This hike going clockwise from the start is great because you begin with some moderate uphills but…read morenothing too wild, and then you end with some downhills over aerial roots while the people going counter-clockwise are just starting to scramble up those roots. There are some beautiful sections with huge ferns. The trail is often very quiet and you hear lots of birdsong. I do recommend hiking shoes and maybe even a walking stick (I got plenty of use out of my mine to get over some of the rocks and roots). A little over 3 miles so you feel like you got a good hike in, but it's not too crazy.

I really love this trail. It's quite easy with enough kick to make you feel like you've had full…read morehike. There are small streams, bird wildlife, and waterfalls that makes this feel a little bit like a botanical garden. Parking can get packed during the weekends so come early.

This is not for the faint of heart. First peak is an hour and a half of serious cardio. Rope…read moresections and rapid, steep elevation. Pic is from second peak. Don't forget to bring enough water and snacks.

Tl:dr: the most technically challenging hike on the island, takes 5-6 hours round trip including…read morestops on each of the 3 peaks to take pictures, rest etc. People talk about mortality on this trail, although I don't think it's as dangerous as people made it out to be if you exercise common sense. Who should do it: most people can make the 1st peak. Trail from 1st to 2nd becomes noticeably narrower but it's short and about the same level of difficulty as trail up the 1st peak. 2nd to 3rd peak was where the challenge is - lots of vertical rock climbing, path is narrow, and ropes aren't all in good conditions. If you don't have good upper body strength, have knee problems, or are afraid of heights, it's not a good idea to do the 3rd peak. If you don't have good endurance, it's just going to be a long day. Words of caution: try avoid going after a rainy day because the trail becomes very muddy. It started raining when I was coming down from the 3rd peak and the ground became slippery. Better to go with a friend if you can - there are only a few people hiking past the 2nd peak and in case you get injured, it's good to have someone with you to help. Preparation: pack enough water, gloves (protect your hands from climbing), long pants, and a light windbreaker (waterproof is ideal). You never know how the microclimate changes in the mountain. Throw on some hiking shoes too if you have them. You can get away with gym shoes as I did but extra grip comes in handy on a muddy day. Views: view is the best from the 1st peak. Past that is more for the adrenalin and experience. Parking: no official parking lot for the hike, park across the bridge on the side of the roads. It's a ~15 minute walk to the trailhead. Have fun out there!

Living in Hawaii is expensive..... My mental health these days have been taking a toll on me…read more Taking myself out for a walk turned into a weekly hike! Appreciating the views and finally enjoying it when I'm not slaving my hours away at work... I'm scared of heights... so this has became my favorite hike as it not only has a beautiful view without triggering my fear. Also, it gives me the chance to be spontaneous and face my fears if I want to go off trail.... The hike is not crowded like kokohead just across the street of this. 2025 is to enjoy the outdoors and to be healthier. For real though, I hike to eat and food solves all problems after.

Very clean easy to walk and dog friendly hike. But no shade! Highly recommended to go early and…read morebring water for your dog! One point there is a steep hill. Take less than 2 hours. Very nice view!!

The Kalawahine Trail is beautiful, a little muddy, and not too difficult. It connects to many other…read moretrails in the Tantalus network of trails, so you can make it a longer or shorter hike, depending on how far you go. Some sections are quite shady and there is sometimes a little bit of sunlight. One section was labeled as a native snail area but I didn't see any snails. I recommend trail shoes and even a walking stick as there are some sections that are narrow with a section where you wouldn't want to fall down. Some sections have small rocks or rocks with moss on them, and good hiking shoes can help here. I always wear bug repellent but unlike some other hikes, this one didn't seem overly buggy. A beautiful hike with some lovely views and a nice workout that's not too overly difficult.

Quick and easy! So…read moremuch has been done to improve safety over the years. I cannot remember the last time I've hiked this trail but I believe it was more than 5 years ago! Kamaaina parking is $4 upon entry. There will be 2 parking lots in the area. One will be uphill and downhill. However, good luck finding a parking space during the weekends because it can get PACKED! There will be signs to guide you where to go so no need to be scared. This is absolutely my favorite hike, not only is it easy but it is soooo beautiful all around! I was a bit upset about the rock barricade preventing us from going in the waterfall but nonetheless people still refuse to listen to the sign and whoops... i'm one of them HAHA. Stunning views.

