Rick's Next Adventure

Christmas Hike

2009-12-25T15:40:00.000-08:00

Muir Woods: Bootjack Trail

2008-10-13T22:24:00.000-07:00

We've hiked a few times out at Muir Woods lately. I have finally sprung for the yearly pass because there are a lot of trails around there, and we like hiking in the redwoods. It was only $20, so its a bargain anyway. Either Tim or I can take a carload there anytime for the next year and no one pays. Not sure where we'd get a carload of hikers though! This was a good hike, around 8 miles I think. The uphill portion was mostly at the beginning, so the last half was mostly downhill. A very pretty stream is visible a lot of the time, with a couple of very small waterfalls that would be better in rainy season. The weird thing on this hike was the ladybugs. I had read in one of my guidebooks that sometimes you will see large numbers of ladybugs congregating near trails, but I wasn't quite prepared for seeing it! Tim and I felt like we were in some creepy horror bug movie...you couldn't walk without crunching bunches of them, though we tried not to! They were also flying all over the place in some spots, and they would land on us by the dozens. We just brushed them off once in a while and kept moving until we were out of ladybug territory!

Marin Headlands: Miwok trail through Gerbode Valley

2008-10-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

Since the weather here in San Francisco is so often foggy and miserable, and plus the fact that it can change really quickly, I've started keeping a couple of hiking plans in the car all the time. They come in very handy when we head off to the beach and end up in the fog instead! This was one of those days. By the time we ended the hike there was some sun and we still managed to go to the beach for a while. This was a pleasant hike, saw some cool hawks swooping right above us, but couldn't get their picture. the hike up the mountain was a lot steeper than I expected, well that or I'm getting out of practice at this! A good hike, but nothing too spectacular.

Russian River Canoeing

2008-08-31T20:24:00.000-07:00

The weather hadn't been very good, so Tim and I took off to the Russian River at Healdsburg to go canoeing. We decided to take the longest trip, which had a stipulation that you had to reach the 2/3 mark by 3 pm in order to go on and finish the rest of the trip. The entire trip was about 16 miles downriver. It was a beautiful day on the river, weather was warm but not hot. Every time we came to a big curve in the river with rapids we ended up turning around backwards and going through them completely turned around! We went through lots of branches that way (mostly me), but we never turned over so we decided that was the just the way it was meant to be!

One thing on the trip was really annoying... when we left one of the guides made a comment that we "probably wouldn't make it all the way", when we ended up getting to the 2/3 spot FIRST (before like 25 younger people) the guy said that was "amazing, considering..." and then at the end they again seemed really surprised that we beat everyone else into the finish line. We're NOT that old...LOL

All in all... a very good day. Oh, and on the way home we stopped at the Premium Outlet Stores in Petaluma and went shopping!

Big Basin Redwoods State Park: The Waterfall Loop

2008-07-19T21:50:00.000-07:00

Tim and I decided to give this hike a try last Saturday and I'm glad we did. We weren't sure that there would be much water at the waterfalls, but it was supposed to be one of the best hikes in the Bay area. It was about an hour and a half's drive from San Francisco, unfortunately kind of a curvy road a lot of the way, and Tim doesn't like that! I had him drive because he says that if he's driving he's too busy to throw up...

We started off on the hike from the park headquarters. The trail was supposed to be about an 11 and half mile loop, which the guidebook said took most people about 6 hours, though some could do it in four hours and some might take all day. We wondered which we were! You are in the Redwood forest immediately on a winding path that goes relatively slowly uphill for quite a ways. The trail became more uphill sometimes, and then would do some roller coasting (up and down, up and down), which I always hate.

Eventually, after several miles, we started a downhill into waterfall country. The first one came up pretty quickly and we stopped at its base and had our one snack for the trip. After we left that one, we discovered that there were several more in pretty quick succession, really one better than the next. We differed on which one was the prettiest. I liked the last one, which cascaded against the rocks as it went down. Tim like the one that is a straight drop into a small pool with fallen redwoods. They were both good!

Continued on the trail, which now took us up and up and up. We were both getting really tired of UP. But we knew it had to come, obviously water flows downhill and all those waterfalls took us far down the mountain, so we had to go back up. We had almost made it back to the park headquarters when I took a header after tripping over a tree root on the path. Eleven miles and I trip 10 minutes from the end! Got a good bloody knee and a dirt bath, but got right up and continued to the first bathroom where I cleaned up. Excellent hike! Oh yeah...the camel you will see in the pics...we don't know what it was doing there, but as we left the park a woman was leading the camel down the middle of the road, don't have any idea why! It was odd.

Matt Davis-Steep Ravine Loop with more Waterfalls!

2008-07-16T19:56:00.000-07:00

This was a 7.2 mile loop that started off in "downtown" Stinson Beach and rose to about 1600 feet at the top of the loop and then went, well, steeply down Steep Ravine and back to the beach. I parked by the Stinson Beach Fire Department and just a few feet down the street was the trailhead. It started off going over a small creek on a bridge and then began to climb the hill behind town. I came across a sign that said "Rattlesnake Area" within the first few hundred yards, but fortunately did not see any on the hike.

The trail was pretty steep at the beginning, lots of steps too. It was also really pretty with the sound of the creek accompanying me up the path. At one point I could see a nice waterfall across the canyon. I thought the trail would probably take me by it, but it never did. The trail continued to rise but became less steep most of the time. Eventually I came to a grassy area for a while and then wound my way through the forest again, ending up at a ranger station where I took a break after the 4 mile uphill part of my hike.

