Wednesday/Thursday we had decided we were going to do the Kalalau Trail so we woke up early but waited until the Grand Club opened at 630 so we could grab a bite before we left. When I asked about the smoked salmong being kosher, the lady offered to get us Kosher Bagels from oahu kosher for the rest of our stay which was really nice. We left around 645 and headed up north. By the time we got to trail head it was about 9 AM. We had one semi-big hiking knapsack and a small school bag. Other than what we were wearing, we didnt bring much with us: a tent, our blankets from delta first class, flip flops, some food, water purification tablets, bug spray and a camera. And of course the most important thing: toilet paper. The only thing we forgot to bring was matches/lighter. We were planning on eating La Briute meals for dinner so I didnt think about bringing anything for a bonfire but it was stupid bc wouldve been nice to have a fire. The hike itself was awesome. Incredibly grueling because you hike up and down 5 different mountains/valleys but the lanscape in each one was completely different and the views the entire way were just stunning. As Dan said about the Grand Loop - there are some images that will forever be embedded in my mind. We didn't take any of the detours on the way in because we started a bit late and wanted to get to Kalalau before sunset. We met several ppl along the way including a couple who was carrying their <1 yr old baby on her back (Dan, might be harder with two, but its doable!). The way in was hard because distances arent marked so you don't know exactly how far you are but the Revealed app helped a lot here in making sure we were on the right path and also telling us roughly how far along we were. Miles 7-8 was freaky - you are literally climbing down and then up a mountain on an 6 inch path along the side of a cliff. Not a single extra inch to your left and if you step two inches to the right and you're tumbling ~2000 feet to rocks below you. We got to the beach around 5, set up our tent just behind the beach in the camping area and chilled at the beach for an hour until sunset. Sunset was unbelievable and seemed to just go on forever. Besides for about 5-8 hippies who seemed to be there for several weeks already, there were only about 3 other groups of ppl there. Ate our la briute meals and went to bed (this is where a bonfire would have been nice)Thursday, we woke up early, davened and packed up and were on the trail by 745. The hike out felt much quicker, partially because we were doing it quicker and partially it just felt quicker because we knew the terrain and trail so knew what to expect. We made it Hanakoa by 1015 so we took the 1/2 mile detour to the falls, hung out there for a bit and continued on. It was bout this point that we started feeling blisters in our feet because we were wearing reg sneakers and didnt have proper hiking shoes (not big ones but enough to hurt). Somewhere along the way we looked down at the water and noticed a whole school of dolphins jumping in and out of the water which was so cool. We got back to the trailhead about 345, nervous our car would be gone and/or damaged but thank gd it was still there in one piece. Caked in mud and sweat, we left, stopped for some water (i've never appreciated cold, clean and clear water so much before!), dropped our tent off and went back to hotel. We cleaned up and went to the spa to help our poor bodies heal. Overall the hike was awesome and very easy to recommend to anyone who likes hiking and is somewhat in shape. It wasn't easy but the views were totally worth it. If you're not into hiking and/or aren't interested in camping out in a tent on a beach somewhere, then i would still highly recommend the first part of the hike, up to hanakapiai beach (we didn't go to hanakapiai falls so cant comment on that 2 mile extension). Its only 2 miles each way (albeit uphill half the way) but we saw all kinds of ppl doing it: 70 year olds and 7 year olds, ppl wearing hiking shoes and ppl wearing no shoes and even a dog. The views from even that part are really amazing so definitely worth doing as a half day hike.
Ok maybe slightly scarier than im remembering it now, but without bags should be easier
Not a fantastic shot but IINM this was the really narrow part
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
+1 awesome shot btw.
can you imagine the shots SF will have???
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Repost.
Apparently he didn't care for the people hanging out and using drugs at the beach and didn't want to spend the night there.
Count me in.
If CM is coming then I'll come too. DW might divorce me and I may lose my job though.
Yet even under those circumstances it's still worth it for you.
Maybe this is why: give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime