A Year on Maui - How Maui Changes Through the Seasons

Maui doesn’t have the classic four seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall, but we have subtle, seasonal changes. Newcomers to Maui may miss the four seasons, but if they pay attention to the cycles of the island, they will notice changes during the year. The ancient Hawaiians were so observant that they developed a moon calendar based on the cycles of the moon during the year and the changes in nature that corresponded to each cycle.

Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall: Whales, Jacaranda, Mangos and Avocados

If you’ve been to Maui, please add suggestions! I’ve been writing for the A to Z Challenge the whole month, and my brain may finally have cracked.

Winter

• Time for big swells, what we call big waves, especially at Jaws, a renowned surfing spot.
• Whale season is in earnest! Lots of whales come to Maui to mate and give birth.
• It’s also high season for tourism! Lots of really pale-skinned people come to Maui to …mate (quite possibly) and give birth (maybe, 9 months later).

• During winter, Maui has lots of traffic, lots of whales, lots of whale festivals, and everything is more “busy.”
• Crab spiders start appearing in my yard. Eek!       
• Plumeria trees hibernate and lose their leaves.
• Weather is usually cooler and damper, but still sunny along the shore. It might even snow on top of Haleakala Crater! Whoo! Winter is considered “wet season” on Maui.
• December ushers in the holiday season followed by New Year’s. (Holidays can be tricky because family and friends may be on the mainland.)
• Winter is the busiest time for real estate, everyone wants to move during winter. Gee, I wonder why?

Spring

• Jacaranda season is here! Upcountry blooms in purple tree flowers called jacaranda.

• It’s still wet season so we have lush rains and sometimes flash floods.
• Tons of spring festivals like the Ag Fest, the Taro Festival,  the Haiku Flower Festival, Seabury Hall’s Craft Fair, and May Day celebrations. High schools have graduation ceremonies.
• Early mangoes and lilikoi (passionfruit) start appearing in farmers markets.
• Hurricane season begins in April – boo!
• Termites are beginning to swarm, looking for new places to chew – boo! I find wings everywhere!
• Paddlers start practicing for regatta season, competitive races.
• Sugar cane burning season begins in March – boo!
• Plumeria trees wake up and start flowering.
• Sea turtles start nesting and laying eggs.

Sea turtle almost ready to nest.

• Chickens start laying eggs and producing chicks. 
• Maui County Council wants public feedback on the County budget.

Summer

• Entering the hot, dry season.
• Families come to Maui to visit. Summer is a popular vacation time.
• We enter fully into mango season! Woo!
• Fourth of July Parade and Rodeo in Makawao.

  

  Mmmm... mangos!

• Many plants and flowers are blooming. For gardeners, plants grow even faster in the summer. Try keeping up with your yard work!
• Maui Film Festival in June.
• Early avocados show up in farmers markets.
• Regatta season for paddlers is in full gear.

Fall

• Avocados are fully in season – yay!
• Maui Fair in the fall!

Giant "summer pear" variety avocados at the Maui Fair.

• People are gearing up for Halloween in Lahaina.
• Entering the wet season, with cooler, rainier days.
• Fewer visitors on island, so Maui feels more peaceful and relaxed.
• Early whales begin to show up in October – yay!
• Hurricane season ends in November – yay!
• Sugar cane burning stops in late November – yay!
• Election season begins! People hold signs on the highway. 
• People start preparing for the holidays, but the weather doesn’t get really cold, so how to get into the "holiday spirit"?
• Figs start appearing at the Upcountry Farmers Market – yes, we have figs on Maui!
• Hawaiian New Year begins in mid November – “Makahiki season” a time to celebrate.
• Waves on the North Shore start getting bigger, so people look for Jaws to start “going off.”
• Sea turtle eggs hatch!
• Kukui and mango trees are flowering.

Whatever the season on Maui, something beautiful is happening.

(By the way, while I have your attention, two friends are running interesting projects:

The Aloha Project: Words, Music and Compassion

44 Children Are Filming Their Message From the Earth, the third friend met with success!)

Here's a shortcut to the archives for the A to Z Challenge and other blog posts.

The theme of this year’s A to Z Challenge is Living on Maui: A Beginner’s Survival Guide. While I can’t include everything in only 26 short blog posts, this is my foolish attempt.