I was unable to fly out to attend a good friends wedding on Kauai, so I camped in the mountains instead this Memorial Day weekend.
North Shore
Thanks to Jess for giving Elena and myself a ride to the North Shore and Patrick Rorie for inviting me on an uncommon HTMC three day camping hike, Pupukea to Schofield-Waikane. However, plans had changed and so the direction of the hike was detoured to start at Laie instead. The original route was still open, so I joined Gordon and Nick as we got dropped off at the Boy Scout Camp.
Boy Scout Camp
Mahalo to Gordon’s daughter for dropping us off in her spanking brand new car. Nick, being the dutiful DOFAW employee, signed in for us at the start of the trail.
Pupukea Paalaa Uka Military Road
The road has been almost completely repaired from all the erosion damage over the past years. Bring back the Stryker Brigade! Joke.
Pupukea Paalaa Uka Military Road
Leaving the road for the trail. Saying goodbye to civilization for the weekend.
Black Junction
The start or end of the “official” Ko’olau Summit Trail (KST). Black Junction was named after sections of the mountains that the Army had color coded. Learn something new every day.
Ko’olau Summit Trail (KST)
Pushing our way through the dense uluhe ferns, which are surprisingly endemic and not invasive.
Pu’u Hina
Leaving Pupukea summit after taking a short break at the top.
KST
Arriving at the halfway mark after hours of insufferable overgrowth, which resulted in more bushwhacking and no picture taking.
KST
The overgrowth for the most part soon tapered from head high to knee high overgrowth.
Laie Trail
Somebody made a new sign marking the trail that was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps back in the 1930s to reach the Ko’olau Summit Trail.
Kawailoa
Making our way down to the bowl shaped depression. The original plan was to pitch tent on the summit of Kawailoa. However, inclement weather had a say in persuading the group to look for a more hospitable habitat. Unfortunately, Jess had enough of the cold weather and had bailed down the Laie Trail. The three of us decided to hunker down in the sheltered shadow of the summit.
Kawailoa
Day 2
The next morning, we emerged from our tents to another repeat of the rain parade from yesterday.
KST
Sloshing our way through the mud filled trail.
KST
We saw an unnamed waterfall in the distance being fed by the weekend showers.
KST
Going over the fence where we soon met up with the rest of the group. Eric, Gordon and Nick decided to go ahead of the main group, while I decided to hang with the group to meet new faces.
KST
Winona leaving the fence line behind her as we soon began our mud-filled journey of meandering through the Ko’olau Mountains.
KST
Sandy and Patrick traversing the small notch in the trail.
KST
Betsy and Josh going across a rather open area of the trail.
Papali Junction
Lunch break at the summit with Angela, Betsy, Elena, Josh, Pat, Patrick, Sandy and Winona. Radio communications established that Eric, Gordona and Nick were at what I like to call the “Rabbit Hole.”
KST
Winona experiencing deep mud immersion. People pay good money to get treated like this.
KST
Our last group photo at the “Rabbit Hole” with Elena, Josh and Winona who had decided to visit Opaeula Cabin while I continued my forward progress on the mud and rain soaked trail.
KST
Large sections of the fence line had been replaced which resulted in the trail being temporarily cleared of the overgrowth.
KST
The boot junction marked that I had roughly an hour to the summit.
Poamoho Summit
Last reunion with my original hiking buddies for the weekend before they continued to the cabin for the night and one more day of hiking to go down the Schofield-Waikane Trail. A big shout out to Art, Richie, Roseann and Tessa for driving up the jeep road with home made permit in hand to collect me at the summit and walking back down the trail to their 4×4 which saved me an extra five miles of unwanted walking.
Poamoho Cabin
Taro farmer at work. The pickings were rather slim today.
Poamoho Summit
Celebratory consumption of my favorite carbonated beverage on trail and off trail. #14 in the books.
Poamoho Trail
Tessa hiking on the trail, bum knee and toe. Trooper.
Poamoho Trail
Giving myself a facial cleaning. Am I using it wrong?
Poamoho Trail
Post hike meal shared with the mosquitoes at the trailhead. Mahalo to Roseann and Tessa for cooking Papaitan and Pork Adobo. Broke da mouth.
All pau
Going down the jeep road, we picked up two immensely grateful hikers who had underestimated the trail.
GPS Tracks
The two day holiday weekend hike covered 18.16 miles through the muddiest and overgrown sections of the Ko’olau Summit Trail. Mileage varied for the other hikers in the group. It was a nice meet and greet hike with one of the oldest hiking clubs in the islands. The mountains had claimed my sunglasses and one set of Nick’s micro-spikes, to be hopefully regurgitated one day to their rightful owners.
Photos taken by Art Young, Gordon Lau Jr, Nick Vargo, Tessa Bugay 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.
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