All posts tagged Crater

Diamond Head Crater: A Popular Oahu Tourist Attraction

by Coty on January 30, 2012 in Hikes with 4 Comments

The traditional Diamond Head Summit Trail, really, isn’t a hiker’s hike. The Diamond Head trail is easy and it’s short. For those reasons alone, it is probably the most popular tourist hike on the island of Oahu. Oh, and let’s not forget the famous views of Waikiki Beach that you are awarded with once you reach the summit of Diamond Head.

A curved panorma taken from the top of Diamond Head Crater. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Unlike 99% of the other hiking trails on Oahu, this one charges. I guess the state understands the popularity of this attraction. It’ll cost you $5 per car or $1 per person if you decide to walk into the park. From there, it should take you about 45 minutes or so to reach the top. If you’re an avid hiker – you could probably speed walk and reach the top in about 20 minutes. The only thing in your way will be the tourists. Expect a lot of tourists and a wide range of them on this trail. As I passed by the different tourists I could hear assorted mumblings regarding the difficulty of this trail, from it being “extremely tiring” to it be an “easy stroll in the park.”

Tons of Switchbacks. Note the paved trail and hand railings. Very safe. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Ryan experiencing a Titanic moment. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

If you’re out-of-shape then expect this to be a hike consisting of “extremely tiring” switchbacks with a long, steep, and endless set of stairs toward the end. If you’re moderately in shape, this hike will feel like a good novice hike. And if you’re an avid hiker, then, well, this won’t feel like much of a hike at all. If you’re an avid hiker, try running it to the top.

The view midway up Diamond Head Crater, before you hit the stairs. Do you see Ryan and Joel on the right? Photo by Coty Gonzales.

The terrain is actually quite mundane – it’s paved with safety railings. There’s no real danger involved unless, like me, you decide to hop over the railings to take a closer look at the ridge line and the various military bunkers. I’d however suggest that you stay within those railing boundaries as there are park personnel roaming the grounds.

A bunch of steps upward bound. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

There are two sets of steps when working your way up Diamond Head. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

The view from inside of the Diamond Head tunnel. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Most people will consider the most difficult portion of the hike to be the two sets of yellow steps toward the end of the hike. The first set consists of 76 steps, while the second set consists of 99 steps. There are lookout points with benches prior to each of these sets of stairs so feel free to take you time and enjoy the view. When you’re ready, take in one last deep breath and work your way up.

The last set of steps before reaching the summit of Diamond Head Crater. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

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Ka’au Crater Loop: Extending the 3 Waterfalls to a Summit Hike

by Marvin on January 25, 2012 in Hikes with 2 Comments

Ka’au crater in the background as the crew takes a break before summiting

Coty and Joel started the Ka’au Crater hike a few months ago but had to turn around after getting to the 3rd and final waterfall due to rain. I made my first visit to this crater the day after Christmas and was able to complete the loop with good weather on our side. This hike was set up in part by Quyen, and while the other members joining us were part of Oahu Hikers and Adventurers, this was not officially an OHA hike but rather a hike planned for just a small group.

The three waterfalls in Ka’au Crater. You will be climbing the third one

The directions to the crater can be obtained from the original post. When parking, make sure to not park in the area designated for temple visitors. Also use the entrance by the warning sign as mentioned in the original post rather than going up the road on the right as there may be a dog on patrol without a leash.

View from above the first 2 waterfalls

As you go down the rabbit hole (initial wet boulder section), continue on the obvious trail while crossing at least one stream on your way to the first waterfall. You will soon find the waterfall to your right as the trail junctions. Go right towards the fall and return to the junction and then go left as you will now climb using a rope towards the 2nd waterfall. At the second waterfall, go right as there will be a trail leading you higher into the crater.

Narrow path above waterfall 2 and steep and windy climb to the summit

As you climb the 2nd waterfall, you will soon find yourself crossing a narrow path right above the 2nd waterfall. Take care as you walk across and you can increase safety by climbing above the boulder rather than contouring it. Soon, you will be in front of the 3rd waterfall and will be able to climb head on. You will be crossing the stream a few times and there will be ropes at certain points. After nearing the top of the falls, you will find a junction with a couple ribbons. Go right to summit. When in doubt, choose a path that will lead you up.

