Jon Medrano had sent me a link to this video, which was the inspiration for today’s hike. Met up with Chris B, Chris C, Jon, Matt and Rebecca deep in Waianae Valley.

Trailhead

It was still dark as we pushed off the much hated road that leads to the Waianae Ka’ala trail trailhead. Copper thieves must have struck in the area, as illumination was noticeably absent. Save for the twinkling stars.

Mothman prophecies

Giant spider webs and moths were our only company on the trail. No sign of Richard Gere.

Purple Trail

We followed the trail that were profusely marked with purple caps and ribbons.

Three Poles

The group taking a break at the 2,720′ junction. What’s for breakfast?

Panoramic view

Click here for the larger image.

Looking ahead

Halfway there. Just warming up.

Boulder climbing

The crew making their way over the two boulder sections.

Kaala Natural Area Reserve

Group photo at the highest mountain on the island, left to right: myself, Rebecca, Matt, Jon, Chris C and Chris B. Photo by Chris Chun.

Boardwalk

Rebecca making her way though the ancient Hawaiian forest ecosystem, home to many rare endemic fauna and flora.

Water sample

Matt collecting water to test for future hikes. Then an Australian accent chimed in “I don’t understand you Americans, we just drank straight out of the stream back home. What’s the big fuss?”

Bog

The crew exiting the 1,100 acre cloud forest.

Open house

Free cookies and a ride down. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

Follow the fence

We skirted the fenced installation and began to make our way down the ridge.

FAA tracking station

Leaving Mount Ka’ala. The clouds would soon follow us down the ridge, much to our dismay.

Kamaohunui ridge

The long ridge down. We just didn’t know it yet.

Coming down

The trail up to this point was still somewhat passable with little effort. That was about to change.

Central view

Looking out towards Schofield Barracks.

Bushwhacking

The trail quickly disappeared into a dense tangle of blackberry thorns and uluhe ferns. Rebecca soon parted ways with us and returned back down Ka’ala.

Evelyn

Looking down in the valley, we clearly saw the wrecked remains of a B-24 bomber that crashed in the forest shortly after takeoff in 1945 from Wheeler Airfield. Another hike for another day.

Panoramic view

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Looking back

Chris chatting with a neighbor on the other side of the fence. Is the grass greener?

Fence trail

Typical ridge hiking. Multiple short ups and downs.

Halo rainbow

We saw this fleeting rainbow down in the valley.

Fenced trail

The metal eyesore extended as far as the eye could see, or more accurately as far as the clouds would let us see.

Break spot

Group photo. Where’s the view? Photo by Chris Bautista.

GPS huddle

Let’s see. That tree looks familiar. Let’s not follow those blue ribbons. Hmmm, we seem to be on the right track.

Webbing trail

The fence was gone for now. Webbing took its place. As we dropped in elevation, we left behind the clouds and began to see what was around us.

Panoramic view

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Waialua Whiskey

We climbing that?

Bark worse than the bite

Easy peasy. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

Looking back

Matt popping the pimple.

Contour

Chris contouring the ridge on the Windward side.

Ridge

Hiking on top the ridge.

Looking back

Jon making his way down the ridge.

Ridge

The ridge rose and fall with multiple false summits to mark each passing.

Saddle

Are those metal poles staked on the ridge?

Looking back

The crew climbing out of the saddle. Photo by Chris Bautista.

Ridge

Are we there yet?

Erosion

Chris C and Matt making their way over a eroded section of the ridge. Where’s that fence when you need it?

Helipad

We waited for the chopper to fly in our prime rib and clam chowder. In vain. Photo by Chris Bautista

Pu’u Pane?

Chris B and Chris C approaching a summit we thought was Pu’u Pane. Thought.

Junction

Jon climbing over the fence to begin our descent down the spur ridge.

Climb

Rock climbing galore ahead.

North Shore

Looking out towards the sugar town of Waialua and the tourist town of Haleiwa.

Hiker’s pole

Chris C responding to a milk shortage. Watch out for the bark shavings!

Tricky crack

Chris B about to make his way down.

Blue webbing

Rated to 4,000 pounds. Should be enough. Wait, how much do you weigh again? Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

Love rock

Chris C hugging the rock as he makes his way down.

Rocky ridge

The crew between moments of concentration and relaxation as they made their way down.

Looking back

That was a fun ridge. Not finished yet.

Cliff

Chris C and Matt coming down a steep section.

Panoramic view

Click here for the larger image.

Twilight

The setting sun reflected off the shimmering windmills in the distance.

Wild West

We soon got off the ridge to be met by blocking tree lines and head high California grass. Bushwhacking. Night bushwhacking. Complete with wild life.

Waterfall

Eventually we bushwhacked our way to the stream, which offered a respite from the suffocating overgrowth. Photo by Chris Chun

Kaukonahua Stream

Our last obstacle was a fast flowing stream that fluctuated from knee to waist high depth. Photo by Matt Vidaurri

All pau

After our white water stream crossing, we walked out through the gated housing area and made our way to Matt’s staged truck.

GPS Tracks

Our West side hike to North shore hike covered 10.22 miles through rugged terrain and beautiful scenery. Epic hike with a great crew. Post hike meal at Zippy’s. Missing my prime rib and clam chowder.

