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Hike: Kamanaiki |
Time Started: 11:30 AM |
Party: Wayne Shibata, Devin Nakayama, & Alex Okihara | |
The trail starts off here at the back of a dead end street in Kalihi. There
are stairs to the left of the utility pole which allow access to the ridge.
The stairs provide a great warm-up for the rest of the hike.
After clearing the stairs, there was this big water tank covered with vandalism.
The ground was covered with the needles of the ironwood trees, which made the
return trip slippery.
Oh no! The rain is approaching, and its getting cold!
After an hour or so, we decided to take a break next to a fallen tree.
The plants on this trail were really green and healthy. In the photo is an
'ohi'a tree in full bloom.
A while later, we reached the t-shirt flag which can be seen from below. It
was getting windy, and the rains were hitting us off and on.
Looking into Kalihi Valley, you could see the many houses. We could also
hear some music coming from one of the churches below.
Some areas were pretty narrow and had steep drop-offs. Cool!
Here is another shot of a wind-swept section. If you look carefully at the
center of the picture, you can see me.
Here is a shot of me and the koa tree.
Summary:
Kamanaiki was great! Despite the bad weather in the morning, it did clear up in the afternoon. The views from the top were really nice too. Most of the way, however, the views were blocked by tall trees.
The hike got down to business right away, and most of the climbing was done in the first half hour or so, starting with the stairs at a dead end road.
There were some narrow sections, and the ridges were very windswept. It was so cold! It drizzled at times, and I also got wet from brushing up against the wet plants.
Once entering the uluhe fern, the trail was very overgrown. Luckily, I wore my near knee-high socks, which I promptly rolled up to protect my legs. It looked pretty dorky, but I emerged unscathed.
The cabled section described in the Hiker's Guide is not that bad. I had expected worse.
Overall, the trail was well defined and easy to follow. I hope to go back one day to go on to Lanihuli. It was a little too cold for me today!