We all dithered and dickered over the venue for Princess’s birthday hike today. It was too dry for the original waterfall hike, other venues were rejected before finally settling on a large and extinct tuff cone on the East side of the island.

Koko Crater

There was some apprehension about certain individuals that were loitering near the botanical garden entrance but a military connection was soon formed and such feelings soon evaporated as we headed for the marked trail.

Koko Crater Rim

We waited for the group to collectively come together as some of them had taken the scenic route or as they say they were “exploring.”

Koko Crater Rim

Streaming hikers making their way up the mauka side of the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

Andrew and Susana discussing their color choices.

Koko Crater Rim

Climbing up the steeper section of the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

The girls throwing a high and low shaka that correspondingly indicates their comfort level.

Koko Crater Rim

Dave scrambling up the bulging rock and proving that all hikers subscribe to the Egalitarian doctrine.

Koko Crater Rim

Standing shakas must indicate a high level of comfortability on the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

Everybody approached this section according to their own comfort level or peer pressure.

Koko Crater Rim

Drone view of the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

Threading our way around the upper edge of the cliff.

Koko Crater Rim

Drones were buzzing all around us over the puka as four unmanned aerial vehicles competed for our attention.

Koko Crater Rim

Is that a nine-foot selfie stick or are you just glad to see us?

Koko Crater Rim

With big group comes big wait.

Koko Crater Rim

Jumping for joy or peer pressure.

Koko Crater Rim

Edgar running the rim to catch up with Susana who left the group to circle the fringed vulva or Kohelepelepe. According to Hawaiian legend, the goddess Kapo left behind her private parts as a decoy so that her sister Pele could escape the demigod Kama’pua’a. Now I see why Edgar was running.

Koko Crater Rim

Scott and Mister Green waiting for the rest of the group to catch up as swarms of ladybugs kept them company.

Koko Crater Rim

Walking through grassy fields supposedly results in stress reduction, improved balance and grounding effects.

Koko Crater Rim

I don’t think these are the grassy fields they are talking about.

Koko Crater Rim

Single file. Pass on the right.

Koko Crater Rim

Where’s Roger?

Koko Crater Rim

Scrambling our way to the summit of Pu’u Mai.

Koko Crater Rim

Climbing the last steep section. All downhill from this point.

Koko Crater Summit

Some girls want chocolate. Some want flowers. Some want bling. Aida just wants four ounces of churned dairy cream with a candle on top. Happy Birthday Princess!

Koko Crater Summit

Aida coaching and coaxing everybody for picture taking time. Scott, stop talking to the Japanese tourist. Chico, get in the frame. Ferlino, stop taking selfies. Front row, show some teeth. Edgar, turn around. Kenny, stop thinking about pot. Matt, stop flying your drone. Say cheese!

Koko Crater Summit

Our final group photo. No photoshop involved.

Koko Crater Stairs

Time to head down the 3/4 mile of refurbished WW2 tramway. Hats off to the Kokonut Koalition and its volunteers that did such a superb job of fixing up the stairs.

Koko Crater Stairs

All pau pau. Let’s go kau kau. Everybody made it down safe and sound unless you count two counts of cactus penetration, sounds worse than it actually was.

Gyotaku

Matt serving our lunch as his manager looks on to make sure he gets our orders right. It’s hard to find good help these days.

Gyotaku

The only thing more insane about this cake is its price. Don’t ask. Thanks to everybody for coming out to celebrate Aida’s birthday hike. Fun times all around.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTqt6vAtIfE

Video by Edgar Gamiao of our birthday hike.

Photos/Crew taken by Aida Gordon, Aileen Agustin, Akira Suzuki, Allison Banks, Andrew Hirai, Chico Cantu, Cristy CM, David and Susan Katz, Edgar Gamiao, Ferlino Carinio, Kenny Lui, Marilyn Bermudez, Matt Vidaurri and Nick, Scott Dea, Roger Schiffman, Susana Escobar, Tesssa Bugay, Val Wang 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.

Shaking off the jet lag, I decided to do an easy stroll around the fringed vulva and look for another hole. Met up with Kenny, Marilyn, and Scott at the botanical garden to kick off our hike.

Koko Crater Rim

We all scrambled up our own path to reach the top.

Koko Crater Rim

Kenny and Marilyn continuing the theme of the day.

Koko Crater Rim

The group crossing over one of many puka (hole) found on the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

Kenny passing the point of no return. Small steps.

Koko Crater Rim

The views are better up here!

