Pihea Trail

We will be in Kaui in early August with our two kids ages 7 %26amp; 9 and definitely plan to spend some time in this beautiful looking park.

We are considering doing the Canyon Trail as well as the Pihea Trail.

I had a few questions about the Pihea Trail which I am hoping people can help with.

Are the views along the Pihea Trail different than the actual views we would see from the Pu%26#39;u O Kila Lookout?

How far along the Pihea Trail would be the ';minimum'; we would have to walk (distance and/or time-wise) before we reached some of the ';great'; views of the Kalalau Valley?

As we will likely have only one day to visit the park I am just trying to get a sense as to whether it is at all possible to do all, or parts, of both hikes. If not we will just chose one.

Pihea Trail

1) not much. You%26#39;re looking into the same valley.

2) zero. The view from Puu O Kila is great as is the earlier view point. You don%26#39;t gain much by hiking down the trail.

I did that trail to the junction that leads down to the swamp. My hiking partner had had enough of the mud and scrambling up and down by then (boo hoo). Honestly the view isn%26#39;t any better from down the trail IMO. If you want a truly awesome view, go down the Awaawapuhi or Nualolo trails instead. The later might be a bit much for smaller kids.

Pihea Trail

The views of the kalalau valley, from the viewpoints, both the kalalau , and the pu%26#39;u o kila are, indeed of the same valley.

However, we feel a bit different.

We have made many trips along the pihea trail, and it is only one mile, but you do not have to do all of that mile.

There ares some marvelous photo viewing areas along the trail itself..especially early in the walk.

In august, there should not be much mud, and we do not walk that trail in the winter and rainy months.

In fact, many of our trails are quite muddy, and slippery at that time.

Erica has pictures of the kalalau valley from both of the lookouts, as well as from the open views along the first part of the pihea ( pee-hay ) trail.

The photo, from all the different times and hikes up there , that she used, was from the pretty popular view from the trail itself. This is shown in guide books,and on post cards.

She had it enlarged and transferred to canvas, and it adorns our living room. Actually, pretty impactive.

However, if you are time constrained, you will still be able to get some great photos of that majestic valley, from either of the lookouts.

Especially, if you and the family have already hiked the halemanu road, to the canyon trail, to the small waterfall and back up.

Oh, the Awa Awa Puhi trail, Dave is correct, a bit demanding for the youngsters.

But, Erica has a photo from the vista, with a rainbow cutting an angle across the cliffs. And, it was sunny...honest no computer gimmicks.

So, no worries, just do what feels good for you and your family, and no matter what it is, it will be perfect.

Denny

I agree with the other folks, Pihea to me is really only great for hooking up with the Alaka`i Swamp trail to get to Kilohana lookout (which is phenomenal when it%26#39;s clear). Nualolo and/or Awa`awapuhi are definitely two of my favorites - Nualolo likely wins out for me because of Lolo Vista. I wouldn%26#39;t attempt the loop, that%26#39;d be very hard for your kids - and it might scare them on the cliff trail. In general I%26#39;d also agree that either of these two trails could be tough for the kids, but then again, that first part of ';steps'; along Pihea isn%26#39;t a walk in the park either coming back up it. I would say it%26#39;d be harder hiking UP Nualolo though than Awa`awapuhi - that%26#39;s just my opinion though. Only real benefit of walking along that first stretch of Pihea is you can see the fluted spires that exist in the southern portion of the valley - you cannot see them well from Pu`u o Kila lookout because of a ridge in the way, and they are pretty hard to see from the Kalalau Lookout too (unless you go into the brush at the right and sneak a peak).

We also hiked the Cliff trail last year and enjoyed it; it%26#39;d be a little easier than the Canyon trail for the kids.

Jumping to the other end of the road up on the northwest shore. I%26#39;m sure you%26#39;ve already got it on the list, but at least consider the first half mile of Kalalau trail as well. I think the kids would get a blast of the views of Na Pali, and that%26#39;s a much easier way to see Na Pali than Nualolo trail.

Best of luck,

John

If you all have links to your photos, I would love to see them.

My girlfriend was in the Kokee area last year and did a hike with beautiful vistas. You could see a huge beautiful waterfall in the distance. Now, I know there are lots of waterfalls in Kauai but would you have any idea which trail she might have been on? She, of course, can%26#39;t remember the name of the trail.

