This is not a beginner, first date, etc hike. The first 1/2 mile feels so much longer than it is because you're just climbing stairs, muddy hills, etc. after that, it keeps going up. All in, I got 2278 ft in elevation gains, most of which was in the first 1 1/2 miles. I saw one other group the whole way. Wear long pants. It gets scratchy. If you have walking sticks, bring them. Whatever water you usually bring for a 4 mile hike, double it. Otherwise, just be ready for a climb and some stunning views read more

Yikes! Well this hike was scary because I ran into a wild boar...okay I didnt run into it but I saw it and heard it from a distance, and had to sprint out of there. It's on a ridge line and beautiful, so I suggest just going with a friend and being aware (not listening to loud music or having a ton of people with you). Other than the wild boar sighting, I would totally do it again, just next time I would be a little more cautious! read more

Pretty awesome hike! Challenging, great cardio and rewarding views. We didn't make it all the way, but we had a nice time on the first hour in. The staircase to access it is a bit slippery and overgrown, so just take it slow until it opens up just past the house. The stair climb is probably the hardest part! Be sure to access it from 1801 Manaiki Place, not the address listed on the main Yelp listing. After that, there were a few places that we had to climb but it wasn't too difficult or scary, but I think it would be sketchy if it were raining or wet. Definitely not a kid friendly hike or a good hike to bring older dogs who are too big to carry. The views are fantastic. The sounds of roosters crowing from both sides of kalihi valley lend it a rustic soundtrack, but you know you're still in the city bc you can hear the cars on likelike highway. The scent of eucalyptus was really fragrant and welcoming as he made our way through the forest. Overall, it was a nice place to go explore, and I'll definitely go back to try to hike farther. read more

Very much enjoyed this trail today! We had planned to do the ice ponds but got rejected by security there. Kamanaiki was a backup but it sure was nice! The stairs at the beginning were a good cardio start up but not too difficult. Maybe 200 stairs? Then you'll pass the graffiti-covered water tank. Just keep going up. The views of Honolulu, the airport, and Kalihi valley are really nice the higher you go. I only went about 3/4 mile (30 minutes) up, then turned around and came back. I don't know how far this trail goes but next time I'll try to go to the end. It's shady most of the way. There are a few steep and slippery parts but I did okay with just my hiking shoes (not boots) and gloves. Boots would have been better for the slippery sections... read more

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This trail starts at the end of a Dead End residential street. The trailhead is the stairs next to the house at the head of the street, it looks like they're part of the residence but they aren't. I went in September 2018 and the start of the stairs was pretty treacherous in dry conditions, they are littered with leaves and forest debris. It clears up a bit further, which made the stairs easy. I believe they would be quite hard when wet though, there are little to no handholds. Above, some minor climbing is required. But the views are nice once you get up. read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Take the bus. Drops you off really close to the trailhead. There is a sign and chain that says the trail is closed. Walk around it to the left and climb about 165 steps plus some uphill grades. You get to a graffiti painted water tank. The the fun starts. read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - Overlooking airport area - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Hidden Gem!!! I don't understand why this trail is rarely talked about or explored. Views, ridges, an old water tower, guava and mango trees, and a waterfall! We started off with the intention of doing the ridge, but the waterfall called our names! If you decide to do the waterfall, be prepared with spikes, mosquito spray, lots of water, gloves and for lots of stream crossings and for a long climb back to the trail. It's only 3 miles round trip but my friends and I--all distant hikers with great stamina--kept swearing at the hill! Lol You may also want to bring extra ribbon; the trail is ribboned but there were a few times that we got turned around. Trek on Yelpers! read more