Koko Crater Rim

Simulation of cracking the whip to help Kenny overcome his acrophobia.

Koko Crater Rim

Watching the rest of the group contour their way back to the rim.

Koko Crater Rim

Somebody was missing from the table rock selfies. Next time.

Koko Crater Rim

Climbing our way to the summit.

Pu’u Mai

Group photo at the 1,028′ top of the rim or trail.

Koko Crater Rim

We descended from the summit and met up with Edgar and his two grandkids and we then collectively made our way down to the arch.

Koko Crater Arch

Edgar training them young.

Koko Crater Arch

Marilyn rolled off this section and banged into the cliff. Luckily just a bruised ego. Maybe Edgar should train her as well.

Koko Crater Arch

Scrambling our way down the somewhat steep arch.

Koko Crater Arch

Group photo. Don’t step too close to the edge. We do have a fireman with us. Retired.

Koko Crater

We scrambled down the arch as three other hikers came up the arch. Turned out later that I was chatting with one of the guys online about possibly hiking together at a later date. Small world.

Koko Crater

The terrain was uneven, loose rocks underfoot and annoying and irritating dry bushes blockading the way. Edgar and grandkids and Marilyn decided to turn around and call it a day. We traversed up and down multiple ridges before descending down to the cave.

Koko Crater

Yay. Somebody told me about this cave almost ten years ago and thanks to Kenny spotting it earlier, I found myself standing in this natural void in the volcanic tuff. The elusive inhabitant was not at home. Perhaps it’s no longer occupied anymore.

Koko Crater

Deja vu. Nobody else wanted to come and share the moment with me as it started raining. Upon rejoining the other two, I discovered my car key was missing. Back to the cave and nowhere to be found. Scrambled back up the ridge and Kenny found it amongst the bushes as we made our way back. A needle in the haystack. Mahalo! Scotty suggested I should air tag my keys like he does. Filed under procrastination. One day.

All pau

We climbed our way down from the arch to the highway and walked back to Scotty’s car to get a ride back to our cars. Thanks to everybody for a fun day.

Photos taken by Edgar Gamiao, Kenny Lui, Marilyn Bermudez, Scott Dea, and yours truly. Not necessarily in order.

Addendum – October 29, 2025

Met up with Chico and Kenny to check on progression and occupancy as we returned to the volcanic crater whose age has ranged from 7,000 to 67,000 years old.

Koko Crater Rim

One has to crawl before they can walk.

Koko Crater Rim

Climbing instead of contouring. Leaps and bounds.

Koko Crater Rim

Relaxing in the puka (hole).

Koko Crater Rim

Chico bridging the gap.

Koko Crater Rim

Kenny trying to shake off the acrophobia one step at a time.

Koko Crater Rim

Perched on the pedestal.

Koko Crater Rim

Climbing to the summit of Pu’u Mai.

Koko Crater Rim

Same spot, different faces.

Koko Crater Rim

Going down the makai (ocean) side of the rim.

Koko Crater Arch

Chico fighting his flashbacks.

Koko Crater Arch

The gap between empty space and solid ground has ended. Safe and sound.

Koko Crater

Contouring and scrambling our way around the crater.

Koko Crater

Making our way across the uneven and crumbling terrain.

Koko Crater

The guys pantomiming what we hoped to find in the cave.

Koko Crater

Hello? Anybody home? Seeking a nocturnal and solitary bird of prey.

Koko Crater

The floor of the cave was carpeted with the bleached bones of past dinners.

Koko Crater

Somebody had put a blanket deep in the recesses of the cave. For themselves or the bird?

Koko Crater

Individual photos.

Koko Crater

Group photo.

Koko Crater

Leaving the cave, empty-handed again.

Koko Crater

We spotted a set of stairs hiking down and went to check it out.

Koko Crater

Going up the stairs to a shrine that has long been ransacked and wrecked, leaving only trinkets and scattered cow and goat bones.

All pau

Walking down what looked like the remnants of a lava tube as we made our way back to our cars. Another fun day with good company.

Photos taken by Chico Cantu, Kenny Lui, 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.

Having done Koko Crater to death, it was time to mix it up a bit today. I picked up Glenn from Koko Crater Botanical Gardens and drove around East Oahu to find a suitable place to ascend up the tuff cone from a different approach.

Trailhead

We parked behind Kaiser High School and found a construction road to gain access to the base of Koko Crater.

