Hiking Trails on Oahu

Pupukea to Laie – August 25, 2012   I was nervous about this hike, but knew we could complete it.   Recently a few crews have documented a trek from Pupukea to Laie. Chase, Cory, & crew did the hike in May and Kaleo and crew did the hike (to Malaekahana) in June of this year. Chase and crew did some trail markings and light clearing on their trek, making the going much easier for the rest of us.   This will also be 7D member Marvin’s final grinder hike to complete 96% of Ko’olau Summit (Pupukea to Makapuu), a feat well worth noting. After today, Marvin would just need to do the second leg of the Nuuanu Saddle (Notches to K1) and both sections of the Kalihi Saddle to complete the entire Ko’olau Summit.   Preparation for this hike was simple. Expect an overnighter. As the Ko’olau Summit rules go, any hike estimated to be over 8 hours will result in extra preparation. Preparation includes, a space blanket, tarp, bungi cords, flashlight, matches, extra clothes, two-w...

Nuuanu-Judd – August 19, 2012   About 11 years ago, Michelle and I tried Nuuanu-Judd from the Kalawahine trail or Pu'u Ohia trail. What ensued was an 11 hour ordeal. Our inexperience hurt us really bad. Everything that went wrong did. The result made us quit hiking all together.   Over the last 11 years, the events that unfolded on that day came in segments through thought and daydreaming over the years. I can’t remember the really specific details, but am able to recall some of the events. This is what I could remember.   In the summer of 2001, We started on Kalawahine and got to Pauoa Flats. From there we went onto the Nuuanu trail. We were hiking for a while now and weren’t use to long hikes. As we hiked on Nuuanu, there was a point near a clearing where Michelle wanted to turn around. But the hike back looked so far, that we decided to press on. We missed the critical switchback that would take us down Nuuanu, and ended up bushwhacking a trail on the ridge. Knowi...

Kaipapa’u Gulch – August 12, 2012 It was time to check off another hike of my checklist. Today I decided to join the HTMC on a hike which not too many people do. Talking with others in the hiking community only a small percentage of hikers had done Kaipapa’u Gulch.   Leading the hike today was Thea. She has a full resume of hiking and is a well respected member of the hiking community. I was also happy to see David and Nate and his cousins along with many other familiar faces.   Kaipapa’u starts on a private road, and then we entered the trail. The trail goes through a forest. The landscape looks manicured, however Thea pointed out that the water actually floods the area pushing away branches and debris. trailhead   Today the stream bed was dry as a bone. I was out of shape, not hiking for a while. One thing that helped was the minimal elevation change. After about 2 miles, we started going through the gulch. The trail went in and out. Kaipapa’u claims to be 8 miles, but ...

  Bowman to The Haiku Stairs  – July 27, 2012 T his hike was on the preferred list all summer, but we didn’t get to it. Finally at the end of my summer vacation, I finally had an opportunity to hike Bowman to Haiku. Previously, I’ve gotten to the top of the Haiku Stairs via two ways. One way was up the stairs. The second way was doing the Keahi a Kahoe loop. This would be the third and probably best way. There is also the more scary way  which is the Moanalua Saddle. The crew today was made up of Christian from 7D and Ferdinand (Andy). All of us haven’t done Bowman, but we did some research the previous night and all agreed to use our hiking instincts during the hike?! Christian and I parked near the Haiku Stairs trailhead, staged a car there, and drove over to Naai Street in Kalihi. There we met Andy and started walking towards the basketball court. To the left of the courts, there is an obvious trail going up to the crest of the ridge. The climb was stiff...