The mountain was calling. The highest mountain on the island. Ka’ala. Met up with Carmi, James, Rocky, Ron and Ryan at Waipio Costco, our staging point. Ron’s wife was nice enough to drop us off in Waianae Valley. We even got to watch a comedy video while driving to the trailhead. All we were missing was the drink service.

Clear skies

The skies above Mount Ka’ala were unusually clear. A good sign.

On the road again

There’s just no getting around the paved road to Ka’ala.

Leaving the road

Transitioning to the dirt road. Straight ahead. The trail to Tiki Ridge is on the left.

Purple junction

We turned left at the purple bottle capped tree and dropped into a gully to continue the hike.

Morning cardio

Making our way up the tree covered ridge that provided ample shade that kept the heat down.

When a tree falls in the forest

Walk on it and see where it goes. Photo by Rocky Abad.

Three Poles

Group photo at Three Poles junction left to right: Ryan, myself, James, Garmi, Ron and Rocky.

Bolohead ridge

Bolohead Ridge and sweeping views of Lualualei and Waianae Valleys to our right.

Follow the fence

Making our way up the fenced Kamaile’unu Ridge.

Scenic point

Picture perfect day. Break out the camera. Photo by Rocky Abad.

Still a long way to the top

The ridge flattened and widened though an Australian tea grove as the mountain loomed ahead of us.

First boulder section

The only rock climbing to be found on this trail.

Test all ropes

Ron making his way up.

Second boulder section

Fun but short lived. The trail soon became rather steep and muddy to the top.

Summit view

The view was strikingly clear all the way to the “golf ball” radar stations at Kaena Point.

Ka’ala Natural Area Reserve

Severe fly infestation at the top. They were either feeding or breeding. Let’s get out of here!

Entering the bog

Rocky walking on the boardwalk that helps to protect the fragile ecosystem that are home to endemic mosses, ferns and plants.

Leaving the bog

After walking about 3/4 of a mile through the misty blog, we emerged on the other side.

How many hikers can fit on a bench?

The answer is two. Group photo in front of the expansive bog.

Fly away

A glider flew overhead and swung around the summit. We thought we had a view, that pilot must have had a better view. Photo by Rocky Abad.

No hat, no salute

Group photo in front of the FAA tracking installation. Only James, Ron and Ryan gets a salute.

Mount Ka’ala Road

Walking down the road with a million dollar view.

Group selfie

Who cleans all these mirrors?

Dupont trail

Leaving the road for greener trails.

Stairs

The stairs extended for a good stretch down the trail.

Goodbye Ka’ala

Looking back at Mount Ka’ala.

Any echo? Any echo?

Is this thing active? Good question to ask before poking your head inside.

Da Bus Stop

Is my watch broken? Hey, is that Steve Perry? What does my horoscope say today? Running thoughts at the bus stop. Thanks to Troy Solano for pointing this iconic hiking fixture out to me. Photo by Ron Kimura.

Freycinetia arborea

The ‘ie’ie plant, has medicinal qualities when combined with other endemic plants.

Checking out the view

Sometimes you just have to stop hiking and eyeball the views. Photo by Rocky Abad.

Hiking past erosion

The group making their way past one of several eroded sections on the trail.

Hiking on the edge

Ron and Rocky making their way past the shrubbery on the trail.

Rock climbing…sort of

Rocky going up a 30′ rock face. Ron waiting his turn. Easy peasy.

Tasty trail snacks

James picking from the abundant strawberry guava trees that lined the trail.

Walking on the ridge

The group making their way along the well defined section of the ridge.

Dirt slalom

Going down this eroded section was fun. Had to stay balanced and slide on loose dirt, past the narrow section without falling down. Staked ropes were provided for assistance.

Looking back

The radar dome on the summit was getting smaller as we made our way down.

High ground

Still a long way to go.

Following the dirt trail

The trail was for the most part open and obvious…

What trail?

…until we hit this section of head high California grass that just swallowed the trail and us. I could barely see Ron ahead of me.

Back on the trail

Visibility restored.

Cattle fence?

Our first fence on the trail. Meant to keep cattle from higher ground?

Trail disappears

We ended up bushwhacking a bit to regain the trail.

Sunday services?

We spotted a huge white cross on the ridge to our left.

Dry trough

No water. No cows. Makes sense.

Back on the trail

The trail soon turned into a jeep road.

Broken gate

The group making their way over a gate that looked like it got hit by a cattle stampede.

No signs of cows

Other hikers had told us of cows giving chase on the trail. Guess they were sleeping or it was too darn hot to be out and about.

Headed to the highway

The road to civilization. Photo by Rocky Abad.

Security stop

Security stopped us short of the gate, asking where we had come from. Down from the mountain. They said next time call the landowner, Pioneer in advance to request permission. Thanks for the tip!

Hold the gate

As we approached the road, the gate swung open to let a car in. Perfect timing. James brother in law was waiting on the other side to give us a ride back to our cars.

GPS Tracks

Our 8.43 mile hike started on the Waianae side, crossed over the highest mountain on the island and ended up on the Waialua side. Love hikes that don’t come back the same way. Post hike meal at Outback. No surprise. Great hike with old and new friends.