You can easily just keep going around the island and into Wailea. It's a very easy drive. There's a lot of misinformation out there about this stretch of roadway. Guidebooks and people will tell you it's dangerous, unpaved and rutted. I drove it a couple of months ago and it was very smooth and safe. About five miles of it is unpaved, but it's well graded. The roadway is not as narrow and not nearly as winding as the traditional road to Hana. There also aren't any of the one-lane bridges where you have to stop and wait for other cars. There are some bumps on the paved section, but not a big deal. A very nice aspect to it is that it's not congested like the other route is. You can easily be to Wailea in 2 hours form O'heo Gulch.

The one caveat I would make is to stop at the ranger station at O'heo Gulch and ask the road conditions (we were there after some extremely heavy rainfall, but it was still open to all vehicles a couple of days after the rains subsided). If they tell you it's open, it will save you a heck of a lot of time.