Kalalau Trail, Hawaii, United States

5Xine14 5:00 PM Apr 19, 2022

Epic hike
First, a bit about the hike. It's moderately difficult. The views, both coastal as well as the lushness of the path itself, are fantastic. Bring plenty of water, I'd say 2L each. We hiked this last week and did not need bug spray. The trail was mostly dry. We hiked quickly, unrushed, in great trail conditions, with hiking shoes and poles. We made it to Hanakopiai Beach in one hour. Our teenaged kids then did the waterfall hike, it took them just under an hour each way. As this was our first time in the park, we had no idea that Ke'e Beach would be so perfect. We would like to have stayed there for a while, hanging and snorkling; next time! For the water crossings, I personally recommend avoiding leap frogging the rocks, just accept you will get wet and walk thru. The shuttle setup is very efficient. Please download or screen shot your passes/ QR codes, they are not kidding when they say no service in the park. I kind of preferred the shuttle to what the car would have been; parking passes are only for 4 hours, and they are nearly impossible to secure. I also enjoyed that the pass/permit process limits the number of hikers each day. We saw/ passed groups, but there was no significant waiting on difficult parts of the trail. I recommend getting a pass for early, like 7am, as you will have fewer folks on the trail. We have hiked many hikes in many places. This hike is top 5 for sure.

5Larissa75 5:00 PM Dec 10, 2022

Breathtaking - don’t hesitate
We almost didn’t go on this hike because of all the reviews saying how dangerous it is and how you can’t take a baby carrier with you… and I am a so glad we decided to try it for ourselves. Traveling with a 5 month old has its challenges but with a little patience, common sense and time you can still make it an adventure. We did about 3 miles roundtrip and the only reason we turned around (so close to the beach) is becasue we had a late start, the baby carrier was not a very breathable one, and my body was emitting a lot of heat. Basically we didn’t want our baby to overheat. That being said had we had a better carrier and started earlier in the day we would have kept going. We met quite a few people on the trail with babies of various ages. There are definitely steep parts, slippery rocks, big inclines then declines but just make sure you have plenty of water, time and (what we did not have) a good set of hiking poles. Even though we didn’t reach the beach the views were magnificent and breathtaking. You will need a permit to park at the bottom and if those are sold out you buy tickets for a shuttle that takes people between a parking lot further away and the trail head. At the bottom where the trail starts is another pretty little beach. Now would I do this hike in the pouring rain? No. With some rain? Yes.