Hanakapiai Falls, Kauai Hawaii
The hike begins at the end of the road at Kee Beach on the North Shore. Pick up a good hiking stick at the trail check-in station. From the beginning you start an incline, which seems to be a vertical rock stream bed. The first ¾ of a mile is fairly steep and rocky and can be muddy, but 25 minutes into your hike you get a great overlook of Kee Beach. If you don’t have much time at least hike up to the overlook, it’s worth the trip up. Stop and take photos of your first view of the Na Pali Coastline and Kee Beach.
Continuing on the trail switches back and forth following the coastline as you continue to climb. Occasionally you get viewpoints of the incredible coastline.The last half a mile to the Hanakapi’ai Beach is slow going back down hill and is steep and muddy as the trail crosses several small streams. 2 miles from the start you reach Hanakapi’ai Beach. You have to cross a pretty fast moving stream by hopping boulders. The reward is a beautiful beach that has rock caves carved out of the cliffs. Many people stop here and make this their final destination before their return. The views back are just as amazing. In the winter months there may not be a beach at all, just rocks, but it still definitely worth the trip.
If you have time (another 3-4 hours) another 2 miles inland is a beautiful 300-foot waterfall you can swim in. The trail begins right of the stream from the beach. The hike to Hanakapi’ai Falls is muddy because you cross the stream several times. Several of the stream crossings are challenging. Along the trail are several bamboo forest (they sound like a wind chime forest) and lots of mud. At the falls take a minute to see all the ferns lining the wall around the falls. Several smaller falls are along the trail, which creates a very peaceful sound as you hike. If you decide to swim, be careful of objects coming over the falls. Round trip plan on 7-8 hours but it can be done in less time if you don’t spend time at the beach and falls. Total hike to the falls and back is 8 miles. I have actually done 3 miles in on the Kalalau Trail, backtracked to the Falls, and back out in just 6 hours. A total of 10 miles.
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