From there I headed downhill into Steep Ravine. It was breathtakingly beautiful! Huge redwoods, lush green ferns and a babbling creek, not to mention lots of bridges which I love seeing. I went down the ladder next to the first waterfall, which was pretty but didn't have a lot of water at this time of year. I continued on to the next waterfall, at one point having to duck through where a giant redwood had fallen down and been cut through so you could go down the path. There were lots of old redwoods that had fallen down over the years, sometimes they looked like giant pixie sticks.

I came to the next waterfall, which was a series of small falls. It was also a really nice waterfall. I went down on the boulders in front of it and took some pictures before I went on down the trail. The trail continued down, passing by a small dam and a nice pool where I saw 3 deer running through the woods. Soon after that I came out above the beach and walked through a grassy area with lots of wildflowers and eventually down to Highway 1 and my car was just a couple blocks away. A splendid hike!

26/0

Cataract Falls, Marin County

2008-07-14T19:28:00.000-07:00

This was a nice hike, but pretty steep on the way up. It was a further drive than I thought it would be, though I don't think I took the shortest route going. After the long drive over Mt. Tamalpais and then back down a little way, I ended up in a small canyone and parked along the road. I found the trailhead right away, as you can see in the pics there were signs with a LOT of rules. Seems that the trail and waterfalls are part of the Marin water supply, so you are not supposed to even dip your toes into the water.

I hadn't realized there was a lake I would be going by, so I was surprised to almost immediately see the greenish water of Alpine Lake through the trees as I started the hike. It was a very pretty place to start. The hike goes up almost from the start. It is not a long hike, even with adding a little on to the end it was only about 4 miles roundtrip. But it was steep, so it seemed a little longer than that.

After you start the climb up, the falls begin almost immediately. There are many, many spots with waterfalls, both large and small. Well, I guess they were all kind of small right now because there isn't a lot of water. But they were still running, so it was pretty and made a lovely sound too. There were few people on this hike, I counted only 10 for the trip. After making it to the top of the canyon I saw another trail post that said it was only .4 miles to Laurel Dell, so I went ahead and went to the top. There was a picnic area, some pit toilets and I guess a camping area at the Dell. It looked nice, but very dry right now.

The waterfalls would be much more dramatic in the rainy season, but they were fine for me now. I like the hikes better when there aren't a lot of people. All in all, a very splendid day.

26/0

A Picture of Dudley

2008-07-12T22:11:00.000-07:00

Not much of a post, but I took this picture of Dudley the other day...there's just something about it I really like! Click on it and look at full size... and in the interest of fairness, heres one of Callie too!

Purisma Creek Redwoods Trail

2008-07-10T21:16:00.000-07:00

This was an excellent hike! It had a lot of what I really like in a hike. It was a 7 mile loop hike, which is a good distance for an afternoon hike. It starts right off with a nice creek and a trail that heads gently uphill in a little valley filled with ferns and redwoods. There were quite a few other hikers at the beginning, but after a couple of miles I only saw a couple of other people the rest of the way.

Eventually the trail became smaller and followed a path along the wall of the valley. It was steadily uphill, but usually not too steep. That was good because it was hot that day. As it is, I was redfaced and just dripping with sweat by the time this hike was over. I did put in one picture of me, the rest I quickly destroyed!

The trail finally wound its way up through chapparal and out of the trees, where it was even hotter, but then finally headed downhill at a quick pace. At one point I was trying to get away from a couple of flies and started running downhill...but it was so steeply downhill I couldn't stop running for, I swear, a quarter mile. It wasn't dangerous, I was laughing most of the way! Finally the trail ended up in the redwoods again, by the stream. A nice way to end the hike.

After reading this back it doesn't sound like that great of a hike, but it was! Oh, and you'll notice several bridges. I really like how different they all are and as you will see in future hikes, I like taking pictures of them. Hope you like them too!

101/0

Palomarin Trail to Alamere Falls: YES, Waterfalls!

2008-07-04T23:18:00.000-07:00

Tim and I really enjoyed this hike, it had a lot of variety and included the waterfalls, which always makes us happy. There were quite a few new plants for me to photograph, but the real stars on this hike were water features. We passed several small ponds which were very pretty and then went by Bass Lake. It was beautiful, but we couldn't believe people were actually swimming in it. The temperature is supposed to be about 58 degrees...BRRRR! Also went past Pelican Lake and then eventually came to Alamere Falls, which end up flowing right over a cliff and into the ocean. Very nice falls, way better than we had even hoped for. This was about an 8 mile hike, it was a great way to spend the 4th of July!

169/1

Goodbye Hawaii, Hello California: Sweeney Ridge, my first Bay Area hike!

2008-07-02T22:12:00.000-07:00

Well, the house in Hawaii finally sold, and here I am back in San Francisco. Its kind of nice to be back, except for the weather which I still hate. Its so hard to get used to fog and cold in the summer, especially for someone like me who hasn't even put on long pants in nearly a year!

This hike was a nice start for me, it has history, lots of flowers and even an old Nike missle base. As you will see in the pictures, Gaspar de Portola, a Spanish captain and explorer sent his men inland where they discovered San Francisco Bay. Earlier explorers, such as Sir Francis Drake, had missed seeing the opening at the "Golden Gate" and never knew the Bay existed!

The flowers were amazing on this hike, check out the pictures. I'm still learning their names, that may take a while. The Nike missle base has been totally covered in graffiti, but check it out, its the best graffiti I've ever seen!

And a bonus video again!

Sacred Falls Redux...with Celia and Tim!

2008-06-18T21:59:00.000-07:00

Another trip to Sacred Falls, where we're not supposed to be. I had to take my friend Celia, and Tim of course! We had a nice time, but I hate these pics...hope that Celia's turned out better!

My Pineapple Crop!

