Few trees are as spectacular as the Lahaina Banyan tree! If you are headed to the island of Maui, please visit this unbelievably complex natural wonder at the corner of Front Street and Canal Street!
During the early to mid 1800s Lahaina was the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii. The town was a popular place for ships to anchor, so that supplies could be replenished. Needless to say, sailors enjoyed getting off the ships after months at sea. Once on land, they would go out for drinks and meet the local ladies. The arrival of missionaries put an end to Lahaina’s wild side!
I did get a taste of the “wild side” though! I had patiently waited for a parking space and when I pulled in, some not-so-friendly local couple had a major tantrum right there! They pulled up behind me, and gave me the middle finger!! Thanks a lot! It was my spot, and I never cut people off in any driving situation. Then they pulled around the front, rolled down the window and yelled at me at the top of their lungs! And it was not a friendly Aloha Greeting! That definitely put a damper on our afternoon.
In 1873, Sheriff William Owen Smith planted a 8 foot (2.4 m) tall Indian Banyan tree to memorialize the 50th anniversary of the first American Protestant Mission in Lahaina. The tree was a gift from missionaries in India. It since has grown to over 60 feet tall and covers just about 0.66 acres (0.27 ha), an entire city block.
Strolling around beneath this massive canopy of rustling leaves, dangling arial roots and gnarly branches and tree trunks always makes me pause, and feel very small!
Unfortunately, this magnificent natural monument has been stressed from too much foot traffic, a serious draught and all the carved graffiti in the tree trunks. Sprinklers have been installed to help with the water shortage, but hopefully humans can step more gently and resist carving their initials into the tree. It would be a shame to see this tree die!
Hopefully you’re running on “island time” by now! Go get yourself an ice cream cone across the street, at the local ice cream store and take it to the Banyan Tree Park. Relax in the shade on one of the many benches and enjoy your treat, people watching, and cute little zebra doves looking for a morsel to eat. That’s what I call a good time!
The Banyan tree got its name from the Portuguese people. In the Gujarati language, “Banias” means grocer or merchant. The Portugese associated these trees with the Indian merchants, who were selling their wares under these trees.
One last thought! Did you know that the Banyan tree is related to the fig tree and that new trunks grow when the arial roots reach the ground and begin to root. How cool is that!
in cahoots with muddy boots 
How interesting! I would love to see one of these magnificent trees in person one day. Thanks for sharing.
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You are welcome! And thank you for stopping by! 🙂
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Beautiful, I have never understood why people want to carve into trees. Leave them be. Such a vicious thing to do.
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Same here! Trees are living things!
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We went there, too! 🙂 It looks magical in your photos. Funny you had a bad experience in Lahaina with road rage – I, too, have an unfortunate memory from there. We saw a man die, and that’s all I think about when I think of Lahaina now.
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I guess this goes to show that not even paradise is always perfect! Sorry to hear you had an unfortunate incident there as well.
It was surprising to me how things there have changed. Much busier, parking in some locations was impossible if you don’t want to get towed, and the service in many businesses lacking.
Life for average locals looks hard to me, and very expensive!
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What an amazing tree! I certainly hope they are able to preserve it. I think I could sit under it all day long.
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Early in the morning and early evening lots of noisy birds congregate in the canopy and on weekends they often hold markets there. It’s quite peaceful!
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I’d spend a lot of time, whiling away the hours.
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😎👍
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What a fantastic tree. It would be sad if they managed to destroy that wonderful tree. Funny how there are idiots everywhere. I hate when people can’t just be gracious. Great photos.
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Thanks Marlene! One can only hope that the tree lives on. I’ve never understood why people carve their initials or whatever else into living trees! How a bout a picnic bench?!
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Morons!
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Indeed!
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We have been under the same tree in 2010!! Such a cool tree. I still remember my girls running around it with their ice cream 😉
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We were there in 2010 as well! I wonder if we crossed paths?! 😀
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November 2010?
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We were there in May!
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