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Finally did this trail which literally in my neighborhood. It was hard to find at first. I followed the address provided in Yelp. Come to find out it was not the address the accurate address. The trail can be found in Manaiki Place, which I submitted a geotag in Google. I went up early and it was chilly for the most part. The stairs, is only at the beginning, and the rest are trail. There's a lot of marker along the trail so it's impossible to get lost. Houses are visible down the valley until you hike further up. I noticed the LikeLike Highway become also visible after a while and as I hike further up. I never had issue on bugs, mosquito nor fruit flies while hiking; so maybe it could be on the weather or time of that day. The trail is pretty much covered, so not much a worry for those who are avoiding to get tan or sunburn. I feel like I didn't finish the trail. I reached the place where the path ends and a boulder which was by the cliff. I chose not to continue as a I was hiking alone. It kinda looks scary and sketchy. I wish to see what's on the other side of those boulder someday, I'll just have to come back with someone. Highly recommended for a good and quick hike. read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Off the beaten path! This trail is quite hidden. It's unmarked, and the entrance is in a residential cup-de-sac. For details on how to find it, go here: http://www.explorationhawaii.com/2011/09/18/kamanaiki-ridge-trail-views-from-kalihi-valley/ Parking: Residential street parking only. Be kind to the residents, as these families have been here for decades. A resident gave me "what are you doing on my street?" look, so I kindly asked her if it was okay to park there. She asked where I was going, so I said, "Hiking." And, she gave me the go-ahead hand signal. (Don't leave valuables visible in car.) Hike ambiance: As a woman, I would never do this hike alone because it's so woodsy and secluded. But, with at least one buddy, it's pretty safe. With a group, it's great! You have to enter through a shrubby, over-grown narrow stairway so do wear BUG spray! After that, you walk through a well-kept path that runs through pine trees, eucalyptus trees, and all kinds of tropical shrubs. In the late summer, you can pick strawberry guava, which tastes like strawberry-pineapple goodness. There's a graffiti covered water tower which is fun to explore. Keep going to the tippy top and there's a great lookout point with wonderful views of Kalihi Valley. Bring water as it can get hot but a gentle breeze often rolls through the trees. Overall: I'd say this hike is almost as intense as Koko Head but a lot more shaded and nature-y! A great place to have a reflective, meditative, yet invigorating hike! I've seen rainbows on this hike 2 out of 4 times! Then, treat yourself for food at Kamehameha Shopping Center, Helena's, or Chinatown! read more

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I'm going to update this after I come back, but here are first impressions: There is no parking. Find it in the residential area then walk to the base of the stairs at 1801 manaiki pl. The hike begins and you think you are walking in to someone's yard, but you aren't. Make your way up, up, up the stairs. There are a lot but it's short. Within 10 min you'll get to the water tank. It's cool! Keep going up. We made the mistake at a fallen tree about a mile up of taking a well marked but sketchy trail down right. This was wrong. Lol. We found strawberry guava and mud. tons of mud. And no waterfall! So we climbed back up and got back on the trail and were rewarded with gorgeous views over the likelike. We got to a large rock at what seemed like the peak. The path continued down a bit at this point but it was raining and my friends were tired, so we turned around. If what people said was true and the trail was 3 mi round trip, we were close to the falls. I'll do this again because without the detour, it was moderate in intensity (Bc straight up) but "easy." read more

Hard to find, but if you're using Google Maps or any GPS look for these directions and then park near the Water Supply nearby. You'll walk up a steep road and these stairs that are next to a house. Parking can be difficult but there is parking on side streets nearby. Make sure you bring at least a bottle of water and bug spray, although the bugs weren't too bad. I recommend shoes, not flip flops. The trail can be steep at some areas and muddy at others (but not too muddy). We didn't see anyone when we hiked it on a Sunday afternoon and it took us about 2 hours round trip. However, we did not go all the way. Once we started going down the other side of the mountain we decided to turn back. The trail can get narrow at times, steep, and at least once you have to use all fours. There are a few nice views that only the eye can truly appreciate. (It's hard for cameras to capture the beauty, my photos won't do justice.) It's a physically demanding trail, but you can do it! read more

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Kamanaiki cardio!! I joined HTMC one fine morning to see this trail. It was a weekend and the battle of sleeping in almost won that day I'm so glad I got up and out early to see this with my own soul!!! So you begin headed up stairs and uphill for the majority of the start. PUSH IT!! Don't stop...move that okole and get up that ridge. I adore ridges and my home is Makakilo so I endure uphill workouts. I tell you...life changer The rest....I'm no spoiler alert....get up there and go see for your self Views....if you know your Pu'u (peaks) you should be able to see hind-side of Lanipo and your Valleys For me it was a humm I wonder what's over there? As I drive down the Likelike.....question answered Happy trails read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - go.explore.adore. - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This is for the ridge hike not the waterfall. I like that there were no other hikers on this hike. It reminds me of Waahila Ridge in difficulty and views. It is definitely an Intermediate hike. There is about 80% tree cover thankfully or it would be even more hotter. I drank almost 2L of water roundtrip. Spikes came in handy for most of the hike. Really nice views the entire time, good workout. Only downfall is lack of parking. Be careful not to park on concrete fronting houses. They look like steeet parking but you'll get note from homeowner on your windshield. Took 3.5 hrs total for 4.2 miles including short breaks read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Good hike, a lot longer than I expected. I hiked for over an hour and didn't see the waterfall. I unfortunately was on a time schedule, and would have loved to go farther. Beautiful trees, and views once you get to the top of the ridge. The trail can be over grown at some parts. You can tell not many people hike it. I have been told in that valley that are deer, and unfortunately pigs. So be alert. The stairs at the beginning sucked but it's good cardio. It does look like your going into someone's backyard, but the stair continue after the house. Kind-of hard to find parking. read more