2008-06-08T21:43:00.000-07:00

OK, so not really a crop so much as a few! But I've done pretty well on growing the tropical fruit. I've had a ton of bananas, a full crop of limes and finally pineapple; my work is done!

Wiliwilinui: A Great Hike to the Koolau Summit (with Bonus Movie!)

2008-05-25T22:36:00.000-07:00

This is a really nice hike, my nephew did it when he visited Tim and I in the summer of 2006 but I couldn't do it with him then. I probably wouldn't have done it anyway, since I was still smoking and wouldn't have been able to make it to the top!

The hike starts off in a private gated community, but you just have to tell the guard you are going on the hike and they give you a parking pass. You go up a road quite a ways to start. Eventually the road stops and the small, and very steep trail begins. There is one section where you have to use ropes to go up and down, but I managed it pretty easily. When you are almost at the top, there is a radio station transmitter. From there the trail is kind of creepy, because the little ridge you are on for the last little ways seems much smaller with a dropoff on each side. But its NOT really dangerous!

As I was getting to the top, the clouds started coming over the crest of the Koolaus, so it was actually pretty cold up there. The clouds that were settling down on me obscured the view of the other side of the mountain and the 2000 foot cliff that was right in front of me. Some pretty spectacular views of Diamondhead Crater though.... I put in a small video that I took at the top, check it out!

The Haiku Steps: Caught on the Stairway to Heaven

2008-05-24T12:29:00.000-07:00

I've wanted to do this hike for a long time. Unfortunately, its another hike that has been closed for quite a while. This one is very different though, it consists of steps and ladders that lead up the side of a nearly vertical mountainside just outside of Kaneohe, near where the H-3 comes out of the tunnels.

I had to get up really early and was at the trailhead and climbing the fence (yes, breaking in...) to get on the road by 7 a.m. I didn't know exactly which road to take once I got in, there were several leading different directions. After a couple of mistakes, I found what I thought was the path and headed up a dirt trail. I ended up at a fence where I could see the steps but not get to them! Back down that hill and up the road a little more until I found another path...this one ended up leading to the steps.

I started out on the bottom steps and started climbing up. Soon I could see that there were other people on the steps, heading down towards me. I kept climbing up, but then I looked up to see where the other hikers were. One of them had a silver badge...crap! He made a "turn-around" motion, so down I went. He turned out to be a pretty nice guy (for a security guard) and just told me I couldn't hike up the stairs. I don't know what time they get out there, but earlier than I want to get up.

I took Tim there to see the different old Coast Guard buildings, the place they shot some scenes from "Lost" (has the Dharma Initiative symbol!) and the swimming hole, but we didn't try to go up the steps. The first pic is of Tim on the later trip in June.

Under the H-3 Freeway: Not your usual hike!

2008-05-17T21:50:00.000-07:00

The H-3 freeway cuts through the Halawa Valley, then goes through a tunnel cut into the Koolau Mountains and ends up on the Windward side of the island above Kaneohe. The entire freeway is elevated above the valley, which is beautiful. As you drive the freeway, every once in a while you can see an access road; I'd wondered what might be on the road, so I decided to try and walk it.

I checked it out on Google Earth to get a good idea of how I could get to the access road, which doesn't have an entrance thats easy to get to. I saw that I could cut through the Board of Water Supply's Xeriscape Gardens, and then walk up a stream bed to the road. I headed out to the Gardens, parked right out in front and walked in. I was immediately "greeted" by a woman who wanted to know why I was there. Now this is a public garden, but open only on certain days. This was one of them. Apparently they don't get a lot of unannounced visitors...she was immediately suspicious of me "because you have a backpack on". I told her that I was going hiking, which only made things worse! Then she just freaked out about how we were by the water aquifer and after 9/11 you have to watch out...and then told me she'd feel "safer" if I didn't have the backpack! What a nutball...lol. She made sure to tell me that I couldn't go on the hike through the Gardens, they didn't allow it. I said that was fine, and I was going to look around a little anyway. Next thing I know she has a guard coming over and wants to search my backpack. I handed it to them and said fine, go ahead, which seemed to make them back off a little. This was the weirdest thing, I was dressed for hiking and I'm pretty sure I don't look like a terrorist...

Anyway I left there, went out in front and found a trail that went around their fence, down to the stream and right to the access road. I didn't even need to go in there! I started walking down the access road, and after about a mile I saw a big group of native Hawaiians coming down the road towards me... not so good for me because I knew that they had protested the road going through the valley when it was built and consider it somewhat off limits to outsiders. I kept walking, and they didn't say anything as I passed by but the men gave me some hard looks!

I walked a little further and came to a spot that had signs about staying out of Hawaiian cultural spots and there were several people there, some gardens, the ruins of a building and several other ancient looking things on the grounds. Two men were sitting by the side of the road talking, and I knew if I was going to get by I needed to talk to them. They told me to go inside and talk to a woman there. I did, and it turned out she had been one of the original protestors and was responsible for keeping up the place we were at. It was very interesting and I arranged to have middle school students from my school go there next year to help in the gardens and then they feed them a Hawaiian meal. It would be a great cultural experience for the kids. They gave me their blessing to continue on through the valley!

To be honest, there wasn't that much to see in the valley. It was a really nice walk, and about 11 or 12 miles round trip. I walked all the way to the tunnels and then back...it was pretty, but didn't see anything as exciting as my meeting with the native Hawaiians at the beginning. Oh yeah... I didn't take any pictures of the Hawaiian camp as I thought it might be rude, so sorry about that!

