Kuaokalā is a six mile loop that meanders along the wide, open ridges of the northern Wai‘anae Range. The climate, vegetation and scenery on this trail offer a unique contrast to the greener, wetter trails of the Ko‘olau Range. The views are grandiose and require little effort to obtain, making it an excellent hike for novice and intermediate hikers.
More photos on Flickr: Kuaokalā, 12/27/11
Kawainui is a short 5 mile trail that ends at the largest freshwater pool on O‘ahu. Public access is restricted since the road leading to the trailhead belongs to the military and starts in private agricultural land. To hike this trail, consider becoming a member of the Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club. These photos are from a club hike on October 22, 2011.
Note: although this is not a particularly dangerous trail, extreme care must be taken when hiking near the stream due to the possibility of flash flooding. The water levels in these photos do not represent normal stream flow. At one point along the trail, there was evidence of a flash flood reaching over five feet high in a relatively wide area.
More photos on Flickr: Kawainui, 10/02/11
Last month I had a Good Friday holiday, so my friend Elden and I decided to spend the day exploring Pu‘u Ōhulehule in Kahana Valley. We started hiking just after 8:00 am, and finished around 3:00 pm. The trail is only eight miles long; most of our time was spent ascending the ridge. The climb up Ōhulehule is for experienced hikers only, but it’s not as hard as some people make it out to be. Coming back down is a breeze compared to going up, though the steep angle makes it hard on the knees.
I read a lot about Ōhulehule before hiking it myself, and was able to get a feel for the trail by reading the reports that others have posted on the Internet. One website you should definitely check out is Kaleo Lancaster’s Island Trails blog. If you haven’t read about his hike up the southeastern ridge of Ōhulehule yet, go read it. Nuts, brah! Needless to say, the route we took going up the northwestern ridge is far less dangerous, and is the recommended approach for most hikers.
To get to the Ōhulehule trail, start by taking the Nakoa Loop in a clockwise direction by heading down the dirt/gravel road where the hunter’s check-in box is located. You’ll reach a small dam that you’ll need to cross. Walk atop the concrete section or wade through the upper part of the stream, but try to keep your shoes dry. After crossing the dam, head down the trail until the path splits, and take the left fork. It’s pretty obvious where the fork is, so don’t worry about not finding it.
Once you’re on the Ōhulehule trail you’ll need to cross three more streams, but you only need to take off your shoes for the first one. After the third stream crossing you’ll begin ascending the ridge proper, and the views start to open up. The upper half of the ridge is steep, but not difficult to climb. There are lots of ropes, roots and clumps of grass to grab onto on your way up. Exposure is minimal and the mountainside is covered with trees and shade, but for safety’s sake make sure you test all of your ropes and holds before committing yourself to them. Also, never let more than one person use a rope at a time.
When you’re close to the summit the ridge will widen and level off, but don’t expect any grand views from the peak—the entire upper section is surrounded by vegetation. Walk to the other side of the summit for a vista spanning Kahana Valley all the way down to Kaneohe. Lastly, be aware that there is a bee hive on the summit; try not to disturb it like we did…
Oh hai! This time, I put together a video using footage from my GoPro camera. Mahalo to Elden for filming most of the hike.
