I had read somewhere that a ridge could be traversed from the Pu’u O Kona Summit down to the Windward side. Muddled thinking clouded my judgment and I became rather excited that I had “found” another ridge to explore despite having been up there too many times to shake a stick at. My euphoria was short-lived until a friend pointed out that it was most likely Bear Claw. Photo by Cisco Quintanilla.

Trailhead

Met up with Charlie, Cisco, Ferlino and Janell at the Kuli’ou’ou trailhead to hike a “new route” and a new hike for some.

Kuli’ou’ou West

Right off the bat, it was a short and steep climb that were partially interrupted by switch backs.

Kuli’ou’ou West

We soon crested to the relatively flat section of the ridge shaded and carpeted by the pine trees.

Kuli’ou’ou West

Leaving the tree line to make our way up to the Ko’olau Mountains.

Kuli’ou’ou West

Slogging through the thick underbrush of uluhe ferns.

Kuli’ou’ou West

Climbing up the exposed and crumbly ridge line, a welcome relief from the scratching and clawing ferns.

Kuli’ou’ou West

Our last crumbly rock climb. Well, not counting the other spur ridge going down.

Kuli’ou’ou West

We were within striking distance of the flat topped summit.

Pu’u O Kona Summit

Enjoying the expansive views from our 2,200′ perch. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Ko’olau Summit Ridge Trail (KSRT)

Passing over the eroded section that looks worse than it actually is.

KSRT

Not all monkeys fall from trees. Core strength goes a long way. Photo by Charlie Antonio.

IG Spot

I can see why people even drag tents to take a photo at this spot that has the striking background of fluted ridges that seem to go on forever. Photo by Cisco Quintanilla.

Bear Claw Ridge

Leaving the spine of the Ko’olau’s as we headed down the Windward ridge. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Bear Claw Ridge

Happy Easter from Bear Claw.

Bear Claw Ridge

The initial descent down the ridge. You can do this!

Bear Claw Ridge

Going down the ridge and battling the overgrowth on our way down. Photo by Charlie Antonio.

Bear Claw Ridge

Janell swinging herself around the tree to regain the ridge line.

Bear Claw Ridge

Leaving behind the pesky overgrowth as the ridge became more exposed. Thank goodness. Photo by Janell Tuttle.

Bear Claw Ridge

Climbing and contouring on the ridge line. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Bear Claw Ridge

The human cross. Photo by Charlie Antonio.

Bear Claw Ridge

Making our way up … Photo by Cisco Quintanilla.

Bear Claw Ridge

… and down a small bump on the ridge. Photo by Charlie Antonio.

Mushroom Rock

Janell perched on the rock that has seen better days, in terms of less overgrowth.

Junction

Brief break where the ridge splits into two. Your left, our right. Photo by Janell Tuttle.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Janell going through the tangled tree line.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Cisco coming down a small cliff while Janell spots him.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Janell climbing down the hardest part of the ridge. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Cisco pondering his next move.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Enjoying the views of Waimanalo and beyond on our way down. Photo by Ferlino Carinio.

Bear Claw Left Fork

We took a slight detour to experience the express slide short of the cliff. Photo by Charlie Antonio.

Look Ma No Hands

Charlie’s turn coming down. Photo by Janell Tuttle.

Bear Claw Left Fork

Making our way down the trail to the power lines and water tank.

BOWS

“You are being recorded. And the police have been notified. Leave immediately.” We are also recording as well.

Synchronized Jumping

Not everybody was on the same page.

All pau

We ended our hike on the grounds of Hilltop Ranch, with plump quails walking and pecking nearby, just out of cooking reach. Thanks to Jasmin for picking us up.

GPS Tracks

Our up and down hike barely registered at 3.13 miles, not even worth getting out of bed for, just kidding. Fun hike with a great group. Post hike meal at Pieology, where I swear the pizza and portions have somewhat shrunk in size.

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.

We hiked a ridge that may be under threat from urban development. Hike today. Gone tomorrow. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

No peeping

Glenn, Matt, Ryan, Thessa, and Tom joined me today. A friendly owner let us through his property to gain access to the ridge.