Hamama Falls

2008-05-11T21:40:00.001-07:00

I found this hike online, it really surprised me because it was so close to our house. When I got to the waterfall, it was less than 2 and a half miles from home! There is a great swimming hole, a couple of weird concrete things I couldn't identify... and a ROAD (steep, but great for killing off a few calories) went all the way to the waterfall...weird huh? Not a bad waterfall either!

Kawainui Marsh in Kailua

2008-05-05T21:28:00.004-07:00

Kawainui Marsh in Kailua is a great place for a walk, if I was feeling spunky I'd do it twice. Its about a mile and a half each way, so a pretty good workout if you do a couple of times.

Pu'u Ma'eli'eli X Two

2008-05-04T23:41:00.000-07:00

Pu'u Ma'eli'eli is a 700 ft. hill that is behind our house, which is built on its lowest slope. Tim and I tried to climb it once when we first moved here, but the jungle was too thick and we only managed t0 make it up to the first ridge. We'd had enough of the over-your-head grass that cuts your arms and legs and the slippery ground that made it really hard to go uphill. I never knew it had a name until I came across a hike called the Pu'u Ma'eli'eli Trail and while reading it I realized it was talking about OUR hill. The trail guide said that it could be accessed from either side of the hill, both Kamehameha Hwy side and Kahekili Hwy side. Since we live on the Kamehameha Hwy side, I tried that trail head first.

The trail head was supposed to be across from Heeia Pier and Park, which is about a mile from my house (right next to where they shoot the jungle scenes from the TV show "Lost"). I walked down there and started looking for the trail. There seemed to be only one spot that looked like an actual trail, so up the embankment I went. The trail led through head-high grasses (ugh!) and soon disappeared. I tried several more paths, but each fizzled out very soon. On one path I suddenly came into a clearing and discovered a homeless man in his encampment. I said hello and quickly backtracked out of there. I went back to the highway and looked and looked for another way, but no trail was to be found. I ended up just taking a walk and heading home.

The next day I decided to go over and try the other trail head. It was also up an embankment off the highway and led through the tall grasses first, but there was an actual trail to follow here. The trail got better and better defined and easier to follow as I went up the hill. It didn't seem long at all until I could see a sign up above me that said Pu'u Ma'eli'eli. There is a small bunker there, with a flagpole sticking out of it. The bunkers were built for training in WWII. The bunkers are built into the hill and are really big. And most surprisingly, they weren't full of trash like the ones I've seen elsewhere on the island. They were completely clean, except for a little graffiti. The whole area I was in was surrounded by trees, so there wasn't a view from there. I kept going down the trail, trying to find a view when I went around a curve and the whole sky suddenly opened up in front of me.

There was a command/control bunker built out over the side of the hill and the view was just awesome. Totally awesome, for sure! At first it made me a little dizzy, because even standing back a few feet you felt like you were floating above the landscape! I sat down and took it in for a while, it was mesmerizing. I could see our house down below and everything else from Makapuu / Waimanalo to Chinaman's Hat. The ocean was having one of its really beautiful days when there is shade after shade of clear blue ocean and the coral reefs stand out from everything else making circles and crescents of varying shades in the water. I stayed for quite a while, longer than I usually stay at the end of a hike. I just hated to leave the view!

Eventually, of course, I had to come down the hill. I found a really steep, really quick way down and ended up at a condo building coming out at their tennis courts which saved me quite a bit of time. After I got home I kept thinking that it was too bad I couldn't find a trailhead on my side of the hill so that I could hike up the hill anytime I wanted. So...believe it or not...I'm blazing my own trail up the side of the hill from my house. Yesterday was the first day of trailblazing and it is really hard work! I made it .21 miles from my house, to the top of the first ridge. I put blue ribbons to guide me and chopped down most things that were in my way. It is going to be quite a project!

Some Videos from Pu'u Ma'eli'eli

2008-05-02T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hi guys,

Here are some videos I took from Pu'u Ma'eli'eli, the hill behind my house. I have a couple of more hikes to tell you about but the house has gone into escrow so I'm very busy with that!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qG4GGgXDxE

Another Manoa Stream / Celia's Waterfalls

2008-04-27T12:46:00.010-07:00

My last hike was supposed to be the hike my friend Celia told me about but I turned left down the road to follow the first stream I came to, when I should have just continued straight down the road. Anyway, so this time I went straight and then the road crosses a fast-moving stream and turns left to follow that stream. There were several more bridges and, oddly, they seem to be newly painted. Which is weird because the road passes nothing else but the ruins of a few buildings and some long ago burnt out cars.

Eventually the road becomes a trail and follows the stream most of the time. It has a lot more vertical terrain than the last hike. There is also quite a bit of mud to slog through from time to time. Another odd thing is that once in a while the trail becomes a cobblestone path, then goes back to dirt or mud. About half way to the falls it gets really odd when I came upon a staircase going up the steep side of a hill. Around the same place are some old bunkers, pipes and lots more steps. I have no idea what might have been out here before but the jungle is so thick it could be hiding about anything, maybe there's a pyramid or something else hidden that I couldn't see!

There are several nice areas of pools and small drop offs and then you reach the first waterfalls after about an hour (Celia said 40 minutes but it took longer since I didn't know the way and had to puzzle over the trail sometimes!). You climb up and around the first set of little falls, then you get to a much bigger waterfall. There is a rope ladder hanging down that waterfall, which leads to the next waterfall. I didn't climb the rope ladder, but I wanted to! It did look a little dangerous so I decided better safe than sorry. Celia says that waterfall is even bigger, guess I'll have to take her word for that! I couldn't find any name for the waterfall, so I've named it Celia's Falls.