Love this ridge trail for a good workout with amazing views from the summit and as you climb up to…read moreit. As ridge trails go it less narrow and a good one to start with in the Hawai'i Kai area. A good part of the trail zig zags up the mountain until you reach the picnic table. At this point we take a break, have a snack drink more water in preparation for the more difficult climb. Soon you reach the series of steps on the ridge that climb on and on up the mountain into the clouds at times. After the never ending steps you reach the summit. If cloudy wait and the clouds open up to stunning views of other side of island. This hike is well worth the journey. Make sure to have plenty of water and snacks. We use poles, they are really useful in coming back down to help save your knees. There is only street parking so be prepared to walk up road to trailhead. If raining better to go a different day.

This trail was very challenging, but the view worth every minute walking…read more It took us about 4 hours to go up and down because we were taking a lot of time. Really close to the top it became slippery, but besides that the walk is great. Parking can be an issue because there are not official parking, but going there early ensure you a spot.

I've have made this short hike a few times, today the falls were flowing more than the other times…read more It was so peaceful and beautiful to see so much water flow. Trail was a little muddy in spots but not bad. There was a tree across the trail right by the area that you take the trail to the right to head to the falls. There is some ups and downs, high steps ups, lots of roots, so keep your eyes on the trail. Alltrails is helpful to stay on trail.

Nice woodsy falls a reasonably easy hike up through the jungle. Hiking from the road to the golf…read morecourse parking lot adds about a half mile and is as long or longer than the jungle hiking. The falls are maybe 30 feet high down the rock face. If you go up to the base there is a pool deep enough to dip all the way into, with some lower pools just deep enough for a foot soak. The trailhead is on the far left side of the golf course parking lot as you come up from the road. The trail is wide to start, then just before you hit the big water tank the trail goes off and up to the left. A little ways in there are two big downed trees, and the trial to the falls takes a hard turn to the right. Straight/left goes away from the falls but there are a bunch of trees across the trail a half-mile or less down the trail. The falls trail continues down the farthest left fork below the falls. You follow the blue and pink ribbons, and eventually they split. The pink goes down along the streambed. The blue seemed to go up the streambed and involves some serious rope climbing, but then I lost the trail and couldn't see any more blue ribbons.

One line summary: 6.6 miles, 4 hour hike roundtrip (not including rest at the peak)…read more We actually went up to Mt. Olympus from the Wa'ahila Ridge Trail, but whichever way you get here BE PREPARED. This hike will kick your butt, at least it did for us. We were not prepared for this one. Countless times we were going to throw in the towel but pushed to the end. Unlike most of the major ridge peak hikes (Kuliouou, Mariner's Ridge and Hawaii Loa Ridge) the finish point at Mt. Olympus doesn't have a large area to relax and take in the view. Still, you won't find many people up here because this hike is pretty tough. At least for us. The total hike was 6.6 miles (according to Mapmyhike app). It took us about 2 hours and 15 mins to get from the Wa'ahila Ridge Trail head to the top of Mt. Olympus. It took us about 1 hour and 45 mins to get back down. Part of the problem was that we were just so exhausted that climbing out of Wa'ahila Ridge Trail took us much longer than it should have. There are A LOT of ropes on this trail, A LOT of going up/down, up/down, up/down... so that when you're going back down (finished) the trail you still are working out after being exhausted. There is a section of ropes that I would say is about 50 feet up a pretty steep incline, a part of this has small footholds and another part is just hillside you can scale (with ropes). Either way, pretty wicked for someone that isn't prepared. Once you hit that section of ropes you're close to the end but still not quite there, you'll want to give up but push a little more. The views are pretty amazing at the top and you'll have some great panoramic shots from Hawaii Kai to Diamond Head all the way to Ewa Beach from the last 1/2 mile as you're ascending. The views of Manoa get even more dramatic but the views of Waikiki and Kakaako are pretty fantastic too. I know we'll be back to do this one again but it will definitely be awhile, this was truly one of the harder hikes we've been on.

