr · 2.7 mi awayA waterfall hike with bamboo, creek crossings, and two falls.
ChallengingWaiheʻe Ridge Trail4.3 mi · 3 hr · 3.1 mi awaySteep ridge climb with deep gorge views and a cloud-prone summit.
ModerateNakalele Blowhole Trail0.4 mi · 30 min · 3.4 mi awayA short rocky approach; watch the blowhole from uphill.ModerateAcid War Zone Trail1.3 mi · 1.5 hr · 3.8 mi awayA rough coastal path to a lighthouse beacon and blowhole.
Food · 0.1 mi awayLorraine’s Shave IceShave ice and banana bread make a sweet break in Kahakuloa.
Store · 0.2 mi awayKaren Lei’s Gallery at KahakuloaBrowse a broad art collection with Kahakuloa Bay below.
Sight · 0.4 mi awayKahakuloa HeadTwin green headlands meet the sea in a dramatic roadside view.
Sight · 1 mi awayOlivine PoolsA high-ground view of lava pools and surf; don’t go down.
Sight · 1.1 mi awayPōhaku Kani (Bellstone)A roadside bellstone with a story, if you can stop safely.Sight · 3.5 mi awayNākālele BlowholeWatch Pacific surf burst through lava from the dry roadside overlook.
Scenic pullout · 4.8 mi awayHonokōhau Bay LookoutA quick view of the curved bay and red-brown coastal cliffs.Parkwolf’s West Maui Scenic Drive ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