Heading back down the trail I noticed a lot more of the vegetation and stream than on the way up. There were quite a few really nice flowers, including wild orchids and several types of ginger I hadn't seen. Once in a while you would come to an area where the ground was so covered in pink flowers that the path looked like a pink carpet! This was a very nice hike, not too hard with just about the right amount of up and down to give me a decent workout. Now Celia has to go and take my hike up the other stream.... maybe she'll name the falls after me.

Manoa Valley Hike -- Manoa Falls, Aihualama Trail, Waiakeakua Stream and Falls

2008-04-24T12:22:00.005-07:00

The Manoa Falls Trail is probably the most well known trail on Oahu. I've taken every visitor we've had to the Manoa Falls I think. I knew that there were a couple of other hikes that could be taken in the same area, so I headed up there to explore something new. The report I found online told me to turn right after the first concrete bridge as you enter the hike. Well, at the first (and only) concrete bridge there was no way to turn right! I looked all over but still couldn't find any sort of path leading off the main trail. I decided to walk up to Manoa Falls, and then try the Aihualama Trail that leads away from it. Manoa Fall had hardly any water, didn't even bother to take a picture since I have some from other trips.

I headed up the Aihualama Trail, for the first half mile or so it was wide, graded and not too steep. Eventually though I reached a place where the "trail" was really just a boulder climb in a gulch. That wouldn't have been so bad but it was really steep! There were two Chinese girls hiking in front of me. I passed them after a while and not too long later I saw them turn around and head back down the mountain. I wasn't exactly thrilled with the hike either, so I called my friend Celia at school to see where she hikes at Manoa. (She told me before that she goes on another trail that has a waterfall) She gave me the basic directions and I headed back down the mountain, past Manoa Falls and down the trail to the beginning again. From there I walked a few blocks until I found what I thought was the trail she had told me about.

It started off as an abandoned road, then a dirt road, passed several dilapidated old structures and then went through an orchard of trees that I didn't recognize. After looking at them a while as I walked, I saw one had flowers. I don't know the name of the flower, but it is one that is grown to make flower leis with. The road turned into a trail and headed into the jungle. It was a really nice walk through the forest, not too steep, not too muddy. The path stayed right next to the stream which was flowing well. Lots of nice pools, little sections of rapids and dropoffs, finally leading to a couple of small waterfalls and one big one. Not a huge amount of water coming down the big one, but no matter, it was a really pretty spot. Definitely one of my favorite hike endings!

The funny thing is this...it wasn't Celia's hike at all! I talked to her when I came back and her hike was the next road down, she had never been on the one I had just done. I haven't seen it in any guidebooks or even online, so it is definitely a good find! A very nice hiking day for sure. Make sure and open up the pics on this page, you really need to see them bigger to appreciate how pretty it was!

Kilauea Volcano + Kona Winds = VOG

2008-04-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

The Kilauea Volcano on the Big Island has been active for years, but right now there is smoke and ash coming from the caldera at the top, which hasn't happened in 80 years. Its been flowing down the hill a lot more also, and has made it to the Kalapana area. That is much closer to where we went to the store and from where we saw the lava last year. When the winds turn around and come from the southeast, it not only gets more humid here, but we get the smoke from Kilauea Volcano. For those of you who have been to our house, you may recognise the view from our house. Or maybe not with all the smoke...

Lulumahu Falls and Kaniakapupu Summer Palace

2008-04-19T11:09:00.013-07:00

Tim and I took this hike last year and got completely lost in the bamboo forest. We managed to get out, but only because we had the GPS with us. Without it, I swear we would have never gotten out of that forest! It has bugged me ever since that we failed to find the waterfall that day. I decided that since I have a lot more experience with hiking trails in Hawaii now, maybe if I tried it again I would find it this time.

I set out down the easy path that leads to the summer palace of King Kamehameha III and his wife, Queen Kalama. It was built in 1845, and wasn't occupied very long. The King had one big party there, the sign says he had 10,000 guests. They must have all been outside, the summer palace is small! It is in ruins, but the spot it sits in is really pretty.

The guide book tells you to go to the summer palace and then find the path that goes on from there. The guide says it is very hard to find the right trail, as there are trails crossing each other all over the place. S0me are pig trails, some from hunters, and most I think are trails left by hikers who were completely lost. The guide says "Don't worry, just follow any path that leads upstream; you'll eventually get to the waterfall." No, you won't, you'll end up lost in the forest again!

I followed a good path until it started to enter the bamboo forest. I was talking to Tim on the phone at the time and he told me not to go in! Since our last visit he has a bit of a phobia about bamboo forests! I told him the GPS was on and continued into the forest. Everything was fine for a while, I seemed to be making great progress upstream. Then the trail starts to disappear and then I'm lost again in the same forest as last time. I decided to try a different tactic and try to work my way along the edge of the stream until I get out of the bamboo forest. That didn't work at all! After about a half hour, I got to a spot that I remembered. I'd somehow gone in a big circle through the bamboo forest.

I needed a new tactic. I decided to head straight through the forest. following the GPS in a straight line towards the Pali Hwy. I figured I had to intersect with a better trail somewhere along the way. Even with the GPS it was hard to go straight through, I kept getting blocked and managed to get "lost" in the bamboo again, then "lost" in a grove of paperbark trees, then "lost" in a grove of strawberry guava, then I suddenly came out of the woods in an abandoned parking lot! It was an old campground, long out of use. It was still in good repair really, and I could see on the GPS that I had made progress in getting closer to the right part of the stream to find the waterfall.

I headed towards the direction I expected to find a trail, if one existed. Down a grass road, around a water tank and then I found steps leading to a nice wide trail! The trail led to the stream and then went nicely upstream. Soon I passed an old dam and spillway and not long after that I spotted Lulumahu Falls! I made it!! When I headed back I discovered that this is a nice hike IF you know the trick. Its actually just off the Pali Hwy., around the Nuuanu water reservoir, through the camping area and up the trail. Now if someone would clue in the guy who writes the hiking book! On the way back as I was walking to the Jeep I went by a crew of Hawaiian highway workers. Six guys watching one guy dig a hole, guess its the same everywhere!