Only falls I can think of in Koke`e is Waipoo Falls in the Canyon. Unless I%26#39;m forgetting one - guys? So I%26#39;d assume it was one of the canyon trails. I don%26#39;t think it was Kukui Trail bc I don%26#39;t remember being able to see the falls. But on the Canyon trail, you can%26#39;t really see the falls either since you%26#39;re above them. I%26#39;m stumped on this one.

I have a %26#39;mixed bag%26#39; of trail photos/info you can see of my favorite trails here: hawaii-guide.com/index.php/…

In order of favorite to least (island wide):

Kalalau (Hanakapi`ai)

Nualolo

Awa`awapuhi

Nounou

Canyon Trail

Kuilau

Cliff Trail

%26#39;Blue Hole%26#39; - or to the diversion really

Pihea/Alaka`i

Kukui

I had never hiked Nounou or Kuilau until last year at the recommendation of the Denny and a few others here. I%26#39;m glad we finally hiked them - great trails.

Side question. Is there a official name to the trail that connects the Puuhinahina lookout with the parking lot that is just before the start to the Cliff/Canyon trails? I%26#39;ve noticed it pop up on a few maps, but most books/websites don%26#39;t even mention it yet.

Thanks for the very helpful replies (which have now raised a few more questions!):

- Regarding the Cliff Trail: Is this trail just a short .1 mile spur trail that one can acccess off of the Canyon Trail?

- Regarding the Canyon Trail: It seems that if we rent a 4WD vehicle we can save both us and our kids a fair part of the walk to the actual trailhead. Does it have to be 4WD or would a front wheel drive SUV type vehicle (which has slighly higher clearance than a standard car) do the job?

If we are able to start the hike at the actual trail head then how far and long (time-wise) is the hike the actual falls/swimming area? How easy or difficult is it?

- We had not really considered hiking the first half mile of Kalalau trail with our kids (7 %26amp;9) as I just thought I had read that it was very steep and strenuos - is that the case?

Thanks again.

We just did the trail to the lookout - we%26#39;re both over 50 in moderately good condition. Saw others with children. I don%26#39;t know if your kids are used to hiking - the safety aspect of being able to follow trail etiquette would be my concern. Do they follow directions well, not run on ahead, know the limits of narrow paths and loose rocks?. I see children in NH easily hike much more challenging terrain, but they are used to it.

We had a 4 wheel drive and drove to the trail head. There were an assortment of car types parked. I would think you would be O.K. with an SUV, but I would not like to damage a rental car. Driving to the trail head takes about 45 minutes off the hike and the scenery is not great on the road.

It is a moderate hike,,, There were all different ages on it. If your kids have hiked before and are comfortable hiking they should be O.K. It is a beautiful hike with some awesome canyon views. it is about an hour each way or a little less. I would think they would find it pretty cool to hike to the top of the falls that you will see from the view points on your drive up.

As for the Pihea no the view does not change a lot, but I still think it is worth it as the coast views are so spectaclar. My suggestion would be to try it for 15 or 20 minutes to see if you think it worthwhile.

Enjoy

';- We had not really considered hiking the first half mile of Kalalau trail with our kids (7 %26amp;9) as I just thought I had read that it was very steep and strenuos - is that the case?';

Here%26#39;s what I%26#39;ve noted on it previously; I%26#39;d highly recommend it - even though it is a bit of a rough climb at the start of the trail. I%26#39;ve seen several younger kids on it - but only when it was dry. If it%26#39;s been wet, I%26#39;d avoid it.

';As you begin the trail you%26#39;ll traverse through a lush jungle-like scene of pothos and other philodendron. The trail can be steep and rocky in places, but ultimately it%26#39;s the climb that%26#39;s the tough part. Use extreme caution in any wet portions (though it%26#39;s almost all wet along this stretch), and expect mud if it%26#39;s rained recently. After the first leg of the climb, at about half a mile, you emerge on a red dirt path that borders the cliffside overlooking the gorgeous Na Pali coastline. Beneath you to the right is Ke`e Beach below (near where you started). You%26#39;ve climbed to the highest point between Ke`e and Hanakapi`ai; about 500 feet above sea level. The short portion of the trail to this point can be a lot of work, but this is one of the most gorgeous views of the hike. If you can%26#39;t or don%26#39;t want to day-hike to Hanakapi`ai Beach, at least try to make it to this overlook (one mile round trip).';

If you think you can handle the full four mile round trip, consider trying to hike to Hanakapi`ai - the views along the way will not disappoint.