After my first failed attempt at a hike last week I was all about "maintained" hikes this week…read more Mount Olympus had been on my list for some time but I had been avoiding it because its known for being a cloud magnet and it had been cloudy all week. I woke up to cloudy skies but I was in need of a hike so we decided to attempt hiking up to the top of Mount Olympus via the Kolowalu Trail. The Kolowalu trail shares a trailhead with Pu'u pia but is a steeper and shorter alternative route to get up to Wa'ahila Ridge. Most of Kolowalu was covered and cool which was a nice change from most of the hot exposed ridge hikes I had been doing but it was definitely no easy walk in the park. The trail is steep and never really plateaus out, so don't plan on having a picnic or anything. I think it took us about an hour till we got to the junction of Kolowalu and Wa'ahila Ridge. At the junction you will see a sign warning you that upper Wa'ahila Ridge is unmaintained, don't let that scare you away. There a couple narrow, sketchy spots at the end but nothing that can't be done if you stay on the trail and don't try anything stupid. :-) From the beginning of the junction, to the top expect to go over at least 4 or 5 hills. Make sure you have shoes with good traction because you'll be doing a lot of climbing up red dirt stairs that you see on most of the other Ko'olau trails.You'll think you're close, but your not. I think we came across a couple of open grassy areas to take a break, but unfortunately those are not the summit. Once we actually got to the top, we walked along the ridge with Olomana, Kaneohe on our left and Ka'au crater on the right. It was my first time seeing Ka'au crater from the left side, since Lanipo gives you a good view from the right. We finally made it and were all smiles when we saw the stake with a few pink ribbons tied on it. It was pretty windy so we didn't hang out for too long. It rained on our way down so I cannot emphasize the importance of good shoes. Thank god for my vibrams because I think I could have gotten seriously hurt if I had been in old sneakers. Make sure to bring water, snacks, and a extra t-shirt for after. Both of my friends were shivering at dinner after because they were still in their sweat and rain soaked shirts. *Going up to Mt. Olympus from the beginning of the Wa'ahila Ridge is an easier route that starts from the top of St. Louis Heights. YELP 365: 125/365

I've been on so many hikes that say "Bring Bug Spray," but I never do. All those hikes, no problem…read morewith bugs. Guess I was lucky. This trail is where my luck ran out. I had no business being anywhere near this trail. It's up Tantalus for Pete's sake. Consequently, I didn't make it very far into the trail. My wife and I were with a group of people. She continued with the group. I hiked back to the trailhead to wait for them to return. I noticed how many mosquitoes were landing on me but I wasn't the least bit concerned. Hawaiian mosquitoes seemed rather harmless to me. They're kind of small compared to mosquitoes I've encountered in the past. I mean, have you ever been to Yosemite? Those are some hairy ass mosquitoes. So, comparatively speaking, the Hawaiian mosquitoes seemed kinda mellow. They buzz around, yeah, but like at half speed. They're in no big hurry to go anywhere. Now I realize they were in no hurry because there was plenty of me to go around. And every god damn mosquito on that mountain got their share. It was an epic blood feast that will go down in mosquito history. I didn't realize how many times I had been bitten until the next day when the itching started. My legs were completely covered in bites. The itching was about enough to drive me insane. Well, further insane. So, my advice, either bring bug spray or stay the hell off this hill. Mikey C says: these mosquitoes ain't playin'

Hidden gem of a trail boasting lots of covered protection from the sun and a plethora of flora…read more Peaceful, easy, and pleasant hike to get away from the noise and bustle. Rediscovered much in the way of plants and trees that I had only seen in other more remote hikes. Chicken-of-the-woods fungus, orchids, kukui trees, Cook pines, guava, lilikoi, etc... This location is frequented by trail runners, so watch out. It is also very ohana/keiki friendly due to relative gentle inclines. Very muddy and buggy so bring mosquito repellent and be prepared to clean your boots afterwards (if you remember to bring a pair of slippahs to slip into for the drive home, you're golden). Plenty of parking although we went on a weekday so might not be like this on weekends when half of Oahu hikes. Truly enjoyable in so many respects. Mahalo for reading my review.