Hike to Kalauao Stream

2008-04-14T00:30:00.001-07:00

This is a hike that I almost didn't do. I had just done the Manana / Waimano Pool hike, and you know I wasn't all that enthralled with it. This hike, on paper, is almost the same description! Fortunately I decided to check it out because it wasn't the same at all.

This hike started out at a little known state park above Aiea, kind of near the Aloha Bowl. The park is called the Keaiwa Heiau State Recreation Area. It has a "heiau", which is a Hawaiian place of worship. Oddly, I forgot to take a picture of it. But the things are all over, so I've seen plenty of them!

The trail follows a ridge line for a while, then to reach the stream and falls there is a side turnoff. You descend rapidly through a forest of strawberry guava trees. I saw the fruit on the trees for the first time, so I picked one. Its a little cherry shaped fruit, tastes sweet and has little seeds like a strawberry. Not bad at all!

Then it just gets muddy and steep. Its as steep as "cardiac hill" was, but somehow the area is so much nicer. I finally reach the valley floor and the stream is right there in front of me. I walked the trail along the stream, which meandered from one side to the other, with little pools and rushing rapids in between. Just about a perfect spot for a walk. The falls aren't huge, but are really lovely. It was just an absolutely gorgeous spot. Maybe this really IS paradise? Maybe, but I still want to go back to the mainland...

Manana Trail / Waimano Pool

2008-04-11T21:27:00.001-07:00

I hated a whole lot of this hike. I hated the down part and I hated the up part. I was OK with the level part though! Actually, this trail starts off nice enough, with a pleasant walk on a long ridge. It goes up and down with a little roller coasting (still a lot more ups than downs though) and the views were pretty enough, but nothing out of the ordinary for Hawaii.

The Manana Trail is about a 12 mile round trip if you go all the way. I didn't. I stopped at the picnic table for a break (about 2 miles up) and then turned around and decided to go back down a little ways and find the trail for Waimano Pool. It took me a little while but I found the right trail and headed down into Waimano Valley. And I mean DOWN, almost straight down. Every step down I thought about the return trip! And it was a long way down, almost 3/4 of a mile to the stream bed at the bottom.

From my guide book: "Waimano Pool is a popular outing because of its short length and its main attraction, two good-sized swimming holes."

My description: Waimano Pool is totally not worth the effort. There are two rather stagnant looking pools, surrounded by trash from lazy partiers.

And then of course you have to go back up the way you came in, almost straight up, and up and up. The guidebook refers to this as "Cardiac Hill", at least it got that right!

I almost forgot, there was one thing I liked on this hike. I finally found some sandalwood trees. I was pretty sure I had found one by the description, so I busted off a little piece of a branch and lit it. It smelled just like the 70's, sandalwood incense!

Moanalua Valley Hike

2008-04-08T18:04:00.008-07:00

The Moanalua Valley hike is one that Tim, Craig and I tried to do summer before last. The day we tried to go on this hike, it was closed because of pig hunters. Apparently it is closed every Wednesday and Saturday for that. Anyway, I always thought it might be interesting so I headed there on a beautiful sunny day. The trailhead is back behind where Tim used to work at Kaiser Moanalua, all the way to the back of the valley at a small, but very nice park.

Moanalua Valley was owned by the royal family, as was all of Hawaii, until they started giving parts of it to the people and selling some to foreigners. Moanalua Valley was given to the Damon family who were business partners with some members of the royal family, the Bishops. There were at least two houses built, one for his son and one for his daughter.

The trail is what is left from the old cobblestone road to the two houses. There are also 7 bridges that were constructed between the son's house and the daughters. The bridges still stand, I took some pictures of them. It is an easy hike back to the first house, which is a little off the road and nearly completely covered by the jungle. There isn't much left, lots of stairs that go nowhere, one small building that looks like a carriage house and the kitchen fireplace.

From there you continue down the path which sometimes still has the cobblestones and sometimes is just muddy. You cross the seven bridges and then eventually reach the site of the daughter's house. I found even less there, just another kitchen fireplace, but I really didn't explore the area very well. Just past the seventh bridge there is a very large rock that has petroglyphs, which are symbols carved into the rock by ancient Hawaiians. My guidebood said that there were all kinds of symbols on it, but the only one I could really make out is some sort of "bird-man". I needed some tracing paper like you can do on gravestones.

From there I continued to hike up the trail, crossing the stream several times. I finally came to the spot where the trail divides, one part follows the stream and the main trail goes to the back of the valley. I decided to just stay on the valley trail. Walked a long ways, lots of birds singing in the forest. Every once in a while I would pass a tree with an address on it. I don't know what that was about! It was never all that hard of a hike, though about the time it started getting really steep, I decided I'd had enough hike and turned around!

A Walk to Ka'ena Point

2008-04-03T01:08:00.008-07:00

Hi all, time for another hike report. From the comments made by several recipients I can say that my last hiking report was not very well-received due to my lack of serious thought before telling you all that it was dangerous AND I was by myself. I really should edit myself better! Point taken, I'll try to be more careful.

So...for this hike I chose Ka'ena Point. Ka'ena Point is the far northwest tip of the island, where ancient Hawaiians believed that their souls went before they "jumped off" to the afterlife. The road ends about 2 and a half miles from the point on both the north and west sides of the island. I decided to hike in from the west as reports I read on the net said it was prettier that way.

