The Three Kauai Hikes

Overall, my mission was accomplished. Set out to hike these three trails and no one got hurt. The two conditioning hikes (La Jolla Valley and Chumash Trail) were actually not enough. There should have been more of these. Lung capacity and upper body strength are essential when there is climbing involved. A good core and not too much overall weight would be helpful too. The gear I brought along worked out well, no changes needed there. GPS is handy, advance planning is a good thing. I chose to take pictures on the way back, not on the way in. That worked out ok. On some trails expect not to have any cell phone coverage at all. Be careful, if your unable to walk, you will be stuck until someone comes along, plus the time needed to either hobble to safety or to a clearing for a helicopter. Either of those could be miles away and not a good thing. Leave early so you have the rest of the day to enjoy. Be safe and don't take risks.

Hanakapiai Trail

This is both a well known and a very popular trail on Kauai. What made this appealing to me was, I had never done this and many others have. Distance wise it is close to 2 miles from trailhead to Hanakapiai Beach. The trail has and elevation change up to 800 feet, then gradually descends to sea level. That gradual climb can be tough at times, but with the clean blue ocean on the right makes the pain go away. The trail is in excellent condition and there were contract workers making improvements along the way. Doing an Internet search and choosing photo’s is a nice way to view the scenery. Expect these 2 miles to take just over an hour, expect mud and please don’t try to stay clean. I started up the trail at 6:15, the sun had not come up and it was dark. Nothing was open along the way so I had no coffee to start the morning. That was a bummer.

Along the trail to the beach, there were sections of big bees buzzing around and pollinating various flowers, smaller waterfall’s with streams flowing across the trail and lots of mud. Half way to the beach, it got light out. Since this is on the North Side of the island, I did not actually see the sunrise. That happens over on the east side. No worries though, having light was good. About 45 minutes later, the trail transitioned to a downward angle to the beach. Once at the bottom I surveyed the surroundings.

I chose to make a river crossing in the water and not hop from rock to rock in order to get to the other side. Once there, the shoes came off, wrung out the socks, rested for a few minutes, suited up and continued to Hanakapiai Waterfall. This took just over an hour to go these additional 2 miles as the going was muddy, water crossings, though the trail not as steep. Along the way, there are bamboo groves, kukui trees, guava trees and I believe breadfruit trees also ginger. Lots of vegetation. It dawned on me, why after a hard rain, kukui nuts are all over the beaches. Reason is they are washed down these rivers. The tree canopy is fairly thick so GPS was dropping in and out, unless I held it in a certain position. GPS came in handy on the way back.

Words can’t describe Hanakapiai Fall’s. I chose not to proceed into the danger area as was indicated by a sign. It mentioned that falling rocks can be dangerous. Since those falling rocks have the potential to drop from 1000 feet, it’s a no brainer. After taking some photo’s and resting, I started back. This was pretty uneventful, took several photo’s, enjoyed the sights. By this time, there were more people on the trail. Because I started out before dawn, I was actually the second person to reach the falls that day. Leaving early does have it’s advantages as I had the remainder of the day left, and it was about 11:30. Oh, by that time, there will be no more parking at Ke’e Beach.

Remember to reset the trip data before starting

The numbers barely visible on the top right say 25.2. That is in miles and is the trip odometer. Why does it say 25.2 miles. Well, I had not reset the trip computer prior to departure. So I'm afraid there is no accurate measurement on how far the Sleeping Giant hike was.

The books and trail guides say its about a 4 mile round trip. Had I reset the trip computer, we would know this for sure, right? Guess what, I can't recall if I had reset this for the Waipoo hike either.

Conclusion, make sure to reset trip computer before you start on a hike. By the way, for Waipoo, the books and trail guides say the round trip is no more that 4 miles. Based on how long Bill and I took, our distance was less. I'd estimate Waipoo is a 4 or just over a 4 mile round trip if you park off of Waimea Canyon drive and Halemanu road. In case your wondering why the photo has been taken this way, a geocache is there, hidden in the background.

