Hiking Trails on Oahu

Palehua-Palikea – June 30, 2013 Today I was invited on a hike which is known to be the home of many endemic and endangered species. But the two endemic spieces we’d be looking for today are happy face spiders and Hawaiian Land snails. I live right down the hill from Palehua road. I’ve been there twice, both times without permission. But this time, I would be joining Nate as he would be helping us find some rare bugs. In addition, we would have enough time to search the preserve for what we needed to look for. Joining the crew today were some all-stars and experienced hikers a like. They were Marcus, Thomas, Jay, Kenji, Chenay, Janice, Thessa, Dave, DJ, Aaron, and Lynne. We met at the top of Makakilo at 7am, and car pooled over to Palehua. There, Nate led a blistering pace to the enclosed reserve. According to Nate, this reserve was built because of one rare snail. Nate told me that it took him 3 years to find this rare snail, but it is not on the endangered list, go figure. Its name is...

Kahana Ditch – June 23, 2013 If you’re a hiker who loves to hike to find things and not just enjoy a view or a waterfall, this is the hike for you. The infamous Waiahole Ditch starts in Kahana Valley, and that is where we were heading to today. The Waiahole Ditch! A manmade ditch/irrigation system that takes water from the windward side and brings it over to the leeward side for farmers to grow their crops. Apparently, this thing started in the early 1900s to grow sugar cane. The idea was to take water from the valleys of Waiahole, Waikane, and Kahana, use gravity to move it towards an area, then continue to use gravity and move it under the Ko’olaus to the leeward side. This unbelievable project cost over 2 million dollars to fund in 1916. I digress, the plan today was to start near the water tank, take a trail that led to Nakoa. From there, we would go onto Nakoa until a junction appeared. At the junction we would go up a ridge and contour the valley until we hit a tunnel. After the ...

Kipapa to Schofield-Waikane – June 14,15 2013 First of all, the initial plan was to get to Papali-Uka, but that didn’t happen. It is apparent that this route was for the grinders. Knowing what we know now, starting from Manana and getting to Papali would have been a three day thing or a two full day excursion. What we experienced was two 10+ hour hiking days and it was a hard 10+ hours for both days.  The plan today was to start on Manana drop into the valley towards Iliahi ridge, then drop into the valley towards Waiawa, and drop into the valley again towards Kipapa. From Kipapa, we would make the long hike up to the Ko’olau Summit, then to Waiahole Uka, crossover to Waikane, and then all the way to the Poamoho Cabin where we would set up camp. In the morning, we would make the long transverse to Papali Uka. The plan seemed ambitious, it was. But with ambition comes character building and gained experience which makes us into better hikers. To be a good hiker, you have to push the...

  Kipapa to Schofield-Waikane – June 14,15 2013 First of all, the initial plan was to get to Papali-Uka, but that didn’t happen. It is apparent that this route was for the grinders. Knowing what we know now, starting from Manana and getting to Papali would have been a three day thing or a two full day excursion. What we experienced was two 10+ hour hiking days and it was a hard 10+ hours for both days.  The plan today was to start on Manana drop into the valley towards Iliahi ridge, then drop into the valley towards Waiawa, and drop into the valley again towards Kipapa. From Kipapa, we would make the long hike up to the Ko’olau Summit, then to Waiahole Uka, crossover to Waikane, and then all the way to the Poamoho Cabin where we would set up camp. In the morning, we would make the long traverse to Papali Uka. The plan seemed ambitious, it was. But with ambition comes character building and gained experience which makes us into better hikers. To be a good hiker, you have to pus...

Waialae Nui to Lanipo – June 5, 2013 Last year I tried and failed. Then Dave F. posted a successful attempt of Waialae Nui, and then Laredo and Quyen did it. Then it appeared no one did it for near a year, until recently when Jay and Ras did it. Where am I going with this? Simple. Do Waialae Nui! The plan today was for me to go up Lanipo, crossover on the Ko’olau Summit Ridge to the Waialae Nui Terminus (like I did last year), bushwhack the living daylights out of Waialae Nui Ridge, find a side trail down to the gulch, and then go up a side trail to reconnect with Lanipo to create a big loop. I was worried about the bushwhacking, but Jay told me there is a swath I could follow. I asked others if they wanted to go, but in the end, I was solo. I’ve done Lanipo twice, both times solo. It’s the only trail I’ve done multiple times solo, besides the menial Aiea Loop trail. I dropped my kids off at school and headed towards Sierra Drive in the Waialae area. I went up Wilhelmina Rise towar...

Pu’u Hapapa – June 2, 2013 This summer I wanted to knock off 4 hikes, a) Wahiawa Hills b) Hapapa-Kanehoa c) Kipapa Leeward d) Waialae Nui. Today was Hapapa-Kanehoa. The plan was for us to go up Hapapa, go to Kanehoa, and drop down Kanehoa ridge through some farmland finishing up at Kunia Road. With my back being sore as hell, and Erik and Aprille coming down with a cold, it was apparent we wouldn’t be able to do the entire hike. We decided to just do Pu’u Hapapa. Getting to the trailhead of Pu’u Hapapa is a bitch. After meeting at Erik’s house, we drove to Schofield Barracks to check in. Getting on base is always a pain, but the guys who checked us in were really cool. Then I drove slowly on base towards Kolekole Pass. The MP’s are strict when it comes to the speed limit and would tag anyone going even a few miles over. We were worried about live fire, but today live fire exercises were not going on, so we were in the clear. I parked in an open lot. If you remember, to the right leads...