I parked the car in as hidden a spot as I could find near the trailhead. Unfortunately, a few of the locals believe that anything that isn't moving is fair game for stealing. The trail is really what is left of an old road and train track. Once in a while there is a spot where the road has caved into the ocean, but all in all its good for walking. The walk there was really pretty, and I say walk because there isn't much up or down or anything that would have me calling it a hike. And how dangerous could a "walk" be? Couldn't have been safer, even passes the "but could you take your Mom?" test. I could see a few Green Sea Turtles as I walked, the water was really clear.

When you get to the Point there are signs warning you to stay on the path and not bother the Albatross chicks or their parents. I saw one Albatross chick that was close enough to get a picture. The chick was huge, it still had its brown, downy feathers but is the size of a toy poodle already. They are big birds when they grow up! It was hard to get a picture of an adult as they swooped in the wind, but I finally did get a decent one that isn't too far away to see it.

I took the trail that led down the dunes to the beach. There was another sign that said to stay back from the Monk Seals if you see one. I thought, yeah sure, but as soon as I went over the little hill, there were two Monk Seals! One was asleep on the rocks, the other was sleeping in the water. They paid no attention to me at all. I took their picture, but tried not to disturb their nap.

I was trying to take the usual picture of myself out on the Point; every time I put the camera on something, before I could get the pic, the camera would fall off into the sand! I gave up but it seems that one of the times it went off as I went to retrieve it, so that's why the odd picture of me...

I thought I'd been pretty lucky to see so much rare wildlife in one day, but I hadn't seen any whales, and I had read that the whales really like the area by the point. I was disappointed but finally gave up watching for them and got off my rock to take the trail back. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something odd, it was a whale breathing! It then came up several times and I could see its huge tail slapping the water as it dove. It happened several times, I couldn't tell if it was one whale or more, but it was cool!

I headed back after the whale disappeared and the walk back was even prettier than the walk there. The way the coast curves let me see a lot more of the coast at a time. There are several natural bridges and lots of tidepools. Anyway, I got back to the Jeep about 3 hours after I started, an easy trip.

Not sure what the next hike will be, how about the Haiku Stairs (also called the Stairway to Heaven)? Look it up online and see if you think it is safe enough for me!

Hike to Ka'au Falls

2008-03-29T00:46:00.006-07:00

Hi again, just another one of my hike reports. I'll try and make this one not as long as the last! Once again I decided to hike one of the "closed" hikes on Oahu. This one is in a valley pretty much right behind Diamond Head crater. I checked it out online and got two sets of directions (and no, they weren't the same), plus I drove up there to check out parking, etc.

Igot a late start this morning so I didn't arrive at the parking spot until about 11:45. I started out down (well, really up) the trail where you immediately have a sign telling you it is "kapu" (forbidden), then go down the road a little more and have to go around the big gate with its no trespassing signs. Then its down a path and right to the stream. At the stream you see the water pipe that will be with the trail all the way to the waterfalls; the area is a watershed for Honolulu and they pipe water out of the Ka'au Crater which is also where my stream is coming from. I can't believe they put a pipe here, no way to access it except foI got a late start this morning so I didn't arrive at the parking spot until about 11:45. I started out down (well, really up) the trail where you immediately have a sign telling you it is "kapu" (forbidden), then go down road a little more and have to go around the big gate with its no trespassing signs. Then its down a path and right to the stream. At the stream you see the water pipe that will be with the trail all the way to the waterfalls; the area is a watershed for Honolulu and they pipe water out of the Ka'au Crater which is also where my stream is coming from. I can't believe they put a pipe here, no way to access it except for the slippery trail.

The trail is only about a foot to a foot and a half wide for most of the way. After the first 1/4 mile or so it follows the ridge line with cliff and pipe on one side of you and a big drop-off on the other. I had to go pretty slow because it was slick, muddy and steep most all the time and I didn't want to fall down the cliff. It was also very hot and humid. Got to the first waterfall after about an hour and a half. Very nice, but my objective was the next waterfall up. To get there you have to climb two sections of rope almost straight up. The first one didn't seem bad at all, but the second one was a lot higher. I struggled through them and got to the top of the 1st waterfall, which seems much higher once you're up there! It was good that I had two sets of directions, because the one I was looking at told me that I had arrived at the 2nd waterfall, but alas, no waterfall in sight. I looked at the second set, they told me to find a small path on the right side and follow it up through the tangled hau trees for 10 or 15 minutes. Followed the path and found the 2nd waterfall. Very nice, higher than the first one. There is a trail on the side of it that goes almost straight up, but decided not to push my luck any further. As it is, I'm already in trouble with Tim for taking this hike by myself!

Took a cat-nap on a huge rock by the base of the second waterfall, to rest up for the return voyage. Going down was much faster than up, but I slipped and fell on my butt and nearly slid down the cliffside and then right after that I slipped and fell forward, grabbing on to something (I think a piece of the pipe) which stopped me but took a chunk of meat out of the palm of my hand! It wasn't too bad, so I bandaged it and kept moving. (I come prepared since I know I can usually be counted on to fall a time or two). No more trips or falls on the rest of the way back! I could kind of see why this is a closed hike, but worth the effort to see it. Besides, they shouldn't tell adults what to do! Saying its closed just makes me want to go...guess I'll never quite get over my rebellious streak.

Next time, Ka'ena Point on the far N.W. corner of the island, where the road doesn't go...I'm sure you all can't wait to hear about it!

4 weeks today of not smoking!