Quyen, Pat and Jim resting under the sun

The initial climb out of the crater will be easy but will soon become steep at points and may be very windy as well. While it was dry when we went, the trail can become very muddy when it rains. Continue along the rim until you reach the summit and have a view of the windward side in front of you.

Quyen making her way on the east rim of the crater

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Koko Head Crater – Makai Side Rim Trail Descend

by Coty on August 20, 2011 in Hikes with 3 Comments

Now that we’ve done and completed the Koko Head Crater Stairs Trail on numerous occasions, it was time that we explored the crater rim. The stairs trail is a great and relatively safe cardio workout, however, the Koko Crater Rim Trail is perfect for those looking to get their adrenaline pumping while navigating narrow trails, and doing some rock climbing.

Now, there are a few ways that you can go about and tackle this trail. Most people will start from the bottom of the makai (toward the ocean) side / east side of the crater and then work their way up to the top lookout point of the crater. Both Kaleo Lancaster and Aloha From 808 navigated this route.

Our plan was to start with the typical ascend up the Koko Crater Stairs before sunrise, reach the top to see the sunrise over Hawaii Kai, descend down the makai side of the crater rim, ascend up the mauka side of the crater rim back to the lookout and then walk back down the crater stairs. We started going up the stairs at 5:15 am. Surprisingly, the moon and the city lights were enough for us to navigate up with the use of our flashlights. We reached the top of the stairs at 5:41 am. I’m pretty proud of the 26 minutes climb to the top – my record so far! When we reached the top of the lookout, the sun was just about working its way up – it was a beautiful sight.

A beautiful shot from the rim of Koko Head Crater. Photo by Marvin Chandra.

After enjoying the sunrise, we began our descent down the east crater rim. The trickiest part was definitely the start of the descent. The rock here is pretty loose and there are some real narrow sections (see video below) to the rim. Once you get past the first section going down, the trail get a bit easier.

As you walk down the rim, you’ll get some world class views of Sandy Beach (to the right) and inside the crater (to the left). If you look back you can see the locals and tourists staring down at you from the top of the lookout. The views are pretty cool.

Amazing shot with the sunrise in the back ground. Photo by Marvin Chandra.

As we navigated down the east trail, we noticed that the winds were getting a bit stronger and we noticed some ominous clouds over the mauka (towards the mountain) side of the rim. So we made the decision to finish off the makai rim trail and then call it a day. Now, there are two starting points when beginning the makai rim trail. One starts at the Koko Crater Botanical Garden located within the rim and the other starts at a natural arch. We terminated the makai trail via the botanical garden. I tried looking for the natural arch but couldn’t find it. Next time I’ll find it.

This was also the first time that I used my new GoPro HD Helmet HERO Camera. I used the headstrap mount and recorded the descent the down the east side of the rim. I thought about recording the initial ascent up the stairs trail but figured that the lack of light (pre-sunrise) would make the recording pretty worthless. Be sure to check out the video that I put together documenting our experience going down the crater rim.

Koko Head Crater Makai Side Rim Trail Tips:

  • My Vibram FiveFingers KSO Trek Sport’s worked very well on this particular hike.
  • If you decide to climb up the stairs first then be sure to bring water with you, the hike up can be quite strenuous.
  • There are a ton of dry plants, shrubbery, and cacti, so it’s a good idea to wear long pants on this hike.
  • You’ll do some light climbing and grabbing on to branches, shrubs and rock so a pair of gloves would be a good idea.
  • Review Marvin’s write up of the Koko Head Crater Stairs Trail.

Explorers: Marvin Chandra and Coty Gonzales.

Marvin worked his way into a little hole on the side of the rim. There was a huge dropoff here, so one slip and that would have been the end of Marvin. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Aloe arborescens (shrub aloe) found on Koko Crater Rim. Thanks for the tip Mark! Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Excellent view of the ocean and the path down the east side of the crater rim. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

 

Owling at Koko Head Crater Makai Rim. Photo by Marvin Chandra.