Good Morning Hawaii Kai

Henry Kaiser’s swamp to suburban vision. Build it and they will live here.

Kuli’ou’ou Ridge

Most people take the State ridge trail to get to the summit, we took the ridge trail.

Baby cacti

Passed a bunch of budding cacti.

Selfie rock

The moai of Kuli’ou’ou. Rain showers passed over the valley. We dug out our raingear. Rain showers stopped.

Loose rocks

We soon left the exposed ridge to head into a grove of ironwood pine trees.

Pine needle slide

Let your butts do the walking.

Kuli’ou’ou shortcut

Thessa pointing to the trail that bypasses the switchbacks from the bottom.

Hat junction

Passing the lost and found trail.

Selfie tree

A tree with multiple branches favored itself to our collective photo. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

State trail

The ridge soon connected to the bustling State trail.

Outdoor gym

Pull up versus chin up contest.

Who’s next?

Push. Oh. Pull.

Looking back

Tom coming up the trail.

Kuli’ou’ou summit

Group photo at the windy 2,028′ summit left to right: Tom, Glenn, myself, Thessa, Ryan and Matt. Photo by Tom Engle.

Panoramic view

Click here for the larger image.

Solitary view

Matt wishing he had a parachute.

Passing the sign

Leaving the crowded summit.

KSRT

We left the ridge for a short crossover on the Ko’olau Summit Ridge Trail.

Dirt scramble

One step forward. Two steps back. Nobody gets too far like that. This kind of hike can never last.

Bear claw ridge

The right claw needs to come out of hibernation.

Lunch break

We dropped down below the ridgeline to get a little relief from the winds. Like trade lunch? Photo by Ryan Meyer.

Back on the trail

Resuming our windy hike to Pu’u o Kona.

Eroded section

Carefully making our way across. Photo by Tom Engle.

Scenic lookout

Views of Waimanalo and a particular Windward ridge of interest. Photo by Ryan Meyer.

Puu o Kona

Group photo at the 2,200′ summit. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

Going down

It’s all downhill from here.

Looking back

Leaving the summit behind.

Crumbly rocks

Tom making his way down with the help of a *gasp* rope.

Ridging

Up a ridge. Down a ridge.

Uluhe slide

Letting gravity do all the work. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

Kalapa o maua ridge

Bushwhacking ahead.

Shoelace tying lesson

Double slip knot. It really works. No, I’m not buying dinner.

Sea of uluhe

A month earlier, Ryan and I had bushwhacked up from the bottom of the ridge to just shy of the summit. Never start late, never fight gravity and never underestimate Mother Nature.

Break time

Checking out the views of Kuli’ou’ou Valley.

Contouring

We skirted the pockets of thick trees that blocked our forward progress.

Moku boundary wall

Old Hawaiian property line that once ran from the Ko’olau summit to the edge of the reef in the ocean.

Bailout trail

Anybody see a black Sony camera? Anybody?

Rock chair

Sometimes you have to just sit down and enjoy the view.

Winding down

The group following the ridge down. Photo by Tom Engle.

See anything?

The lower part of the ridge was particularly thick with loose rocks and small hardy trees that forced us to stay to the left of the rock wall.

Future development?

Looking at the possible future site of another high-end luxury gated community. Another affordable housing project that Hawaii so desperately needs.

Paiko lagoon

A breach in the rock wall allowed us passage to the other side of the ridge.

Water tank

The end of our hot journey was in sight. It felt like we were hiking in Waianae.

Got water?

Fun hike with a fun crew. Photo by Matt Vidaurri.

All pau

The crew walking out the paved road.

GPS Tracks

The windy, hot and rocky hike covered 6.92 miles. Post hike meal at Outback. Same booth. Sniff?

Wanting to catch a quick hike before the projected thunderstorms were set to soak the island, I decided to hike up Kuli’ou’ou West Ridge to Hahaione Trail by myself, as the last hike we did not got a single decent view due to cloudy and rainy conditions.

