Kalalau Trail Kauai
Aug 24th, 2003, 04:12 PM
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Kalalau Trail Kauai
How hard is the Kalalau Trail Hike? The blue book says that the first two miles isn't bad, except all uphill on the first mile on the way back. How is it after the two miles, the second two miles to the waterfall????
Aug 24th, 2003, 05:45 PM
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Depends what kind of shape youre in. If your'e in decent physical condition, hiking to Hanakapiai beach isnt too bad. Hiking to the falls is a lot harder as your'e looking at a 8 mile round trip from kee.
Aug 25th, 2003, 04:54 AM
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Hey Tammi,
The 8-mile roundtrip hike to Hanakapi'ai Falls is really not that bad and is well worth it (IMHO). Yes, doing the extra four miles makes that uphill you read about feel a little steeper than if you had turned around at the Beach, but neither my wife nor myself are in the utmost physical condition and we didn't find it terrible at all.
The only thing that made it a little challenging was the mud....if it has rained recently the trail can be quite muddy. Would recommend hiking boots unless you don't mind your sneakers getting crapped up. A walking stick wouldn't be the worst thing either, but not necessary as we didn't have one.
The 1st two miles offers great views of the NaPali Coast. At the two mile marker, you'll have to cross a small stream....depending on water levels, may have to take off shoes and wade across (not bad). Right after you cross the stream, hang a left and start heading up through the forest.
The two miles to the falls really isn't any more difficult than the two miles to the Beach. In fact the hardest part for my wife and I was finding the beginning of the trail....not that clearly marked. It is mainly uphill but not that steep at all...and there are a few streams to manage by boulder hopping.
The Falls make the whole trip worth it as they are really beautiful and provide a great lunch spot. Four miles back to Ke'e beach for some great snorkeling make it a terrific day outing.
The 8-mile roundtrip hike to Hanakapi'ai Falls is really not that bad and is well worth it (IMHO). Yes, doing the extra four miles makes that uphill you read about feel a little steeper than if you had turned around at the Beach, but neither my wife nor myself are in the utmost physical condition and we didn't find it terrible at all.
The only thing that made it a little challenging was the mud....if it has rained recently the trail can be quite muddy. Would recommend hiking boots unless you don't mind your sneakers getting crapped up. A walking stick wouldn't be the worst thing either, but not necessary as we didn't have one.
The 1st two miles offers great views of the NaPali Coast. At the two mile marker, you'll have to cross a small stream....depending on water levels, may have to take off shoes and wade across (not bad). Right after you cross the stream, hang a left and start heading up through the forest.
The two miles to the falls really isn't any more difficult than the two miles to the Beach. In fact the hardest part for my wife and I was finding the beginning of the trail....not that clearly marked. It is mainly uphill but not that steep at all...and there are a few streams to manage by boulder hopping.
The Falls make the whole trip worth it as they are really beautiful and provide a great lunch spot. Four miles back to Ke'e beach for some great snorkeling make it a terrific day outing.
Aug 25th, 2003, 10:25 AM
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ditto on doug's response. the other option is to bring sandals like tevas for the river crossings. i switched back and forth as i needed it for my hike. it was pretty muddy in some areas.
there are some really cool flora on the hike to the falls too, like a big bamboo grove and lots of guava trees.
also make sure you bring lots of water and food, esp. if it's hot. it's a really beautiful hike.
there are some really cool flora on the hike to the falls too, like a big bamboo grove and lots of guava trees.
also make sure you bring lots of water and food, esp. if it's hot. it's a really beautiful hike.
Aug 27th, 2003, 03:10 PM
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Ack, please read this post I got off theknot.com. The second 2 miles sounds really scary 
Is this girl for real? And someone else said the first two miles takes two hours???
"Hmmm...I hiked this trail last year, and it was pretty rough, although I will admit that I hadn't been working out prior to our trip. This hike was one of the best and worst days of my life, to be honest. We hiked the 2 miles down to the Hanakapiai Beach (gorgeous, warm water but a little rough- lots of drownings, and there had even been one the week prior to our visit) and should have turned around to go back, but decided to take the side trail up to Hanakapiai Falls. I wouldn't recommend that for anyone who is not in really good shape- we ended up running out of water and sipping from the stream to avoid passing out. We also ended up in the hospital 2 days later with leptospirosis, a potentially deadly bacteria which you can get just from swimming in the water, let alone drinking it! But we made it to the Falls, and there were 2 guys there just leaving, so we had the place to ourselves, which was pretty incredible. The water is FREEZING up there and we saw a lot of rocks falling so if you go there, be careful!
The views from the first 2 miles of the trail are incredible, and there is a major sense of accomplishment in hiking up to the falls, but only you know your fitness level. It's wet and slippery, and you have to cross back and forth over the stream. I fell in twice, about up to my waist, and it was a little scary at times. The first 2 miles of the trail are very well maintained, but to the falls is not as much, so it's a little tiring at times.