Marvin looking out at the distance. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Lion King wannabe. Photo by Marvin Chandra.

All fun hikes fulfill this criteria. Photo by Marvin Chandra.

Koko Crater

by Marvin on August 14, 2011 in Hikes with 14 Comments

Inside of Koko Crater

The back of Koko Head park on the East side of Oahu features Koko Crater, another one of the three craters on the island.  This one is of interest for people looking for great views of the East and South side of the island as well as a great workout. The above image shows one of the great views seen at the top of the crater, the crater houses a botanical garden that is very vibrant during the Spring season. But getting to the top is not an easy task. The most common way to reach the top is to take a long set of stairs. Although this is a safer method than climbing the ridge, it may be the most strenuous way to reach your goal.

1,048 steps to the top

An old railroad track is used to reach the top. No longer in use, many hikers everyday use this path to reach the top of the crater. Expect large crowds on the weekends as this is a popular trail for both locals and tourists. There are 1.048 steps to climb in total and you are essentially doing over 1,000 lunges on your way up. Stretching at the beginning and at the mid point is recommended. You also will not have any shade on the main trail and will be walking right under the sun if you start around 10 AM or later. The trail is not long but do bring a lot of water and sun screen if you feel the need. Steps are fairly shallow at the beginning but they become increasingly steeper as you get to the top.

Bridge portion of the trail

The midpoint of the trail features a short bridge section. Note that falling over the sides can be disastrous but falling through the rails is not likely. Take you time and use your hands if needed. There is also a trail on the side which you can use to go around the bridge.

At the end of the trail

You will see many people resting at this spot once you get to the end. Many of them will look completely wiped out. But don’t stop, a short climb will lead you to some amazing views of the island.

View from Koko Crater into Hawaii Kai

Hawaii Kai

Haunama Bay

South East of the island

 

Explorers:   Marvin Chandra (only Adventure Dude to complete the trail 4 consecutive times in one day)

 

All photos by Marvin Chandra.

Ka’au Crater Trail: Lots of Mud and Three Beautiful Waterfalls

by Coty on August 13, 2011 in Hikes with 5 Comments

Explorer Joel was the one that first told me about the Ka’au Crater Trail. With The Bowman to Haiku Stairs Trail on my mind (this was before we proceded with the Bowman to Haiku Trail), I wasn’t really interested in this hike. However, he sold me when he said that if we complete this hike then we would have completed all three of the volcanic craters on the island of Oahu. Cool – I was in.

Now, for the uninitiated, the other two volcanic craters on Oahu are Diamond Head (a tourist trap with a great view of Waikiki) and Koko Head Crater (a great place to get a good cardio workout – who needs an elliptical when you’ve got a crater to climb). Diamond Head is quite easy on the hiking scale (I could run up this trail if I wanted). Koko Head, on the other hand, is a bit more strenuous for those who do not regularly spend 30-45 minutes at a time traversing a set of 1,048 vertical steps. I’ve become quite adept to Koko Head – I did it a few times this past June for fun trying to cut my time up the crater down to a respectable 30 minutes. With that in mind, I gave no thought to Ka’au Crater – it would be another easy crater hike.

Man was I wrong.

Ka’au Crater is a different kind of beast. It’s muddy as hell and it’s wet as hell. It would be useful to wear a pair of waterproof shoes (I myself have a great pair of Merrell Chameleon 3 Ventilator GORE-TEX Hiking Shoes that work like a charm).

Directions To Ka’au Crater Trail: Getting to the Ka’au Crater Trail is pretty easy. Jump on the H1 east bound and then take the Koko Head Exit. Take a left Koko Head Avenue. Go straight through Koko Head Avenue for two blocks then turn left on Waialae Avenue. On Waialae Avenue you will make a right on 10th Avenue. Follow this road until you reach a fork in the road. Take the right fork onto Waiomao Road and follow until you reach the end of this road. Along the way you will have passed the Mu Ryang Sa Buddhist Temple and see the entry way to a private road. You then park on the dirt on the right side of the road (not on the private property). The Ka’au Crater Trail is considered a closed trail, entering this hike is considered trespassing since you do have to pass through private property in order to get to the trailhead. There are two ways to enter, the easiest is just to the left of where you parked. you will see a huge sign that says No Trespassing – that’s where the trail begins.

