Seeing whitecaps in the Maalaea Harbor is common. This is why it can be so incredibly windy in the Maalaea harbor and the south shore. This blast of wind ends up releasing in Maalaea then wrapping along the Kihei/Wailea coasts. As the winds on the north side of island blow, they will continue to hug the north shore, but these same winds will also be funneled between the West Maui Mountains and Haleakala. The West Maui Mountains splits the winds. Here is where the trade winds really come in to play. The most popular region for visitors is the leeward side, which consists of the south shore (Kihei/Wailea/Makena) and the west side (Lahaina, Kaanapali and Kapalua). But, being trapped between the West Maui Mountains and Haleakala, both towns feature warm temperatures while having less wind and higher humidity than the leeward side of the island. Because of it proximity to the mountains, Wailuku tends to be wetter than Kahului. Wailuku is the home of the government buildings and sits at the base of the West Maui Mountains. Central Maui is basically Kahului and Wailuku. When you land at the airport, you're in Central Maui. This creates a strong marine influence for these parts of Maui, but the other half of the island sees no effects. Finally, half the island is within 5 miles of the ocean.They tend to bring with them vog (volcano ash fog) from the Big Island and are generally less strong than the trade winds. The other winds on Maui, called Kona Winds, come from the south. We'll go deeper on this phenomenon later in the article. When they are blowing, they will wrap around the mountains, causing a jet stream-like action, increasing its force. The trade winds, arrive from the northeast for about 80% of the year. Another factor in the weather, also related to the mountains, are the winds.But the west side of the mountains (Lahaina) will receive around a foot of rain a year. For example, the east side of the West Maui Mountains will receive 400 inches of rain a year. These mountains keep rain locked on one side of the mountain.
Haleakala and the West Maui Mountains.The reason for the wild weather swings is due to a few factors: Maui is generally broken down into four regions, central, leeward, windward and upcountry. Why? Here's a quick guide to help you figure out Maui's wacky weather patterns.įirst, a quick primer. Less extreme is it can be pouring down rain near the airport, but 15 miles away at the same elevation in Kihei it can be blue skies and sunny. It can be snowing in one area (OK, the summit of Haleakala, specifically) and 85 and sunny on the beach. Depending on where you are on Maui, the weather conditions can be very different.