I'm not trying to scare you away by any means- my sister hiked the entire 11-mile trail when she lived on Kauai, and I know if she can do it, anyone can! It is definitely rewarding, and I would do it again if I were better prepared. However, I was back there a few months ago, and decided to skip it
I wore trail runners, but there were a lot of people on the trail with Tevas. I don't think serious hiking boots would be necessary. I actually ended up throwing my shoes away, because they were so wet and muddy that I couldn't get the smell out of them when I returned!"
Is this girl for real? And someone else said the first two miles takes two hours???"Hmmm...I hiked this trail last year, and it was pretty rough, although I will admit that I hadn't been working out prior to our trip. This hike was one of the best and worst days of my life, to be honest. We hiked the 2 miles down to the Hanakapiai Beach (gorgeous, warm water but a little rough- lots of drownings, and there had even been one the week prior to our visit) and should have turned around to go back, but decided to take the side trail up to Hanakapiai Falls. I wouldn't recommend that for anyone who is not in really good shape- we ended up running out of water and sipping from the stream to avoid passing out. We also ended up in the hospital 2 days later with leptospirosis, a potentially deadly bacteria which you can get just from swimming in the water, let alone drinking it! But we made it to the Falls, and there were 2 guys there just leaving, so we had the place to ourselves, which was pretty incredible. The water is FREEZING up there and we saw a lot of rocks falling so if you go there, be careful!
The views from the first 2 miles of the trail are incredible, and there is a major sense of accomplishment in hiking up to the falls, but only you know your fitness level. It's wet and slippery, and you have to cross back and forth over the stream. I fell in twice, about up to my waist, and it was a little scary at times. The first 2 miles of the trail are very well maintained, but to the falls is not as much, so it's a little tiring at times.
I'm not trying to scare you away by any means- my sister hiked the entire 11-mile trail when she lived on Kauai, and I know if she can do it, anyone can! It is definitely rewarding, and I would do it again if I were better prepared. However, I was back there a few months ago, and decided to skip it
I wore trail runners, but there were a lot of people on the trail with Tevas. I don't think serious hiking boots would be necessary. I actually ended up throwing my shoes away, because they were so wet and muddy that I couldn't get the smell out of them when I returned!"
Aug 27th, 2003, 03:40 PM
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Tammi,
Some of what she said is accurate:
- "The first 2 miles of the trail are very well maintained, but to the falls is not as much"
- "The water is FREEZING up there"; my wife and I actually didn't swim in it because of the temperature
- "It's wet and slippery, and you have to cross back and forth over the stream."
- yes, running out of water is not a good thing; make sure you bring enough
But on the other hand:
- does the fact that it isn't as clearly marked make it more tiring; I didn't find the 2nd two miles to the Falls was any more tiring than the first 2 to the Beach
- the water may have been cold but the temperature will vary based on the time of year you go; I was (and the girl may have been)there in the winter where the water is probably colder than if you go in the summer
- while it's a little slippery and wet in spots while crossing the stream, if you're careful you won't have any problems; my wife & I did most of the trip with two other couples and no one fell
- we didn't see any rocks falling; doesn't mean there aren't falling rocks, just that when we were there, there weren't any
- and with regards to the drinking water issue, for god sakes, don't drink the untreated stream water; you think that may be why she ended up in the hospital
Tammi, what it boils down to is that she had a bad experience. I could be wrong, but I'd be willing to bet that there are many more people out there with good experiences hiking up to the Falls and would recommend it than those who had bad experiences. I wouldn't let one person's bad time ruin what I think could be a great excursion for you.
Some of what she said is accurate:
- "The first 2 miles of the trail are very well maintained, but to the falls is not as much"
- "The water is FREEZING up there"; my wife and I actually didn't swim in it because of the temperature
- "It's wet and slippery, and you have to cross back and forth over the stream."
- yes, running out of water is not a good thing; make sure you bring enough
But on the other hand:
- does the fact that it isn't as clearly marked make it more tiring; I didn't find the 2nd two miles to the Falls was any more tiring than the first 2 to the Beach
- the water may have been cold but the temperature will vary based on the time of year you go; I was (and the girl may have been)there in the winter where the water is probably colder than if you go in the summer
- while it's a little slippery and wet in spots while crossing the stream, if you're careful you won't have any problems; my wife & I did most of the trip with two other couples and no one fell
- we didn't see any rocks falling; doesn't mean there aren't falling rocks, just that when we were there, there weren't any
- and with regards to the drinking water issue, for god sakes, don't drink the untreated stream water; you think that may be why she ended up in the hospital
Tammi, what it boils down to is that she had a bad experience. I could be wrong, but I'd be willing to bet that there are many more people out there with good experiences hiking up to the Falls and would recommend it than those who had bad experiences. I wouldn't let one person's bad time ruin what I think could be a great excursion for you.
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SammyCat
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Oct 1st, 2003 07:24 AM