Nounou Mountain also known as Sleeping Giant

Ok, that last blog entry of Waipoo Falls was way too long for a normal blog. I suppose there was history involved, it was the first of three hikes and finally, I did not want to make a wrong turn. Sleeping Giant hike was fairly extreme in terms of elevation gain. This elevation gain is similar to the Chumash Trail. Sleeping Giant made me work for each of the 1300 feet of him. My concern for this hike was actually finding the parking area near the trailhead. Preparation and committing the surface street route to memory was essential. I parked at 6:00 A.M. and started at 6:15. The trailhead is very close to a residential area so I was very quiet. With gear and GPS on, I started up the trail.

Internet sites describe other established trails that intersect into the trail heading up sleeping giant. This is what I did not study up on and to make matters worse, the tree canopy caused GPS to loose signal. You guessed it, I did not make the turn and continued along the base of the mountain. Although the scenery was interesting, I was not gaining elevation as much as I expected. After 15 minutes, I halted in a clearing allowing GPS to acquire. Checked the Internet printout and consulted the book. None of this gave me a clear answer, though the Internet printout showed there was a trail along the mountains base. I figured I was on it. So, turned around and made best speed back the way I came, only with eyes on every detail.

There it was, the fork in the trail along with a small sign fastened to a galvanized pole at shin level. I did recall seeing that the first time, though in my rush to keep going, glazed over it and plowed forward. This time, I followed the sign, which indeed led up the hill, all 1300 feet of it. Chumash Trail was equally difficult, only here I took the liberty to find a soft spot and lay down to water and rest. I did this several times. It was still early, the birds were out, cool winds blowing, and this is all under a canopy of very tall pine and other very green trees. Continuing on, there are many openings that frame Wailua, Kapaa , and the ocean with lush green nature. Once on the top, maybe 1200 feet or so, it kind of levels out for a bit, then takes a sharp rise to a pair of covered picnic tables. I rested here for a good 15 minutes and took in the scenery then was surprise by a lady busting through some bushes on her daily walk! She gave me directions to Sleeping Giant’s head, which was just another 20 minutes or so. One wrong set, and it’s a long way down. I proceeded to that actual summit, approximately 1300 feet and took in this unreal view of Lihue, Wailua, Kapaa, and the ocean. Took several photos and video. It was just unreal. Then started down. By the way, this last part was done on hands and knees, I loved every minute.

I checked the time at the picnic tables to see how long it takes to get down. Proceeding on the decent, I guess folks were up and about as there were several couples and groups of folks making the acent. Stopped to chat just a bit and I found out several of the people live “down the hill” and it was their daily stroll. Can you imagine that. On the way down I tried to absorb as much of the nature as possible. At the base, I checked the time. It took 20 minutes. An hour up, 20 minutes down.

Kalalau Lookout

No one goes to Kokee and does not go to Kalalau lookout. This is truly the top of the world.

Waipoo Fall's

The Waipoo Fall’s hike was the first one in a series of three planned hikes while I was on The Garden Island. This waterfall is generally seasonal, thought during the dry season, there is normally some water, however not the volume as during the rainy season. I would think during the height of the rainy season, it would be not safe to venture beyond a certain part of the trail.

Waipoo Falls has significant personal history with me. While in scouting, we hiked to this waterfall a few times during which it felt like it was miles and miles through the deep Hawaiian jungle, threading ourselves through endless miles of thick ginger and thorny berry bushes. In reality, it was most likely 50 yards or so.

In terms of preparation, there was a lot of time spent doing Internet research including mapping, blogs, and hiking sites. I really did not want to make a wrong turn and find myself going in circles. There was no time for that.

So, I picked up Bill, a childhood friend and fellow Boy Scout, who lives on Oahu, at the Lihue airport early Friday morning around 6:20. From there, we proceeded directly to Waimea Canyon. We stopped at Kaumakani Bakery to pick up some breakfast and coffee. This bakery has been around forever. It was fairly still early in the morning as there were many high school kids waiting for the school bus. Bill and I had our quick breakfast and coffee, then got back on the road to Waimea Canyon, Kokee. Proceeding up to the canyon, we stopped at Panini’s lookout for a quick look at the Waimea and Kekaha plains. Niihau is out there in the distance, pretty blue Pacific Ocean, early morning trade winds. We stopped at all of the lookouts along the way to take in the sights, sounds, smells, snap a photo or two, then arrived at the departure point, Halemanu Road.