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Did this hike today and OMG what a terrifying experience. Let me start from the beginning. To get here take likelike highway and take a right onto Nalanieha street. Then take a left onto Kalihi street and then a quick right onto Manaiki plaza. You will want to park somewhere in the neighborhood. So walk up Manaiki PI to the back where I believe the house address is 1801 Manaiki PI. You want to take the concrete stairs that look like they are leading up to the houses front porch but your instantly immersed in the forest. You walk up over 50 concrete stairs and soon you will reach a water tank covered in graffiti. You want to keep the water tank to your left and you'll see a trail going up. Continue to take the trail, which is well marked with pink ribbons throughout. You will come across many Christmas berry trees, guava bushes, iron wood trees, etc. as you get further to the end of the hike, the trail becomes narrow and you will have to climb a steep section, which can be quite muddy, but if you look to the left there is a rope for assistance. You reach the end when you get to a grassy flat wider area, sorry hard to describe, with views all around. So this part of the trail was actually enjoyable, but being adventurous and not yet fulfilled, I had decided to take the loop version of this hike instead of just doing the 'out and back' version, which is the route most people take. So at the end of the approx 2.5 mile hike to the top, I decided to take the trail on the right, also marked with ribbons which leads to the Kamanaiki stream. On this path you take a downward sloping path through a sea of uluhe- you may have actually seen this trail while hiking up- it was on the right hand side going up and it looks like a canal going down a small mountain. BUT the uluhe, which cushioned each step, quickly turned to mud and it left me no choice but to almost crawl down, especially since there were 50+ foot drops to my side. It had been raining during about 70% of the hike so I'm not sure if it's always this difficult but on this hike it was. After about 10 minutes I made it to the stream, which you have to cross. If you go slightly down to the right following the stream down, you will notice your standing on a waterfall. Unfortunately, you don't get to see the falls from below, or else I was just unable to find the path. So I continued to follow the pink ribbons, and follow them, and follow them some more for what seemed like forever- granted I was falling and crawling in mud for the vast majority of the time. Then, the ribbons just stopped, even though I stayed on the well defined trail. At this point it was getting late and I knew if I turned around I would still be on the trail well past sunset, so I decided to press my luck. I climbed under trees and fell a few times in the mud. I was starting to lose hope, but I knew if I continued to follow the stream down, I would eventually run into the neighborhood. Finally after 3 hours from the top of the hike, I came across someone's backyard, which I had to climb up a muddy hill to access. I was then able to walk a mile back to my starting location. I'm not sure if the hike to Kamanaiki stream is always this rough but quickly after starting the loop trail I regretted it. I could hear a few waterfalls and catch glimpses of them from the trail but I'd much rather be sitting under them relaxing than worrying about making it safely back to my starting point. Tips: Do the hike as an OUT AND BACK- meaning don't follow the trail to the stream!!!!!! Bring mosquito repellent read more

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Kalihi Valley has its share of hiking options. I found Kamanaiki Ridge trail while exploring Alejandro's authentic Mexican cuisine restaurant deep in Kalihi Valley on Oahu. Much ado about the beaten path, but often enough you'd find hidden gems galore. Thank you to the expert tips and information that were made in the yelp reviews from fellow yelpers before I started to attempt this hike. The location of the entrance and personal accounts of what to do and what not to do during this adventure. Never stop exploring. That's the catch phrase from Dean Karnazes, one of the most famed ultra distance runners of this generation had said. With that said, I ventured out to Kamanaiki Ridge trail one Saturday evening for a nice evening walk and hike. While there are trails that are runnable, trails in Hawaii tend to be very much hikes with varying degrees of difficulty. Some are really hikes and some, not so much. The location entrance location is at 1801 Manaiki Place in Kalihi valley. Off the beaten path for sure and you'd have to get up a series of concrete stairs on the side of the property before you set foot on the trail head itself. Watch yourself, your footing, and you should be alright. The overall experience was challenging and very much a great experience - being out there with the elements and nature. The trail itself is lush and is technical. The best part of hiking this trail is that the scenery is breathtaking in. Being that I was experiencing a new trail, I was hesitant to do this trail until I knew it was OK but then again what's life without risks. I jumped in and never look back, probably the best decision ever. I did love the fact that the trail was marked appropriately and I could easily get to and from the river without too much trouble. I would estimate that I can take at at least three hours if not more. Because it's in a residential neighborhood, parking is very limited because of this fact. The great thing about this trail is that it is absolutely 100% free. Yes sir free. Which is awesome and awesome and awesome!! Like most hikes, Bring your sense of adventure and some sunscreen. Also bring food and water, how much is dependent on how long you are willing to go. You wouldn't want to have some mosquito bites or whatever to ruin your day. My experience here was fun and informative for the future. Just stay on the beaten path on the trail, enjoy nature, and you should be all right. If you are afraid of visible heights, you shouldn't be there. If you are accident prone like me, take extra care and time while getting through the more challenging sections of the trail. Most important is to tell people where you are going and bring your cell phone in case. God forbid something were to happen to you while you're out there. For me, it was just getting out there to de stress and relax while being active. The scenery is amazing enough and to witness first hand is incredible. While I haven't posted photos to yelp of my experience, the photos already there tell the story of the lushness of Kalihi valley itself and the surrounding landscape. If you're looking for a good hike, not necessarily a beginner's hike, come look at this one. Quite a wonderful experience. 4 stars! Support local! B read more

