Hiking the Kalalau Trail to the Napali Coast

Taro fields

Today we went to Ke'e beach to hike the Napali Coast. It is located on the North Shore, and this long and steep hike was our last adventure on the island before we left for home.  The drive to the North Shore is beautiful with many green Acacia trees, thick forests, and taro fields.  

We started our hike at Ke'e beach and wanted to go to the Hanakapi'al Falls. The hike was extremely strenuous and we ended our hike at the Hankapi'al Beach.  To get to this remote beach you had to hike 2 miles. The trail was very steep, going up and down.

The first quater of the mile was straight  up, and it was boiling hot but it was very green and beautiful. There were also  many trees with tropical fruits on them.  When we finally arrived, we were at the top of the mountain, with  beautiful view of Ke'e beach and the Napali Coast. The week before, we went on a boat to snorkel on the Napali Coast, but today we were exploring the mountains by hiking to get an up close view. From above, the water off the coast was torques blue and a darker blue as you move away from the coast. Once we passed the Coast Viewpoint, the hike went mostly downhill and we ran most of they way, slipping a few times into the mud. When we finally could see the ocean, we had to cross a big river in our shoes. The water was cold and refreshing from a long hot hike.  

Beautiful turquoise water

Hiking up

View of Ke'e Beach

View of Napali Coast

Most surprising,  when we got to the beach, it started pouring rain and we hid underneath some large trees that were like umbrellas to have lunch and to rest. The rain also made the the trails  muddy and the rocks slippery.    While eating lunch, we saw some wild cats, that my little sister Hannah wanted to take home with her.  They were all very skinny, probably because they don't get a lot of food. They ate some of our turkey that fell on the floor.

Hankapi'al Beach

Crossing the river

After lunch, we went down volcano rocks to the sandy beach. This beach had dark tunnels to hide from the sun or rain. The waves at the beach were huge, but the water was very warm. There were gorgeous mountains around this beach.  Also, there was a stream, that was even warmer than the beach, which came from the waterfall. On one side of the stream, there were tadpoles of black poisonous frogs.

When we were driving back we saw a  magnificent sunset with the colors red, orange, and  yellow.  It looked like fire burning in the sky and it was the perfect way to finish our day.