We elected to drive down Halemanu Road. There is ample parking just off the Waimea Canyon road. By driving down Halemanu, it did help to save some time. It was about ½ mile down a slight inclined and bumpy dirt road. In the rainy season, that would not be advised. A half mile later, we got to a point where there was a sign pointing to the direction of the trailhead. We parked off the dirt road, geared up and started off down another dirt road toward the actual trailhead. It was clearly marked and fairly impossible to go in the wrong direction. Still, the advance preparation was not in vain.

Approximately ¼ mile from where the car was parked, the dirt road opens into a large clearing with additional signs pointing the way to the Canyon and the Black Pipe trail. This clearing also serves as a junction point where footpath access to a lookout is possible. That particular footpath is the end point. It actually starts at Pu’u HiniHina lookout. Starting the hike from here would not add that much to the overall distance, you would just start from a different location, maybe with more outstanding views. From this clearing point forward, we were on a well-maintained and clearly marked trail. So, we proceeded following the Canyon/Black Pipe trail. This was late August and with little rain, there was a small amount of dust kicked up by normal walking. The morning was turning into mid-morning. There are no flat areas, either we are climbing a slight to moderate grade or descending a slight to moderate grade. In either direction, the amount of climb or descend is not that far, not even 50 - 100 yards before it starts in the other direction.

Trails have many forks. The first fork on the Canyon/Black Pipe trail is actually straight ahead. Proceeding straight will lead you to a canyon lookout. Going to the left is the Black Pipe/Canyon trail. Now, I did mark the waterfall location in my GPS. It never or rarely showed its distance being over 500 yards, a par 5 from the longest point. The winding paths were sure to make the distance a bit further. So, we proceeded left and continued up a slight grade then down into a valley with lots of tree cover canopy and kept on going. Still the trail is in good shape. There is no sounds except nature. One of the landmarks along the way is a deep stream with steep sides. It is too far down to touch the stream. Because of the tree canopy and denseness of the forest, this whole time we are actually getting closer to the canyon, but you really can’t tell. The trail continues up the other side of this valley, then twists through and straightens out to another sign which reads, Black Pipe trail (left) or Canyon Trail (right). The GPS pointed in the direction in-between at 200 or so yards. At this point the preparation came in handy. We stopped and discussed which way we should go. I recalled printing out trail literature specific to Waipoo Falls. I took it out to review it. Sure enough, the literature said, go right along the Canyon Trail. Chalk one up for preparation. Incidentally, the word “falls” was also scratched in the sign as well. Guess we got pointed to the correct direction.

Proceeding right, it gets kind of steep in a downward direction. Its just a few minutes going forward before the dense forest and tree canopy opens up and there is a 270 degree view of Waimea Canyon. From this point, it is a simple, maybe a 10 minute walk on a wonderful red/orange ridge that is easily visible with Internet mapping software. Of course, going too close to the edge and slipping will result in (at least) a 2000 foot plunge below. After 10 minutes of incredible views, the trail to the waterfall is just ahead on the left. From that point and the floor of the waterfall is perhaps a 100 foot or so elevation change (down). Not much further. So we proceeded forward and downward. There you land at a fork, a junction to upper and lower Waipoo Falls. Time has done nothing to this area.

Words will not do the rest of this blog justice. Upper Waipoo falls had a decent amount of water coming down and into the pool. It was easy and safe navigating and climbing around the large rocks. Not too slippery or other dangerous areas. Lower Waipoo does have a danger area which is an 800 foot drop. So we were careful not to get too close. We just hung out there a bit, talked about scouting, made some phone calls, and enjoyed and absorbed this special view.

Chumash Trail, conditioning hike #2

Chumash Trail conditioning hike #2 was just that, a conditioning hike. I had done this before but never took it all the way to the legendary flagpole at the top of Mugu Peak. The elevation change is 1300 feet up a very steep and narrow trail. This hike gave me a good idea of my overall physical condition (poor?) and how well my gear load would work while in Hawaii. The elevation change pushed me quite a bit, the weight of the gear was a non-issue. I had to stop many times to catch my breath and rest. The gear worked well, several year old hiking boots held up, long sleeve shirt as cover from the sun and sticky bushes. Overall, it took just over an hour to go approximately 2 miles up a steep grade to 1300 feet. This was a good experience and is a great conditioning hike. At the top of Mugu Peak, there is a great 360 degree view of the ocean, Laguna Peak, La Jolla valley and the other mountains viewed south. I also got a geocache while up here at the flag pole. Two people came by running this trail, both up and down. Not me.