Ravine

A ravine presented the least resistance to starting our hike. As we hiked deeper into the ravine, resistance presented itself in the form of thick vegetation.

Out of the ravine

Glenn climbing out of the ridge to escape the overgrowth.

Heavy overgrowth

From the frying pan into the fire. More overgrowth.

Kuapa Pond

Looking back at the now diminished Fishpond Wall. Hard to believe it once covered 523 acres. Something had to give way for Henry Kaiser’s suburban vision.

Koko Crater Puka

Looking up at the puka. Hard to find, as most people walk right over it when hiking the rim.

Lepidoptera season

Butterflies were flittering and fluttering all around us.

Litter

Higher up, remnants from the WW2 bunkers were strewn on the slopes.

Splash of color

Purple flowers amidst a sea of green and reddish brown.

Hawaiian Picker

Glenn found what looked like to be an antique bottle. Maybe not. Dirt makes everything look old.

Rock face

Glenn climbing up the “hardest” section of the ridge.

Summit view

The view at the top, looking out towards Diamond Head.

Four legged hiker

Most of the four legged hikers put their two legged owners to shame on the tracks coming up.

Coming up the tracks

Jasmin took the “easy” way coming up the tracks to meet us at the top.

The less traveled path

We went down the sheeted rock trail that paralleled the tracks on the left. The tracks were bustling with rush hour hikers, while we had the zipper lane all to ourselves.

Koko Crater

Leaving behind Koholepelepe, the original Hawaiian name for this cinder cone, which translates to traveling vagina or fringed vulva. According to legend, Pele was being pursued by the pig demi-god, Kama-pua’a. Pele’s sister, Kapo sent her traveling vagina to lure Kama-pua’a away so that Pele could escape. Looking at Koko Crater on Google Maps, the resemblance to the Hawaiian name is obvious.

Koko Head Shooting Complex

Glenn had someplace to go and Jasmin was tired from her night work. I continued the hike solo by dropping behind the shooting range and followed the highway out.

49er ridge

I soon climbed up a spur ridge dubbed “49er ridge”, this is the same spot where the lava tube goes underneath the road and out to the rugged and rocky shoreline.

Trees, but no shade

The lower part of the ridge was covered by thickets of hard and sharp trees.

Hot, hot, hot

It was a scorcher of a day on the slopes of Koko Crater.

Rock dike

This section reminded me of the arch, but without the arch.

Looking back

Just one of many ridges that leads up to the crater rim. So many to explore.

Rock caves

Interesting rock caves formed by wind and erosion?

Too close for comfort

Scrambling up the ridge, the loud gun reports from the shooting range seemed uncomfortably close.

Panoramic view

Click here for the larger image.

Going down the rim

Hiking down the open and exposed crater rim.

Panoramic view

Click here for the larger image.

Dropping down into the crater

The crater floor is home to a botanical garden and horse stables. Come for the tracks and stay for the trees and horses.

Koko Crater GPS Tracks

The fun, short and hot hike covered 3.83 miles. Many more spur ridges and caves to explore on the crater.

I met up with Glenn and Chris at the Koko Head Botanical Gardens to do a nice Sunday stroll up the entire Koko Crater rim, we have hiked up from the arch and from the tracks. But never have we completed the entire Koko Crater rim.

Koko Head Botanical Gardens and Makapu’u

The grassy and kiawe trees eventually changed to the rocky and cacti inhabited rim of Koko Crater or Kohelepelepe which means traveling vagina. Take a look at Koko Crater on a topographical map and you will see why.

Cracked Rim

Going up the rim presents an interesting view of the fractured rim and presents numerous climbing possibilities. This is a different perspective of Koko Crater that you don’t experience if you just go up and down the tracks.

Kamiloiki and Kamehame Ridges

Our hike was blessed with a nice thick cloud layer which blocked most of the scorching sun rays. Unfortunately, vog conditions were in effect as well, producing hazy viewing conditions.

A little climbing

Heading to the lookout is a nice and steady climb up the rim, punctuated by several opportunities to rock climb or for those less inclined, to simply contour around.

Going into the bunker

We had brough headlamps and flashlights to root around these long abandoned bunkers at the top of the summit that was left over from World War 2. The tunnel leading to the bunker was actually very low, forcing us to crouch over as we stepped on scattered debris and rubbish on the floor that was partially illuminated by our headlamps.

