We temporarily suspended
our hunt for culture this morning in favor of a hike along the Kalalau
Trail. It’s an 11-mile hike along the
fabulous Na Pali coast, and is the most famous walk in the entire state. Crossing streams beaches, waterfalls, and
mountains, it is a somewhat difficult hike, according to the guide books. And since the trail head is at Ke’e beach, we
left early to bag one of the last legal parking spaces available.
Immediately upon entering the trail, we
discovered the meaning of “somewhat difficult”.
Kalalau Trail on a good day
The Kalalau
Trail, we may honestly report, is not for the faint of heart. The first two miles, which we had decided to
tackle, is an endurance test of steeply rising and descending sections of
alternating rock and clay, all of which is very slippery when wet. And have we mentioned the frequency of rain
on the north coast? There are
intermittent showers, lasting as much as five minutes and as little as 30
seconds or so. The rains are very
reliable—at least, in the sense that you can be sure you will be showered more
than once if you venture outside.
Stream crossing on the Kalalau Trail
So we struggled
(OK, one of us struggled) up and down this difficult trail, quickly
appreciating the sign at trail head advising hikers to allow 1.5 to 2 hours for
the first two miles of trail. Within the
first five minutes the struggling one had donned a knee brace on his left leg
and we were both slipping and sliding up the path. We had purchased cheap umbrellas, which kept
us relatively dry during the brief periods of precipitation, and were rewarded
with magnificent views of the coast as we trekked through a lush forest with
every kind of plant and tree imaginable.
There was good reason for choosing this area to film Jurassic Park. Finally we reached our destination, another
golden sandy beach, after stopping to read a sign advising that 82 people have
lost their lives in the surf here. We
decided not to tempt fate on this day.
Hanakapiai Beach from above
We explored the
caves along the beach, relaxed along the river flowing into the sea, gobbled
down all the trail mix, and drank up much of our water as we soaked in the
scenery. Needless to say, we did not continue the next few miles down the trail to visit the waterfall and other beaches . . .
Sweaty beauty in cave at Hanakapiai Beach
On the return
trip, we spotted our friend Ke’e beach from above, and thought you might want
to check out the wonderful reef that joins the beach.
Ke’e Beach from above
Back at the
condo after lunch one of us took one of those brief naps that went on into the
afternoon; I have no idea what the other person did; but the thick layers of
clay and mud that covered our shoes and clothes had soon disappeared
mysteriously. We both agreed that an
afternoon rest was much to be preferred to further adventure.
Later we had an
interesting dinner in a nearby village under a tent, at tables set up for 8-10 people, with
much conversation among the fellow travelers.
The meal was prepared by a professional chef, operating out of a special food truck, serving a limit of 30 people on only two nights each week. It was really a special evening. And the chocolate dessert gave us good reason to skip Lappert’s Ice Cream on
the way home. Tomorrow is transit day,
and I’m sure gonna miss that place.
Charlie and Tricia
©2013
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