Waikane-Pauao – March 19, 2013

According to The Not So Great Hiker, this hike reveals the best section on the Ko’olau Summit Trail (KST). The views are one of the best on the island. After today, I totally agree.

The plan today was to go up the Waikane trail, make the right crossover on the KST towards Schofield-Waikane, continue further until Pauao, then drop down Pauao into Kahana Valley to our cars.

We had a 7a start time. Joining the hike today was E, Sensei, and The Not So Great Hiker.

We entered the Waikane trail and had dogs chasing after us. We kept our cool. The dogs did not maul us. I’m always amazed that dogs of private owners have so much self-control. I’ve been chased by many dogs all over the island and no matter how loud the bark is or how aggressive they appear to be, they don’t maul. Not that I want to be mauled or anything. 

The hike up Waikane Valley is really nice, if you don’t mind the 4 mile road walk to the ridge. The ridge is a 2 mile graded trail that takes you up to the Waikane saddle, I think, or so it appears so. The trail terminates on the KST. Last time we were here, E and I got rained on throughout, needless to say, today was the total opposite. The day was one of the best the Ko’olau’s have to offer.

Since the weather was so good, we tried to find Ka’aumakua. We made a left and tried to climb up some random hill to Ka’aumakua, but when we got up to the hill, it was not Ka’aumakua because there was no geo marker at the top. It didn’t matter because the view was money. Look at the picture below as it says a thousand words about beauty.

After an hour break, we dropped down to the KST towards Schofield-Waikane. I still remember the last time when I was on this section, the rains were coming down hard and the winds were blowing hard, our faces were being murdered by the weather.

In about 30 minutes, we hit Schofield-Waikane and encountered 5 military men. They just hiked up to Schofield-Waikane and were enjoying the views on the summit. We chatted for a bit and were off towards Pauao.

The hike towards Pauao on the KST was surprisingly long. It took us about 2 hours (including a long break) to reach Pauao. In the middle of the crossover to Pauao, there was this nasty eroded section, which I mistakenly tried to cross. It was ridiculously crumbly and the drops were perilous. Erik followed me. We both slowly crossed this part with the crumbly mountain falling apart at each move. Sensei and The Not So Great Hiker took the high road, which was the correct route. We finally hit the Pauao junction, boy was I tired. This would be my 3rd hike in 4 days accumulating 35 miles of hiking in that time.

The descent down Pauao was steep, it almost didn't look doable. But it is very doable. It would be a bitch to climb up Pauao, climbing down is much better. We lost 800 feet of elevation super quickly, but then the rolling hills started. I think there were at least 7 rolling hills on uneven terrain. The ridge isn’t too narrow, so it wasn’t dangerous. I think everyone was tired already, we eventually hit the water tank and the service road. Nightfall came as we were exiting.

This hike was awesome. The views are so good that breaks are needed to soak it up. You definitely would not want to rush this one.