Inside the bunker

If you’re claustrophobic and nyctophobic, going into these bunkers would not be a good idea. It was pretty cool and anti-climatic at the same time when we got to the bunker, as it was just filled with more debris on the floor and a shaft that went up to the surface. Two things prevented me from trying to climb up the shaft, the bottom part of the ladder was torn off and the middle of the shaft looks like it’s blocked by some sort of ventilation shaft.

Top of Puu Mai

The top of Puu Mai was teeming with hikers that had come up from the tracks. This hike gets a lot of activity, especially on the weekends. I can see why, as it’s a relatively short hike that has payoffs with great views waiting at the top.

Hanauma Bay and Koko Head

As we started to climb down the rim, the plinking and cracking sounds coming from the rifle range were really cranking that morning. Must be a result of all those increased gun sales.

Counter-clockwise on the rim

We spent some time at the top, checking out the views and enjoying the breezy tradewinds that had just picked up. Going down the rim, the rocky parts continued until the knob formation.

Molokai

Once past the knob, the rim leveled off and it was a nice gradual slope on the way back down as we caught views of Halona Blowhole, Sandy Beach and the islands of Molokai, Lanai and Maui. We got back to our cars around 9:30am and had brunch at Zippy’s, thanks Glenn!

This was my third time hiking Koko Crater. The first time I walked up and down the tram tracks. The second time we had hiked up the side of Koko Crater and walked down the tram tracks. This time, the plan was to climb up the side of Koko Crater and go down the rim and end up in Koko Crater Botanical Gardens.

Fishing Shrine

We staged one car at the Koko Crater Botanical Gardens which is right off Kealahou Street by the Queen’s Gate neighborhood in Hawaii Kai and drove to the parking lot for the Halona Blowhole to start our hike. The trailhead is roughly across the Japanese fishing shrine that is now maintained by Vietnamese Buddhists. There are no colored ribbons to mark the way, but the trail itself is well traveled and hard to miss.

Going up the crater side

We started off on the relatively flat and rocky ridge that connects to the crater walls and then we started the gradual climb up Koko Crater.

The arch

The rock arch spans a gulch that is roughly in the middle of the climb up the crater. The easiest way to get over the arch is on the left hand side where there are some steps that look like they were carved into the tuff lava.

Hanauma Bay

The climb and our breathing got a little harder after the arch, as we neared the top, Hanauma Bay and Koko Head came into view. We also passed three hikers coming down from the top, other than that we had the trail all to ourselves. Besides Mount Olympus, going up the stairs at Koko Crater was the only other hike I’ve done that has so much foot traffic.

Makapu'u Point

Headed towards the summit, we could see the botanical garden inside the crater and Makapu’u Point in the distance.

View from the top

We made the summit at 1,208 feet in under an hour. As usual, the top was packed with people, attesting to it’s popularity with the local crowd. 

Going down the rim

Going down the crater rim was marked with a gradual descent punctuated by rocky formations that we either climbed or contoured around.

Crater rim wall

We came across part of the crater wall that looked like it was fractured or split apart. That’s what I love about ridge hikes, you get fantastic views and interesting scenery to boot. You also have to stay focused and keep that mental edge, otherwise you may fall off that edge.

Koko Crater Botanical Garden

We ended the two and a half hour hike amongst the sweet smell of plumeria trees in Koko Crater Botanical Garden.

After catching the cloudy sunrise at the beach that ushered in the New Year, I met up with the Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club at the Halona Blowhole parking lot. Every New Year’s Day, the club hikes the back of Koko Crater. After being told the obligatory “hike at your own risk” speech and the most dangerous part of the hike is crossing the highway to dodge rushing cars, we started off with a group that numbered in the 40s.

The knob

After we crossed the road, we climbed up the connecting ridge that lead to the main slope of Koko Crater. The trail naturally lead to the pointy rock formation sticking up from the crater rim or more commonly known as “the knob.”

The arch

This is a natural stone arch that spanned a gully. An advance party had strung up some rope to help us get over the arch. It was a nice touch as club members were wishing everyone Happy New Year as they helped us scramble over the arch.

The rim

As soon as we hit the knob, we made a left and started for the summit. I personally thought that hiking up the back crater of the rim was much easier than going up the tram tracks.

Scenic view

Once everyone was gathered at the top, some of the club members had brought along non-alcoholic champagne to toast the New Year. Another nice touch.

Going down

Here we are headed down the tram tracks and running into a bottleneck, as hikers going up and down meet at the part where the tracks bridge a gully. Some hikers elected to take the more sure-footed trail to the left as seen in the picture above.

