Halawa Ridge Hike on Oahu

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 Halawa Ridge – August 14, 2011

*Halawa ridge is in disuse and the trialhead is on Board of Water Supply land. 

Fourteen miles felt so short. This hike is in the HTMC advanced category for sheer distance. But it only took less than 6 hours to complete. You know you’ve seen Halawa Ridge before. While driving on H3 to Kaneohe, it’s that long ridge to your right. Sure it looks overloaded with vegetation, but behind all that vegetation is a wide trail.

I hiked with the HTMC again. I met some hikers at Iolani Palace. The person providing the trailhead directions was John Hall. This guy is in his 80s and can still hike with the best of them. Directions to Halawa Ridge were unknown to me until John Hall gave his explanation. In Stuart Ball’s book, Halawa Ridge is a forbidden hike; maybe it intersects a private road or something.     

It took a little while to get to Iwaena Street in Halawa; I parked at the end of the road and met the club members. The trail initially starts along a fence and through some California grass. After the grass you have to cross a road a stream. Then it becomes a big time jaunt up the mountain to Halawa Ridge. Everyone was dying; going up the mountain was a huffer and puffer. After about 10 minutes of trying to gain the ridge, I finally got to the top. From this point forward, it was a long walk on the graded ridge all the way to Kaneohe.

On the way, I found myself alone walking on the right side of the mountain. Vegetation was covering the left side of the mountain, so a view of H3 was obscured. Eventually I caught up with a hiker, his name is Jay F. Yes, the president of the HTMC, Jay F. We talked mainly about how old everyone was in the club and the stamina they possess. After about 5 minutes, I left Jay and continued on the ridge. A little over an hour into the hike, the ridge crosses over to the left side. The trail also gets muddy. Views of H3 come into play. It was a wow moment. I took a nice panoramic picture of H3 and Halawa Ridge.

wide open trail

amazing clearing by the HTMC clearing crew

I walked on the left side of the ridge and got to the summit at the 2 hour and 45 minute mark. At the summit are incredible views of H3, Kaneohe and Kailua. I sat with a bunch of hikers and ate my lunch. After about 15 minutes, I was ready to go back. I walked at brisk pace on the way back. It was much easier. At about the 5 hour mark, I hit the junction where I had to go down the mountain. Going down took a while. The hill didn’t feel so steep coming up, but it was steep going down. Also, H3 was right there, so I had to stop and take a picture. The total hiking time was a little under 6 hours. My legs felt a little sore, but my spirit felt good. I went home and drank half a bottle of wine to relax, a little too relaxed, as I fell asleep. Good Night! 


view of H3

summit with HTMC

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