Hawai'i Kai Exploration: Koko Crater Rim Trail
There are certain trails that you see, either driving by them, on television, or on social media, and you always want to explore them, but just haven't gotten to them yet...due to time, or skill, or proximity. Today, was the day that I was able to check off (partially anyway) a trail that I had been mentally "eyeing"up for some time.
Today's trail started at the parking lot for Halona Blowhole, next to a popular swimming area affectionately called Cockroach Cove. After parking the car, we crossed a pretty busy road and immediately began climbing rocks. This exposed, rocky portion of the trail was the easiest part. The trail here is open and wide and provides views of Cockroach Cove (or the From Here to Eternity Beach), Makapu'u Lighthouse area, Hanauma Bay, and the Ka Iwi Coastline.
This portion of the trail is also the hike that we have done several times known as the Koko Crater Arch. If you are just hiking to the arch, then your journey will be brief. It is about twenty or so minutes from car to arch. Today, however, we were going for more. On a previous adventure to the arch, we decided to climb on top of the arch (prior to that, we had just ventured underneath and beside the arch). After realizing that we could continue up the arch and reach the rim of the volcano known as Koko Crater, we knew we would be back to tackle "the rim". Today we tackled half of the rim.
Once we climbed to and past the arch, we continued up, up, up the side of Koko Crater. This is where it got real. Despite it being somewhat overcast, December, and relatively early in the morning...it was still brutally hot. After some sweat in the eyes, downing half of my water bottle, and scraping my hands on some jagged, loose rocks, and a few breaks to take in the view...we made it to the top!
Nothing beats that feeling of accomplishment. A few minutes earlier we wanted to call it quits. Good thing we kept going! When we reached the top, we had a decision to make. We could head to the left along the rim---towards the top of the Koko Crater Stairs hiking trail (yes, those stairs!), or we could head to the right along the rim---towards Sandy Beach and the entrance to the Koko Crater Botanical Gardens. We chose to head right along the rim. Once we were on the rim, the hiking was pretty easy. Yes, we were high up, yes there was loose rock, but we no longer had to battle the heat (a nice breeze was blowing) or an uphill climb.
Along the rim we encountered sweeping views of Hawai'i Kai, cactus, tons and tons of Aloe plants, and even a couple of other hikers enjoying all that Koko Crater Rim had to offer. The advantage of doing this hike in December is that the crater was mostly green, a much better sight in my opinion than the stark brown it is during the non-rainy season.
Hiking along the rim (at least the portion we tackled today) was highly enjoyable and reminded me once again how much I enjoy being at the top, along a ridge with rocks and limited people. Once we reached "the end of the rim" (we were not going down into the crater today), we turned around and got to enjoy the view in reverse. Koko Crater really is a sight.
Today was a really great day to be outside enjoying nature, exploring new territory, and adventuring with my hiking partner Mary. Now, we just have to prepare ourselves to tackle this uphill beast once more so that we can head to the left and experience the other half of the Koko Crater Rim Trail.
Today's trail started at the parking lot for Halona Blowhole, next to a popular swimming area affectionately called Cockroach Cove. After parking the car, we crossed a pretty busy road and immediately began climbing rocks. This exposed, rocky portion of the trail was the easiest part. The trail here is open and wide and provides views of Cockroach Cove (or the From Here to Eternity Beach), Makapu'u Lighthouse area, Hanauma Bay, and the Ka Iwi Coastline.
This portion of the trail is also the hike that we have done several times known as the Koko Crater Arch. If you are just hiking to the arch, then your journey will be brief. It is about twenty or so minutes from car to arch. Today, however, we were going for more. On a previous adventure to the arch, we decided to climb on top of the arch (prior to that, we had just ventured underneath and beside the arch). After realizing that we could continue up the arch and reach the rim of the volcano known as Koko Crater, we knew we would be back to tackle "the rim". Today we tackled half of the rim.
Once we climbed to and past the arch, we continued up, up, up the side of Koko Crater. This is where it got real. Despite it being somewhat overcast, December, and relatively early in the morning...it was still brutally hot. After some sweat in the eyes, downing half of my water bottle, and scraping my hands on some jagged, loose rocks, and a few breaks to take in the view...we made it to the top!
Nothing beats that feeling of accomplishment. A few minutes earlier we wanted to call it quits. Good thing we kept going! When we reached the top, we had a decision to make. We could head to the left along the rim---towards the top of the Koko Crater Stairs hiking trail (yes, those stairs!), or we could head to the right along the rim---towards Sandy Beach and the entrance to the Koko Crater Botanical Gardens. We chose to head right along the rim. Once we were on the rim, the hiking was pretty easy. Yes, we were high up, yes there was loose rock, but we no longer had to battle the heat (a nice breeze was blowing) or an uphill climb.
Along the rim we encountered sweeping views of Hawai'i Kai, cactus, tons and tons of Aloe plants, and even a couple of other hikers enjoying all that Koko Crater Rim had to offer. The advantage of doing this hike in December is that the crater was mostly green, a much better sight in my opinion than the stark brown it is during the non-rainy season.
Hiking along the rim (at least the portion we tackled today) was highly enjoyable and reminded me once again how much I enjoy being at the top, along a ridge with rocks and limited people. Once we reached "the end of the rim" (we were not going down into the crater today), we turned around and got to enjoy the view in reverse. Koko Crater really is a sight.
After reaching the point at which we entered the top of the crater, it was now time to brave our way back down---sometimes going down is harder than coming up, especially with such a steep incline. We braced ourselves and kept visions of refreshing drinks (Snapple for me) in our mind to get through the last leg of the trail.
Today was a really great day to be outside enjoying nature, exploring new territory, and adventuring with my hiking partner Mary. Now, we just have to prepare ourselves to tackle this uphill beast once more so that we can head to the left and experience the other half of the Koko Crater Rim Trail.
Until next time...happy trails!
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