There is another thing which I hope to (re) learn while hiking, related to conditioning. An answer to the question, how far can I go? The Chumash Trail offers a 1300 foot elevation change which is not gradual. I did not plan to break up the elevation into any increments, just go until I’m tired, then rest. In the future, I don’t think that is the way to handle this. Plan for elevation, plan in rest.

La Jolla Valley, conditioning hike #1

This La Jolla Valley hike was in preparation for three planned hikes on Kauai. I needed to evaluate how well my gear would work, to include an evaluation of my physical conditioning and to answer the question am I bringing along too much (weight wise). This trail was chosen due to the close proximity, the gradual elevation change and there were a few geocaches along the way. Below is the sign at the trailhead. As you can see, distance wise, it does not look too tough. This was the first time I went on this particular trail.

This is a popular trail. Knowing how hot it can get in these canyons in early August, I chose to get going around 7:45 a.m. Once I got going, the gradual incline was not too bad and the physical part is was just enough so I could concentrate on my gear load (packup) situation, location of GPS unit, weight of the water, evaluation of my Nike hiking shoes (several years old but holding up). I wore a long sleeve cotton shirt to protect from the sun and bushes. From the above sign, (and not really knowing where I was going) I eventually ended up at the La Jolla walk-in camp. Turned around and came back.

What makes this trail, or can make it interesting is the seasonal waterfall. Since this is the dry season, there was no water. At this time, it was pretty much all dried up mossy stuff and a few various and random insects. From the placement of the rocks, when this is flowing, it could be a challenge to get across.

So, overall, the distance traveled was between 4 to 5 miles. That accounts for where I parked out on PCH, a wrong turn or two and not taking the most direct route to the walk-in camp.

How did the gear work out? I found that the 2 liters of water was enough, the weight of my gear load was a non-issue. I never felt weighted down. The long sleeve shirt worked ok, it offered protection from the sun and bushes. My Nike hiking shoes held up well, lots of grip, the tread pattern did not accumulate any noticeable amounts of debris.

The way I fastened the Garmin Venture GPS to a lanyard (on one end) then to a D-ring (on the other end), worked out well. It is long enough to drape over a shoulder, and undraped to be hand held while navigating or getting close to a cache. There was initial preparation as this trail was evaluated by using the Internet to view satellite imagery, topographic maps and other informational sources like blogs, state park information, and other personal web sites.

Conditioning hike #1 complete, gear checkout passes the hike test.

What I pack and why

Well, it is all about preparation. I have a Bugout Gear Brand of backpack. It can hold quite a bit of stuff. The shoulder straps are comfortable and there is also a waist belt that I have removed, but stowed inside of a pocket. For hiking, I’ve never filled this backpack completely. Each zippered pocket has a specific use. Its better that way, as it separates and organizes water, maps, GPS, car keys, etc. At first, the thought of having a backpack with so much spare room kind of bothered me, all the extra space. I had also considered getting a camelback type system with the extra pouches. After a year of daily use, I’m pleased with the Bugout product. Normally I will pack no less that 2 liters of water, bring a bag of good trail mix, granola type bars, several paper towels in a quart size Ziploc type bag, an extra Ziploc bag, Garmin GPS Venture (with any Geocaches or special points of interest pre-loaded), and if available a map, usually sourced from the internet. In the case of the Kauai hikes, I’ve packed “The ultimate Kauai Guidebook” because it has various maps and other information that has been very useful.

Hiking Introduction

I have not always been a hiker. I suppose my motivation for hiking is part the physical part, part GPS data collection and of course the feeling of reward once achieving a goal. The rewards are found on a hopefully well maintained trail, in the great outdoors, with all the sights and sounds that mother nature has to offer. Some positive team building experiences were while attending military NCO academies on a land navigation courses, finding waypoints using only a map, compass and pace count. So a good hike fills that need. In recent history, my longest hike has been an 8 mile round trip, and the shortest about 2 mile round trip. In both cases I’ve packed 2 liters of water. The shorter hike, 2 liters is too much, longer hike (8 miler RT) I ran out ½ to the end. Lesson learned, good thing I was at the end. Another liter will not add that much more weight.