"Secret" Tunnel

After we hit the bottom of the tracks, we took a trail that lead us past the Shooting Range, which was the driving reason the city tried to close the Koko Crater hike back in 2008. They cited the potential danger from errant bullets hitting hikers, even though there have been no reported close calls. Luckily, the city changed their mind about the closure, for now. After getting back on the highway leading back to the Blowhole, we passed a scenic sign point and then hopped over the guardrail into a gully. The gully lead us into a tunnel that went under the highway, luckily we entered while it was still low tide, I’m not sure if the tunnel is submerged during high tide, nor did I want to find out.

Splash

We walked in the semi-dark tunnel for about 15-20 feet before emerging on the other side to be greeted by waves crashing onto the shoreline.

Fishing Shrine

The Honolulu Japanese Fishing Club put this lava boulder with a Buddhist guardian, Jizo, carved into the West face in 1939. Overlooking Bamboo Ridge and Halona Point, the shrine was to protect the fishermen. Since 2007, Vietnamese Buddhists began to take care of the shrine after they placed a statue of Quan Am Nam Hai, a Vietnamese goddess on the South side.

Halona Cove

Looking down into Halona Cove. This beach is famous for the iconic scene with Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr in the movie “From Here to Eternity.”

Halona Blowhole

We approached the Blowhole from the beach side. Respectful of the ocean, we kept our distance from the natural lava rock spout that can shoot seawater up to 20 feet in the air. You can also see the white warning sign that marks where fishermen have drowned in the past. Back in 2002, a California tourist straddled the hole and got sucked in and died. His family filed a lawsuit against the State, claiming that not enough signs were posted to warn people about the dangerous conditions and also petitioned to have a metal grate installed over the hole. I’m sorry for his loss, but not for his lack of common sense. Why is that people can not just take accountability for themselves and their actions, and instead try to assign responsibility to others? The entire hike took around three hours and is relatively easy, it was a nice leisurely hike to start the New Year.

Koko Crater at 1,028 feet high, dominates the Hawaii Kai skyline. If you look closely, you can usually find ants of people going up and down the mountain. After reading countless posts about what a great hike this is and how it beats a stairmaster, I decided to give it a try. After driving into Koko Head District Park and parking next to the baseball field named after Mike Goeas, a former police officer that founded the PAL football program in Hawaii Kai. I followed the road until I hit the tram tracks that starts the climb towards Koko Crater.

Trailhead

There are reputedly 1,048 railroad ties or steps to the top. The tram tracks was built by the Army during WW2 to haul supplies to the top of the mountain. And no, I didn’t bother to count the steps going up. I was too busy just trying to make it to the top!

The Bridge

About half-way to the top, the ground gives way to a gully that’s about 10-15 feet deep. So now, the tram tracks serves as a bridge of sorts. It was around this point, that I kicked myself for leaving my water bottle in the car. I thought I wouldn’t need it. Wrong! The sun beating down on me didn’t help matters much. I thought about going back to get the water, but knew if I did, that I wouldn’t be coming back. So after a break, I continued my climb to the top.

Back on solid ground!

About 50 feet or so, the gully ends and the tracks are back on solid ground. For those leery of heights or not as sure-footed, there is a trail to the right that goes around the gully and connects to the tracks when it meets solid ground again.

Give me some water!

I felt sorry for this dog, as he didn’t look too keen on making this climb. At least, he was going back down. Coming down, hikers and dogs have the right of way, just step to the side and let them pass.

Are we there yet?

I believe this is the steepest part of the mountain. When I finally made it to the top, I found two older women chatting away, congratulating me on getting to the top. They told me that they do this every week! I really need to get back into shape!

View from the top

It took me roughly 35 minutes to make it to the top of Koko Crater or Pu’u Ma’i. I heard the “regulars” shoot for 20 minutes and some even run up and down the tracks. I was happy with my time! You can see Kuapa Pond in Hawaii Kai and Diamond Head in the distance from the top of the abandoned heliport.

Hanauma Bay

Looking to the left, you can see the breached volcano crater of Hanauma Bay and the companion tuff cone of Koko Head.

Botanical Garden

Peering over the crater rim of 200 acres of the Koko Crater Botanical Garden, looks all the same from up here! You can also see Makapu’u Point in the distance. After soaking in the views, it was time to go back down and guzzle my water that I left in my car! This hike is relatively easy, as it’s straight going up and down, parts of the ground supporting the tram tracks are eroded and you just have to watch your step, especially going down and always bring water.