Ohikilolo to Ka’ala Road

West side is the best side, especially for hiking. Thanks to Jasmin for dropping Alexis, Annalyn, Ferlino and myself off in Kea’au.

Starting our dawn retreat into the valley.

Party of four for the horseback adventure tours? It’s amazing how a few years can commercialize this valley.

Hiking on the rocky, dirt road with views of Kaena Point in the distance.

Going off the beaten trail into the bushes and the fence line.

Hunter’s tree stand doubling as a flag pole. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

Leaving the valley floor and vegetation behind as they soon yielded to the rocky spur ridge.

Contouring and climbing our way up the short and steep spur ridge that was punctuated with rugged dikes. Photo by Alexis Widick.

Looking back at the ocean views along with the bleating sounds of goats bouncing around the valley.

Alexis scrambling her way up to the ridge line.

Time to give our fingers a work out on the fenced ridge line.

But let’s take a fence selfie first. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Going up in the shadow of the sun.

The ridge separating Makua and Ohikilolo Valleys.

I was pleasantly surprised to find no decomposing goats as we made our steady climb up the ridge.

Crossing an open section of the ridge before plunging into the mixed forested area right before the summit.

Ferlino mingling with the swarm of dragonflies that were dancing and darting around us at the broad clearing before the cabin. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

Closed for business. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Open for business. BYOTP.

Looking ahead to the triangular peak of scooped out brains.

Keeping close to the fence line as the eroded ridge dropped off towards Kea’au.

Group photo at the 3,052′ peak, left to right: Alexis, myself, Ferlino and Analyn. Clear views of Makua, Makaha and Ohikilolo Valleys were revolving around us, a primer for the upcoming Three Corners summit.

Dropping off the peak. Photo by Alexis Widick.

Zig zagging our way down the severely eroded back side.

Back on the fence line.

Fences for days. Photo by Alexis Widick.

All fences lead to Ka’ala. Photo by Alexis Widick.

The ridge widened enough to a point to take a scenic break.

Ferlino standing on the crumbly rock dragon. Photo by Analyn Baliscao.

The ridge continued to thin out in most sections, made even thinner with the fence line taking up valuable real estate.

Descending down the ridge with the help of the handy fence line.

Looking ahead to Pueo Falls deep in Makaha Valley.

Analyn straddling the fence from the Windward to the Leeward side to contour around a boulder that interrupted the fence line.

I heard somebody yelling at us from Three Corners. Turned out to be Chris and Ted who had hiked in from Mokuleia.

Analyn contouring her way between the boulder and the fence line.

Preparing to climb up the steepest section of the fenced ridge.

Looking back at the rest of the group making their way up.

Rat country.

Twin views of Makaha and Makua Valleys.

Making the final push towards the summit.

Views of Makua, Makaha and Mokuleia valleys spinning around us.

Thirty minutes of bushwhacking hell through the tangled mess of dense uluhe ferns and thorny thimbleberry plants lay ahead of us.

We could finally see the road for the uluhe ferns, but not the see the mountain for the clouds.

Alexis descending down through a corridor of uluhell ferns. The original plan was to exit from the Waianae Kaala Trail, but time and safety considerations dictated the easier option down.

Walking down the five miles of paved road with mountain views.

Road mirrors are good for blind turns and group selfies.

Barking loudly and carrying a big stick while walking down the road. Photo by Alexis Widick.

Color check at the cow sign.

Oops. It’s too late to turn back. Photo by Alexis Widick.

The walk down the road soon turned into a farmers market hike with avocados and java plums being plucked and picked from the roadside.

Hey guys, you don’t want to harvest some honey? Oh wait, those are wasps. Never mind. Photo by Alexis Widick.

We saw a herd of cows blocking the road. Cover the backpack and replace the shirt. Patience is a virtue as they soon grew bored of watching us and moved off to greener pastures.

I was walking down the road when Alexis yelled to let me know that a big, black cow was charging its way through the field towards my general direction. However, when the cow hooved the road, it looked at me and the rest of the group and decided to investigate the group, who promptly scattered up the hill. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Further down the road, we saw a big bull blocking the road ahead of us, as his herd was crossing the road to move off to greener pastures as well. Patience was a virtue, yet again. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

I think we had our fill of pigs, cows, dogs and an angry farmer today. It was not a good day at Old McDonald’s farm. Photo by Alexis Widick.

Now all we had to do was wait for our ride. Sit down and wait. Wave at the passing cars and wait. Stand up and wait. Calling other options and wait. Sit down and wait. Thanks to Jasmin for picking us up despite the navigational and directional challenges.

We hiked 10.18 miles from Kea’au to Mokuleia on our coast to coast trek. Amazing adventure with good friends. Post hike meal at Restaurant Kunio. The long wait time was somewhat sated by extra helpings of their ono garlic edamame.

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: kaala road, keaau, makaha valley, makau valley, ohikilolo, ohikilolo cabin, ohikilolo valley, three corners