Koolau Mountains

Going up the still somewhat muddy trail, I could see that it was going to be a beautiful day, albeit with vog conditions thrown in for good measure.

Kuli’ou’ou Valley

Looking back into Kuli’ou’ou Valley, with the sunshine being filtered by vog and hazy sky conditions.

Small kine fun ahead

After working my way through the trail, I finally got to the part where minor scrambling was involved. The fun part. Everything else is a means to the end.

Pu’u O Kona

Pushing ahead to the 2,200′ summit of Pu’u O Kona.

Panoramic view of the Windward side from Pu’u O Kona

Click here for the larger image. The stellar views were a marked change from two weeks ago, when it was nothing but clouds hiding the views.

Eroded section

I always wonder when this section will finally give way. Hope nobody is even near this spot when it happens.

Koolau Spine

Looking back towards the Koolau spine as far as my camera can see. I never get tired of these views.

Bear Claw Ridge

Looking down into Waimanalo from the top of Bear Claw Ridge. Having come up the ridge from both left and right forks, I thought about trying to downclimb this ridge. One day.

Panoramic view from Kuli’ou’ou Summit

Click here for the larger image. Amazingly, when I reached the summit around 9:25am, not a single soul was in sight. Usually this place is teeming with hikers and dogs. As I left the summit, I heard a couple hikers making their way up from the Kuli’ou’ou Ridge Trail.

Power lines

My solitude existence on the trails was soon interrupted by a stream of hikers making their way up from Hahaione Valley, as I was making my way down.

Private property?

As I made my way down into the valley floor, I ran across a large group of paintballers getting ready to do their thing. It seems that this area is a frequent hangout for paintballers. Shortly after I popped out at the end of Hahaione Street, Chris was nice enough to pick me up and deposit me back on Kalaau Place to get my car.

GPS Tracks

The 3.8 mile hike took me a little over 3 hours to complete.

Looking for an easy hike after our Kawiwi hike last weekend, I settled on the Kuli’ou’ou West Ridge hike as I have never done that particular route before. Originally I was going to do it with the H.O.T. ( Hiking Oahu Trailblazers ) group, but their kick-off time of 9:00am was in conflict with other plans, so I asked Chris and met him at 7:00am at the top of Kalaau Place in Kuli’ou’ou Valley.

Trailhead

We followed the paved road until it ended at this fenced building. The trail is to the right of the building and is well ribboned as it makes it way up the ridge.

Which way does the wind blow?

The trail going up passes through ironwood trees, strawberry guava trees and other standard Koolau mountain foliage. I prefer this more direct route as you avoid the tedious switchbacks common on the Kuli’ou’ou Ridge Trail.

Kuli’ou’ou Valley

Looking back at the rain showers sprinkling Kuli’ou’ou Valley and the surrounding ridges, including the one we were hiking on. Up ahead, the cloud covered mountains did not look promising for scenic viewing.

Walking in the clouds

As we neared the top, the clouds enveloped us along with rain showers to complete the picture.

Pu’u O Kona

We arrived at the 2,200′ Pu’u O Kona to whiteout conditions. At least, the rain showers stopped to give us a break. Spoke too soon.

Landslide section

Chris preparing to cross the landslide section. It looks worse than it actually is.

Spider web

Since I didn’t have any opportunities to take scenic pictures, I practiced my macro picture taking on this spider web that was on the trail. Speaking of such, it sucks to be the person in front as you often get spider webs all over your face as you push your way through the trails.

Headed to the east ridge

The one cool thing I liked about walking in the clouds, is that it lended a surreal experience to our hike.

Kuli’ou’ou summit

We made our way to the Kuli’ou’ou summit and still had no views. Mother Nature was not favoring us today.

Headed back down

As we made our way down the muddy and puddled ridge trail, the sun started to break up the clouds. Well, at least we had nice views on our way down. Once we started to hit the switchbacks, we took some direct shortcuts to break the monotony.

GPS Tracks

I think I will need to do this 4.3 mile hike again. On a clear and sunny day!