Mauna Lahilahi – July 13, 2012 I’ve seen this small little peak before. I’ve always wanted to try. After exploring the Upper and Lower Makua Cave, we went to hike Mauna Lahilahi. The road getting there is called Lahilahi Street and it is right by the Hawaiian Princess Hotel. I parked on the side of Lahilahi Street near some houses, we found a trail and started up the mountain. Lahilahi is a small peak at 224 feet of elevation according to my GPS. The hike up there was quick, 7 minutes to be exact. But the view is near world class. You get a great look at Makaha Valley. If you look below, the coast line is serene. To the right is a beautiful white sand beach also known as Lahilahi beach. small mountain, but steep drop Further progress can be made, however, you would have to go around or plow through thorny bushes on a narrow rocky ridge which would suck. After taking nice pictures, we made our way down. view of Lahilahi beach Christian & Marvin with 7D bag Marvin wearing gourd as ha...

Upper & Lower Makua Cave – July 13, 2012 I’ve known that there was a Makua Cave. You can see it from the road. However, ever since Nate Yuen’s posts a few months back, Oahu hikers now know that there is another cave further up the mountain. There is also a trail that goes up to the Upper Cave, but it is over loose rock and you must know how to scramble pretty well. Inviting me today was Christian and Marvin. They came to my house at 7 am and I drove us to Makaha. We got ready and started on the trail to the Upper Makua Cave. It took us about 20 minutes. We scrambled up the mountain, which was somewhat steep. There were two caves. The caves were pretty big, nothing spectacular though. But the view from the caves were spectacular. Christian thought the cave was bigger and didn’t think that these two caves were the ones. So we went more up the mountain negotiating this steep rock face. It was like Kawiwi because the rocks were really loose and the climb was steep. I took a wh...

  Ulupaina – July 12, 2012 Summer is almost over. I have a trip to Indiana next week, which means my hiking time will be cut short. It’s okay though, I get to go to Indiana. That’s not me being sarcastic either. Since I’ve been exploring the island so much, I’ve become intrigued about visiting other places outside of Oahu. Still wanting to accomplish Stuart Ball’s book, I looked for a hike I haven’t done yet – Ulupaina was one of them. Since I would most likely be hiking by myself, this hike fit the bill. Short and sweet. Danger level low. Perfect for a solo adventure. I did some research the night before, but emailed my hiking friend Daniel who has done the hike before. He gave me directions to the trailhead, which helped a lot. I dropped the kids off at summer fun and drove to the windward side of the island. I parked at McDonalds on E. Hui Iwa Street (like I always do when hiking in this area), walked on Kahekili Hwy., and then jaywalked across the street to the Valley of the Te...

Chinaman’s Hat – July 10, 2012 I always thought that it was difficult to get to Chinaman’s Hat. However, while hiking with my fellow hiker’s, it is apparent that people swim there all the time. I also found out that during low tide, you can actually walk there. In contrast, there are stories of many people dying at Chinaman’s Hat. A few months ago, a group of military men went out to have some fun at Chinaman’s Hat. Unfortunately the tide got too rough and a few drowned. In a different story, someone fell off the trail while trying to get to the top of Chinaman’s Hat and was badly injured. These conflicting stories got me thinking that going to Chinaman’s Hat was a crap shoot. I started to think about the risk. All I wanted to do was to hike to the top. I did my research, looking at articles online and asking people in the hiking community about advice. My plan of attack was to kayak there during low tide. This will decrease the odds of our kayak tipping over. I checked the tide report...

Ehukai Pillboxes – July 8, 2012 There are so many pillboxes on this island. Anywhere there is a hill near the coast line, there is a pillbox. The military wasn’t taking any chances during the war. They set pillboxes everywhere and anywhere on the island, on all the sides of the island. Today’s hike was up to the Ehukai Pillboxes. This trail was opened about a year ago after the state bought the land. The trail starts at Sunset Elementary and goes up a ridge to a lookout. At the lookout is the pillbox. It is said that there are three pillboxes on the trail, but today we only seen one. We had a super late start 11a because the kids woke up so late. It was hot today. The trail is shaded most of the way, but it was so hot that the sun must have penetrated through the trees. The kids were exhausted making their way up the hill. In addition, there are multiple trails leading in different directions. It led us astray, but my hiking instincts kicked in. On the first wrong turn we were heading ...