"Hike to Sacred Falls" or "How I Eluded Capture on the Forbidden Trail"

2008-03-09T17:30:00.006-07:00

Thought I'd tell you about my little hike today. There is an old state park, no longer open, called Sacred Falls. The reason it isn't open is that in 1999, on Mother's Day, there was a rock slide that killed or injured several people. The park was closed due to "hazardous conditions" soon after. I had heard that it was a great hike and a really good waterfall to see, but had never done it since it is illegal to trespass on the land and you can be arrested. I decided a few days ago that I wanted to take the hike and would take the consequences if I got caught. Of course I wasn't going to try to get caught, I was going to try to break the law without getting caught!

I found out everything I could online, but directions and details are scarce since its been closed so long. There were a few pictures, and I did finally figure out exactly where the trailhead was. The day after that I decided to drive up there (just north of Punaluu on Kam Hwy) and "case" the place. I set my gps and it took me right to it. I parked a little ways down the street and then made my way casually by the old broken down entrance to the park. It looks like anything but a state park since it hasn't been open nor taken care of at all since the closure. There was a high fence across the front of the park, with a large sign telling about the 1999 tragedy and that the park is permanently closed.

I walked down the road a little further and saw a path heading into the woods, I had a good idea where I thought it would go. It went down the side of the state park and then entered the park just past where the fence ended; it would be easy to get into the park, without climbing over a fence. There are several houses nearby and I had heard that the locals would call the police on you if they saw you going in, so I decided I'd want to do the hike early in the morning to minimize the chances of being arrested or paying a $250 fine. I found out about the ticket part AFTER the hike today, the girl who cuts my hair said she knew people who had been caught and had to pay the fine.

I got up at 6 this morning and was at the trailhead by 7:15, after parking the jeep discreetly several blocks away. No problem getting by the fence and onto the first road that takes you back to the trailhead. A problem soon arose though. A "Y" in the road! Turn to the left or the right? I had no idea. The road to the right seemed to be used more, so I decided to take it. Not too much later in the morning I would remember the quote "the road less traveled..." and have cause to wish I'd thought of it earlier. I walked down that road for a half mile or so, passed a couple of water pumping stations and then the road abruptly ended in a big circle of dirt surrounded by woods. I looked all over for a path and finally found one by spotting a blue and white piece of tape hanging from a tree. Someone had tried to hide the entrance to the trail by piling a bunch of dead branches in front of it, so I though "Ha, didn't fool me!" I took the path after scrambling through the brush and for a while it was pretty easy to follow. But then it started to get hard to find any trail and the ribbons had long since disappeared. The last one I found was at the base of a large hill and what trail there was seemed to be heading up the hill. I started the climb up...and up...and up. I finally found myself on a 45 degree hill in a forest of strawberry guava trees that was so thick you could hardly get through. At that point I was drenched in sweat and huffing and puffing. I also started thinking things through...the main thought was "If this was a state park and trail, would they really have sent people up this freaking mountain?" I decided the answer was probably no, which meant that I was on the wrong trail. I kept thinking about the fork in the road, knowing I'd have to go back to check it out, and by now it is WAY back.

I turned around and went back the way I came, with only a couple of small "almost lost" mistakes, and was greatly helped by having had my gps set to track me as I went. I finally got back to the road I'd come in on and then went back down it to the "Y" and took the other direction. It curved all around and just sort of meandered for a while, but continued to be a nice wide path. I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to find the right trail when I came across an old concrete bench. I was so happy! An old park bench just had to mean I was in the right place. I continued along the way and soon came to a sign telling me I was trespassing and that the park was permanently closed, so I was on the trail! It wound through the woods and along the stream and was never all that hard of a trek. The ups were gentle, no huffing and puffing needed on this trail.

I stopped and had a water break on a rock in the stream and then continued up the trail. It is a beautiful canyon, lush and green, with a good flowing clear stream. There was more and more water, little rapids and small waterfalls combining with the sounds of the forest birds. Ah...paradise...lol.

All of a sudden I came around a bend and saw this huge half pipe carved into the hundred foot high cliff. Not enough rain lately for it to be flowing, but you could tell it must be an awesome waterfall at the right times. I continued on and then went around another bend and there it was...Sacred Falls! It looked just like some Hollywood set designer had placed it and its perfect pool there for me to find. Really, its that pretty! I took a few pics as I walked closer (and they do NOT do it justice, its much taller than it looks in the pictures) and then finally went up and stood by the pool looking into it. It is a blue/green color, really clear, and oh so inviting looking. I was thinking about how hot I was...and how cool that water looked...and there's no one around...then I saw something move out of the corner of my eye and 'PLOP" a big rock landed in the middle of the pool. I nearly jumped out of my skin!

A couple more small rocks came tumbling down the cliff side and I decided that I wouldn't press my luck by hanging out too long in the "watch for falling rocks" area! I went down a little way, took my picture with the waterfall behind me and started down the hill again.

About half way down I saw a couple of people coming my direction, but they hadn't seen me yet. I could see that they were just hikers so I continued towards them. They were looking down at where they were walking, so they didn't see me until I was maybe 25 feet away. They both froze...looking like deer caught in headlights for a couple of seconds...and then realized that I wasn't a ranger and relaxed, but their faces were priceless in that moment they froze...looked very guilty and chagrined for a moment. I'm sure I'd have looked the same way if I'd have met up with anyone!

I stopped and had another quick break and then finished up the last half of the hike. The whole thing took me a little over 4 hours, and it was just over an hour from the falls to car on the way back...so I guess the wrong direction at the "Y" cost me about 2 hours. It didn't bother me though, I wanted a good hike and I got one!
Oh, and by the way... if anyone is interested...lol... my quit date for smoking was March 1. I haven't smoked a cigarette since. And though I'd really, really like to have one sometimes, I won't be starting again...ever. So yes, I have finally quit smoking.