Pali Puka Hike

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 Pali Puka - December 4, 2011

I’ve heard that hiking up to Pali Puka was short. I also heard that it was dangerous. Sounds like an fun. I wasn’t sure whether or not to put this hike in the advanced or difficult category. This hike is not really on the difficult level, but it contradicts the description for the advanced category as well because the hike is so short. After carefully examining what I went through, I decided to put the Pali Puka hike in the advanced category as it is not dangerous enough to be considered a difficult hike.

I woke up super early and met Nate at the Pali Safeway. I left my car at Safeway and Nate drove us to the Pali lookout. We were the first ones there. The trailhead to Pali Puka starts near the bus parking lot or to the left of the lookout. As you look left you can see the vertical Pali that looks intimidating to say the least. The Puka is right before that vertical Pali. There is a concrete wall which is broken indicating the start of the trailhead.

The trail is all uphill. It becomes constant huffing and puffing. In about 15 minutes you hit what appears the crest of the ridge. On this part of the ridge is where the danger starts. The drop offs are vertical. If you fall to the right side, you will most likely be dead. The trail is about a foot and a half wide. The wind blows on the windswept ridge. The exposure is unbelievable. On the left side is a drop into Nuuanu Valley. If you fell down this side of the ridge, well you may survive, but will sustain some bad injuries.

As you hike, you will encounter this massive vertical wall. Little do you know, while standing admiring the massive vertical wall, your standing right on top of the puka. You have to climb down to a resting area to see the puka. The puka is one of the most used pictures for facebook profiles because it looks cool. I also remember on September 11, Marcus took his crew from Pali Puka to Lanihuli, which is insane. I know I wouldn’t have the balls to do it.

After the puka we headed back to the parking lot and gauged the Notches. The total puka hike time was 1 hour which included a break at the top. It took a little longer going downhill because of the steepness of the trail.

Pali Puka


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