Manoa Valley Waterfalls Birthday Hike

According to a passage from Wikipedia, “Humans have had a distinct relationship with waterfalls since prehistory, travelling to see them, exploring and naming them.” That being said, the group met up in the valley that was home to the first coffee plantation in the islands to visit all seven of the waterfalls in the valley. 6/7. Close enough for a probationary member on her birthday hike.

Stocking up for the soon to happen festivities. Thanks to Rose for getting these biodegradable balloons and filling them with tap water straight from the pipes of Waimanalo. Edgar pointed out that this was the same street where a local chiropractor had killed his family and himself on March 10, 2024.

Starting on the trail as sunbeams danced on the valley floor.

YawYaw #1 sharing her can’t miss voice that the forest hasn’t heard since the COVID days.

The group making their way through the rain forest. The rain part was soon to come.

Walking across one of seven bridges on the way to the waterfalls, on the return trip you cross only six. We were not coming back this way. Not exactly.

Matt excited to find a TV in the jungle, until it dawned on him as how is he going to to plug it in.

Rose holding her freshly picked bunch of pako ferns while scrambling underneath a fallen tree. Not as easy as it looks. She got skills when it comes to food.

Dale trying out for the next cover of CQ – Coconut Quarterly.

The famous Laredo graced us with his presence. He was wearing a top and bottom. Unusual for him. We must not be at a waterfall yet.

Our first group photo of the day in the clear pool of water. Does this count as a waterfall? I guess not, since Laredo’s clothes are still on.

Climbing out of the bath and into the falls.

Our first waterfall and water balloon pelting of the day. LNT. We did pick up the latex remnants from the water.

Top down view of the post-latex carnage.

Passing the memorial boulder in Waiakeakua Stream for Gladstone Wright, an 11-year old boy that was struck by a falling 7.5 pound rock while out on a picnic on May 14, 1891. He was rushed by carriage to Queen’s Hospital where he later passed to his injuries.

One of multiple stream crossings.

Matt searching a tunnel that went nowhere.

We arrived at the second waterfall as some of us climbed up to the first tier to check out the deep hole.

Splish-splash, they were taking a bath
Long about a Sunday morning, yeah
They were a-splishin’ and a a-splashin’, reelin’ with the feelin’
Movin’ and a-groovin’, jumpin’ and a-pumpin’, yeah
Bing-bang we saw the whole gang
Watchin’ and catchin’ our pics

The second splattering.

Group photo at the waterfalls that offers a route to reach the top of the Ko’olau Mountains if so desired. We were not so inclined this day.

Balloon censorship at its wettest. Preferable over pixelation.

Making our way back down to the base.

Man-made waterfall in the distance. Too small. Doesn’t count.

We soon ran into two of Allison’s friends, Joyce and Sam, who joined the group as we continued our search for more waterfalls. It’s like zombies searching for brains, addicting to some.

Testing the working load limit on a particular bridge.

Passing through a patch of bamboo grass as we looked for the next junction.

Approaching the third trickling waterfall.

The third throwing.

Group photo in the birds nest.

CB looking for a way to slide down. Left? Right? Helicopter?

Comments from the peanut gallery down below. The term harks back to vaudeville days when patrons in the cheap seats would throw out jeers and peanuts. At least give us some peanuts.

CB trying to coax me to go out on a limb. Literally. Hard pass. Already had a recent fall.

Walking in the footsteps of the steps that have long since rotted away.

Fresh cut flowers from the forest for the birthday girl.

Others got blooms and blossoms, I got rocks and rubbish. Shades of Kalalau Trail.

Random group photo in the forest.

The trail at times was overgrown, muddy and uneven. Par for a waterfall hike.

Sandra checking out the lower falls.

If a tree falls in a forest, climb on top and take a photo.

Climbing up to the fourth waterfall.

The balloons seem to have decreased in volume and accuracy.

The forecasted rains finally fell from the heavens, increasing the trickle to a stream of water cascading down the cliff.

We found Matt’s long, white and hard pipes that he was talking about on the trail. Quite a gusher.

The lush and verdant valley saturated with rain gave that prehistoric vibe that led this location to be used in the Jurassic Park movie. It also lead to a dry roll in the grass despite the heavy rain.

We soon intersected with the gravel trail masquerading as a brown river that was filled with waterlogged hikers and us looking for that elusive junction, as the bloodhound’s nose must have been congested.

Sandra plunging into the brown river. Always a good sign. Right?

Roughly 30 minutes of boulder hopping and scrambling through the stream, we got to our fifth waterfall.

Somebody was happy. This was a waterfall.

Having a good time until rocks rained on our parade. Refer to Caption #14.

Seeking a place of relative safety.

The fifth drubbing of the day.

Happy Birthday Allison!

Thanks Mrs. Banks for letting Blaine to come out and play today.

Heading back down stream in search of two or one more waterfalls for the day?

One of many trees bearing mountain apple blossoms that we came across in the valley. Where are the mouth watering fruits?

Andrew auditioning for his direct to dvd movie. I’ll let you guess which genre.

Last group photo in front of the 150′ waterfalls more commonly known as Manoa Falls.

The final splashing of the day. I guess we are not going to visit the last waterfall known as Little Shitty or by most people, ‘Aihualama Falls. Refer to Caption #1.

We walked back to our cars and finally found our mountain apples on the street.

Our more fun than you can shake a water balloon hike covered 7.2 miles through Manoa Valley with good friends. Post hike meal at Zippy’s where the requested dish of Korean fried chicken was consumed by the birthday girl. Happy Birthday!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3gr-9upnZE

Video by Edgar Gamiao of our waterfall birthday hike.

Photos taken by Lilyn Avendano, Allison Banks, Blaine Banks, Chris Bautista, Joe Caldwell, Ann Colton, Roseann Fai, Edgar Gamiao, Andrew Matsui, Laredo Muredo, Samantha Taylor, Joyce Uhlmer, Matt Vidaurri, Sandra Walter, Dale Yoshizu and yours truly. Not necessarily in order.

Note: I have been made aware that some hikers have been using my blog as a hiking guide and getting lost on the trails. Please note that this blog was made to document the hike for the crew(s) that did it. That is why some of my comments will seem to have no relevance or meaning to anybody outside of the crew(s) that hiked that trail. My blog was never meant as a hiking guide, so please do not treat it as such. If you find inspiration and entertainment from these hikes, that is more than enough. If you plan on replicating these hikes, do so in the knowledge that you should do your own research accordingly as trail conditions, access, legalities and so forth are constantly in flux. What was current today is most likely yesterdays news. Please be prepared to accept any risks and responsibilities on your own as you should know your own limitations, experience and abilities before you even set foot on a trail, as even the “simplest” or “easiest” of trails can present potential pitfalls for even the most “experienced” hikers. One should also always let somebody know of your hiking plans in case something doesn’t go as planned, better safe than sorry.

Tagged as: kahuwaiiki falls, luaalaea falls, manoa falls, manoa valley, naniuapo falls, queen's bath, waaloa falls, waiakeakua falls, waihi nui