Kapu refers to the ancient Hawaiian code of conduct of laws and regulations. In this case, it means keep the fuck out. And it makes you want to go on the trail even more! Photo by Coty Gonzales.

Just to the side of the No Trespassing sign you will decent down to the Koko Head Trail. The start consists of large wet boulders – so be careful when going down. Fortunately, there’s a rope that you can use to help lower yourself down. Use the rope.

Once you reach the bottom, it will seem as if you’ve just been transported to some mythical land with elves – it’s pretty awesome. The trail is actually maintained quite well, with clear paths and ribbons to follow and guide you. From the start you will be following the Wai’oma’o Stream. Eventually, you will encounter a pipe. This pipe is maintained by the Board of Water Supply. The trail just got a whole lot easier because now all you need to do is follow the pipe and it will lead you to the first major waterfall of Ka’au Crater.

This is what you'll see when you start your journey through this lush trail. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

From memory, I believe it took us about 2 hours to get to the first waterfall. It’s a beautiful sight. From there you will climb rope up to the second waterfall which is not too far away – maybe about 10-15 minutes from the first waterfall. Enjoy the second waterfall because this is now where things will get a bit hairy. In order to get to the third waterfall you will need to climb up the left side of the second waterfall. You will see rope that you will need to climb. This ascent is again very wet so be careful. And if you thought that was tricky, you will then be forced to make a decision – traverse a dangerous portion near the top of the second waterfall of pass on seeing the third waterfall and the top of the crater. The dangerous portion that I speak of is a part of the trail in which you’re basically clinging to the side of the crater and stepping on exposed tree root – there is no trail here you just need to attempt to cross this portion. There is rope to assist but again, you’re clinging to the side of the mountain. If you fall, you will tumblr straight down the second waterfall – not fun at all.

View of the first waterfall. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

This is Joel enjoying the majestic first waterfall. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

We encountered this Hawaiian Frog at the first waterfall. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

This is the most dangerous part of the trail. The trail here is broken and so you'll need to cling to the side of the second waterfall to get to the other side. If you fall here then you will tumble straight down the second waterfall. Photo by Coty Gonzales.

If you made it pass the second waterfall – awesome! The third waterfall is not very far. Unfortunately for us, when we reached the third waterfall, Mother Nature decided to shower us with heavy rains. Bummer. Because of this, we weren’t able to climb up the third waterfall to the summit of Ka’au Crater. We’ll save that for another day and another post. Anyway, at this point, we were pretty worried. It had begun to rain heavily and so we would no have to do the two aforementioned tricky climbs now with the element of rain pouring down.

Fortunately for us, we made it out. When you’re faced with a tough situation you just need to push through, and that’s what we did. It took us a good 5 hours to finish this hike. I will again repeat that Ka’au Crater is a different beast when compared to the other two craters on Oahu. However, if you do decide to do this one, you will be treated with three amazing waterfalls and a very lush scenery. Would I do this hike again to reach the summit? Hell yes.

Ka’au Crater Trail Tips:

  • Wear waterproof shoes. I wore a solid pair of Merrell Chameleon 3 Ventilator GORE-TEX Hiking Shoes. With these shoes, as long as the water doesn’t reach the top of the shoe (where the sock is exposed), your feet will remain dry. Alternately, the other three hikers that we passed on this trail were all wearing Vibram Five Fingers.
  • For climbing the wet rocks I wish I had brought myself a pair of Tabi’s. These are shoes with grippy felt soles that work great when on wet rock. Hawaii fisherman love their tabi’s.
  • Hiking gloves are great for this hike, especially since wet rope will aid you in ascending slippery rocks.

For some other encounters, please check out Unreal Hawaii’s and Dayle Turner’s explorations of the Ka’au Crater Trail.

Explorers: Coty Gonzales and Joel Sabugo.

I was pretty pooped at the end. I blame all the mud! You can see the trailhead, it's to the left of my head. Photo by Joel Sabugo.