I enjoyed this hike! I'm honestly just surprised that there are only 12 reviews so far for it. We parked on the side of the residential street right below the trail entrance. Like the other reviews have stated, you just need to go up the stone steps that appear to lead to someone's front porch, but do not actually. We clearly looked lost at first but a woman that lived in a house next door kindly came out to show us where to go. Weather was sunny and humid and it was about 1 in the afternoon. The very beginning of the hike was AWFUL because there was an enormous cloud of mosquitos that swarmed us. My sister got two bites on her face (LOL) and her husband literally had more than a dozen bites just on his legs. This happened in a matter of seconds. It was terrifying. We ran and ran until the swarm died out and almost ditched the hike entirely because the bugs were so intense, but I'm glad we stuck it out because we didn't have any mosquito encounters for the rest of it. There's a cool graffiti filled water tower with stairs you can climb to the top. There are lizards everywhere here! We saw two bright green day geckos and tons of anoles running around. There were also numerous tiger swallowtail butterflies on this hike. Much of the hike is pretty strenuous uphill climbing and my sister had to take a few breaks to catch her breath. I had no issue with it though. After what seemed to be about two miles of hiking we reached what appeared to be the summit of the ridge, though we could tell that you could continue along further (maybe that's how you get to the Kamanaiki Stream and waterfall that people are talking about??). The view up there was BEAUTIFUL! Well worth the hike up. ' Notable things that I really enjoyed about the hike: strawberry guavas everywhere near the top! I tried a bite of one and YUMMYYYY. Smells like a tart strawberry ^___^; wild orchids which are so, so beautiful; day geckos and lizards; small rock climbing portion; amazing views of the valley; sound of roosters crowing for much of the beginning of the hike; many other pretty wild flowers. I would go again just to find the waterfall and stream because that would make it that much better! read more

This trail would have been pretty awesome if I was fitter and had bug spray lol. Husband and I had to stop the hike very shortly in because of how many mosquitoes there were! In about 20 minutes both of us had 15+ bites. It started raining somewhat heavily as well as soon as we arrived so that didn't help because the stairs became a bit slippery. If you do this hike prepare to climb up many stairs and arm yourselves with spray so you don't get eaten alive. We will be back to do this hike in better weather, wearing bug spray, long sleeves and long pants for sure. read more

I'd say the beginning is the best part. The stairs at the start are quite charming, and you quickly get some views of Kalihi valley with the ocean behind it. There are some guava forests - though no guava were growing in July when I went. After a certain point, the hike stops having any new views, but it still remains pleasant. I did about 6 miles roundtrip. I wasn't sure where the ending point was supposed to be and eventually just turned around, which was a little anticlimatic. read more

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June 4, 2014. Be careful! Was about 1.6 miles into the hike and stumbled upon a massive bee hive along the trail that made us have to cut our hike short. So bummed! Other than that, up until that point, the hike was amazing. read more

The trail is pretty easy to follow. Their a lot of stairs to walk up so basically your walking upwards. It reminded me of "Koko Head" but theirs a lot shade. Only made it up to the water tower!! This hike is pretty easy for a beginner hiker like me. I would do this hike again.. And it's convenient if you live in the Kalihi area.. read more

Kamanaiki Ridge Trail - Pics of the water tower - Climbing Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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As others have said definitely a hidden gem. Have done this hike a few times, nice walk through the woods and perfect for my dog.

I love the way this hike opens kind of secretly in a residential neighborhood and you feel kind of strange about going up the stairs to get to the beginning of the hike, but it feels like a secret Garden and you go up and then you just keep going up the ridge and up the ridge. It's a decent work out and it's nice on a more wet day because it is such a dry location, but it does not have some of the views and winding, rambling aspects of some of the other hikes on the island. It's a pretty straightforward hike right up a Ridge. read more

Short hike to the water tank. Took less than 20 minutes. If you hike up the ridge after the water tank there is a trail to go to a waterfall. Its probably about 25 minutes after the water tank and the trail is marked on the right side with taggies. Only issue with this hike is parking. We parked on piliwai street. read more