Stairway to Heaven to Kalihi Saddle (Powerlines)

It was somebody’s birthday and that somebody had never been up the fabled and historic stairs. That is how Analyn, Bill, Chris, Ferlino, Shirley and myself found ourselves on the Windward side. Mahalo to Jasmin for dropping us off so that we could get schooled in the higher art of hiking. I had assumed from the recent BWS meeting that the stairs was saved and now open to the public due to the absence of the guard and heavy traffic on the site. DISCLAIMER: The stairs has been temporarily saved BUT is not open to the public and are still closed. I was a public school graduate, so what can I say?

Climbing up the steep stairs, cardio right off the bat.

The only person on the whole island that still hasn’t gone up the stairs. Slight exaggeration. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

Ferlino doing his usual gymnastics on the stairs. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

The two photo divas on the scenic rock overlooking the Windward coastline. Photo by Bill Yogi.

Outside looking in. Photo by Bill Yogi.

Looking back as the clouds slowly started to envelop the infrastructure straddling the ridge line.

Approaching the cloud soaked top. Photo by Bill Yogi.

Lee Shreve asked that I place this lei in memory of Freddie “Spider-Man” Patricio as this was his favorite hike. For those that did not know him, he gave more than he took. He was a good man that would literally go out of his way to help a friend and even strangers. Always cherish your good friends as one day they will no longer be at your side.

Forward progress was temporarily stalled by another photo shoot.

Happy Birthday Darky! Many more happy returns!

I could tell you how many candles were on her cupcake, but I might end up missing.

Ferlino hanging out at the top.

Group photo left to right: Shirley, Analyn, Ferlino, myself, Chris and Bill.

1, 2 ,3 … a**hole. I guess that’s a different way of saying smile. Photo by Bill Yogi.

We left the birthday couple as they continued taking their bazillion photos as we headed towards the saddle.

Ferlino dropped his GoPro over the ridge, so he borrowed mines to retrieve his camera. Bad sign #1.

Passing the defunct radar station.

Looking back at Heaven.

The poor plant didn’t stand a chance against Analyn. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Going down the slippery slope. Chris also gave up his cap to the mountains. Bad sign #2. Photo by Chris Chun.

Hold my hand. The other hand too. Now what? Let’s sing Kumbaya! Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Dropping down the crumbly and eroded flank. Photo by Chris Chun.

Chris and Ferlino contouring their way back to the ridge line.

Is my GoPro on? Photo by Chris Chun.

Analyn coming down the biggest rock face.

Taking a break on the exposed and eroded section of the ridge. How can you tell?

I’ve fallen and I can’t get up. Analyn stopped her fall and twisted her fingers. Bad sign #3.

Climbing down on the Windward side. Photo by Chris Chun.

Scooting our way on the crumbly ridge while Ferlino made his way down.

I had turned around to talk to Analyn and tripped on a vine and fell off the saddle. My roughly 20′ fall was stopped by a second tree, not the first one. Thanks to Chris and Ferlino for being the human anchors so that I could climb my way back up. Bad sign #4. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

If you have to fall, do it on the Leeward side. Glad I took my own advice. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Chris climbing his way down the jumbled rocks.

Admiring the stunning views or reflecting on my close call. Or perhaps both. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

The group making their way down the skinny ridge.

Chris and Ferlino going over the hump. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

Climbing our way up the last main rock face. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Chris and Ferlino coming down the backside.

Making our way towards the power lines.

It was somebody’s fourth time doing this saddle, but felt like her first.

The group decided that with all the bad signs that we had experienced today, that it would be pushing our luck to continue towards the Pali. Time to leave the saddle. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

When a posed slip and fall turns into a real life cramp.

Going down the paved road and back to civilization.

Ferlino picked some flowers from the trail, as it was Mother’s Day tomorrow. Thanks to Jasmin for picking us up. Somebody else had the same idea that was parked outside the gate.

Our four mile birthday hike touched heaven in more ways than one. Thanks to the group for the great company and help when it was needed. Post hike meal at Casa Carinio where Filipino language lessons were shared over slow cooked fall off the bone ribs.

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.

Tagged as: bowman summit, dirty slide, kalihi saddle, koolau summit ridge trail, ksrt, puu keahi a kahoe, rock triangles, south haiku stairs, stairway to heaven, tabletop, tripler summit, witch's hat