Three and a half years ago, we took a helicopter tour of the Na Pali Coast on the west shore of Kauai. Since that day, I’ve been looking forward to going back there to hike along the coast. On that first trip, we discovered (to our dismay) that you need a reservation just to park at the trailhead. This time around, I secured a reservation and a permit to hike the first two miles of the eleven-mile Kalalau Trail. The trail is generally known as one of the most beautiful, and most dangerous, hikes in the world. There are points where you’re walking along a cliff with a sheer drop of several hundred feet to the ocean. Pepper and Kyra weren’t too keen on that, but the portion on our permit doesn’t have any of that.
When we started out, the weather was chilly and rainy. It was in the low 50’s– pretty cold when you’re damp and wearing shorts. At the start of the trail, there are plenty of warnings for hikers:
Undeterred, we headed up the trail. It winds along the cliffs and affords some great views of the ocean to the west and the shoreline ahead and behind.
It was amazingly lush and green. With the constant drizzle, it was like walking through a rainforest.
After two miles we arrived at Hanakapi’ai Beach. The sun was shining by then, but a close observer might notice Kyra is completely soaked:
We considered hiking another two miles inland to Hanakapi’ai Falls, but the rain continued to threaten, and that trail is known to be extremely tricky because it fords streams and crosses a lot of rocks– both difficult in the rain. After some time at the beach, we headed back to the trailhead. The rain picked up in intensity and was soon pouring. The trail became a river of mud.
We didn’t let it dampen our spirits, though. By then the temperature had warmed up, so the rain was a nuisance but at least we weren’t shivering.
As we continued, the rain let up for a few minutes and I snapped some pictures of the coast again.
Eventually we came to Ke’e Beach and the trailhead. The sun came out, and a seal flopped onto the sand for a nap.
Despite the occasional sunny conditions, it was probably the wettest, muddiest hike I’ve ever done. Although I still want to hike the full length of the Kalalau Trail, there’s no way I would’ve done it in these conditions. It would’ve been deadly.
So Na Pali continues to stymie me. The next time we’re in Kauai, I’m planning to do the whole thing. It’ll be twenty-two miles round trip, and probably three days in all. Who’s with me?