Kealia (just to the picnic bench) – March 11, 2012 

After doing Kealia in January of this year, I knew it would be a perfect family hike. What I look for in a family hike are three things; 1) a reward at the end (waterfall or summit view), 2) short - less than 3 miles RT 3) fun. The word fun is relative because my demented idea of fun is hiking for 14 miles in the Ko’olaus for 8 hours and doing it like it has been done before, which it has. Most people's idea of fun hiking are the bird singing, native plants, and interesting terrain.

I spread the word the day before, but no one took the bait, so it was just us and Jared’s friend Keito. I set the meeting place at Wahiawa McDonalds at 10a-10:15 am just in case. We ate at McDonald’s and by 10:15 am no one else came, so we drove to Mokuleia. We pulled into Dillingham airfield passing the runway. After getting ready, we started the Kealia trail.

Kealia offers a good beginners trail. There are switchbacks to aid the knees, which means a gradual incline. According to Stuart Ball’s book, Hiking on Oahu, there are 18 switchbacks that take you to the summit. I got preoccupied with the kids slipping on the rocks and possibly getting hurt. However the trail wasn’t too narrow and kids can surprise you with their gross motor skills.

On the way to the summit, you can see the North shoreline and a gigantic pond. Shell and the kids seemed to be interested in both rewards the trail had to offer. In about an hour we hit the picnic bench and ate the snacks in my bag which were starburst and popcorn, not too healthy.

After a short break, we headed back down. The hike back down the mountain was short and sweet. For lunch, we ate at Breakers in the North Shore Marketplace. The food was a disappointment, nothing seemed fresh. I ordered the turkey pesto, which sounds good, but with packaged ingredients, it was a disappointment. Although the pesto may have been fresh, the amount of pesto on my sandwich was minimal to say the least. Shell ordered a pupu platter consisting of coconut shrimp, crab cakes, and calamari. The coconut shrimp was good, but the crab cakes and calamari were subpar. After lunch, we went to Matsumoto’s, but as always it was packed and the line was way out the door, so we drove to Waikele. The shaved ice stand is a great post hike dessert.

This trail is highly recommended if you want to take your family for a short hike. You could actually take this trail to the Makua Overlook, believe me if you do it, it will be well worth it.