Hiking Lulumahu Falls
Dec. 26th, 2021 02:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerOahu travelog #13
Nu'uanu Pali, HI - Sun, 26 Dec 2021, 11:30am
This morning we hiked to Lulumahu Falls. I wasn't sure if we'd make it. While it was one of the falls that came up right away in our searches for trails to hike, it came with the caution that it's on private land and thus permission must be sought from the owners first.
Here's the thing that's actually not well documented: the private landowner is The State of Hawaii. Yes, it's like it's a park... except it's not a park. It's state land the state doesn't want people on... though it does a terrible job of keeping them off. There's a parking lot and a trail, and no visible enforcement. We spotted that when we passed by it en route to the Ko'olau Cliffs on Friday. Still, we wanted to visit legally. The state has a website for getting a permit that looks like it was designed in 2001. Like, it still has a space for your fax number when you create an account— which you have to do.
Armed with our permit we left Waikiki this morning and drove up the pass through the Ko'olau Mountains. We parked between mud puddles and wild chickens, and set off on the trail.
The first leg of the trail leads through a bamboo forest. It's fascinating because the forest is so dense. At times the trail is so narrow I was brushing against bamboo shoots with both shoulders simultaneously. It felt like that scene in Shang Chi where the magic forest closes up behind the group as they travel through it.
The mysterious bamboo forest and the primitive government permit process weren't the only obstacles between us and the falls. There was also the weather and the mud.
Weather-wise, it rains a lot in this area. As we arrived a steady drizzle turned into a downpour. We'd brought boots and rain jackets— as with our hikes two days earlier at Manoa Falls and Likeke Falls— but we still didn't fancy hiking in heavy rain. Besides, with the weather in this area we knew it would taper off. I ate a breakfast of char siu bao-type things Hawaiians have a different name for (edit: I learned that night they are called manapua) from 7-Eleven while waiting in the car. The rain tapered off, then we hiked through the bamboo forest.
All that rain meant a lot of mud. The area in the bamboo forest wasn't too bad... mostly because the dense shoots held things together. After a few minutes we crossed out of bamboo into a regular rain forest, and... ooh, boy, it was muddy. Our boots got completely caked.
The trail presented various additional challenges along the way. Muddy parts, slick parts, steep parts, and a few water crossings— including one with no rocks to hop across. Then the final 100 meters or so of trail the trail basically disappeared. It was all rock-hopping up to the falls.
The falls had a beauty that made all the trials and tribulations worthwhile. And the rainy weather meant that we only had to share this oasis with 6-7 complete strangers at a time. Some posts at AllTrails say the vibe here gets ruined by overcrowding on nice days.
And yes, I lugged along my tripod again, as at Likeke Falls.
The weight of the tripod was worth it for pictures like this.
Nu'uanu Pali, HI - Sun, 26 Dec 2021, 11:30am
This morning we hiked to Lulumahu Falls. I wasn't sure if we'd make it. While it was one of the falls that came up right away in our searches for trails to hike, it came with the caution that it's on private land and thus permission must be sought from the owners first.
Here's the thing that's actually not well documented: the private landowner is The State of Hawaii. Yes, it's like it's a park... except it's not a park. It's state land the state doesn't want people on... though it does a terrible job of keeping them off. There's a parking lot and a trail, and no visible enforcement. We spotted that when we passed by it en route to the Ko'olau Cliffs on Friday. Still, we wanted to visit legally. The state has a website for getting a permit that looks like it was designed in 2001. Like, it still has a space for your fax number when you create an account— which you have to do.
Armed with our permit we left Waikiki this morning and drove up the pass through the Ko'olau Mountains. We parked between mud puddles and wild chickens, and set off on the trail.
The first leg of the trail leads through a bamboo forest. It's fascinating because the forest is so dense. At times the trail is so narrow I was brushing against bamboo shoots with both shoulders simultaneously. It felt like that scene in Shang Chi where the magic forest closes up behind the group as they travel through it.
The mysterious bamboo forest and the primitive government permit process weren't the only obstacles between us and the falls. There was also the weather and the mud.
Weather-wise, it rains a lot in this area. As we arrived a steady drizzle turned into a downpour. We'd brought boots and rain jackets— as with our hikes two days earlier at Manoa Falls and Likeke Falls— but we still didn't fancy hiking in heavy rain. Besides, with the weather in this area we knew it would taper off. I ate a breakfast of char siu bao-type things Hawaiians have a different name for (edit: I learned that night they are called manapua) from 7-Eleven while waiting in the car. The rain tapered off, then we hiked through the bamboo forest.
All that rain meant a lot of mud. The area in the bamboo forest wasn't too bad... mostly because the dense shoots held things together. After a few minutes we crossed out of bamboo into a regular rain forest, and... ooh, boy, it was muddy. Our boots got completely caked.
The trail presented various additional challenges along the way. Muddy parts, slick parts, steep parts, and a few water crossings— including one with no rocks to hop across. Then the final 100 meters or so of trail the trail basically disappeared. It was all rock-hopping up to the falls.
The falls had a beauty that made all the trials and tribulations worthwhile. And the rainy weather meant that we only had to share this oasis with 6-7 complete strangers at a time. Some posts at AllTrails say the vibe here gets ruined by overcrowding on nice days.
And yes, I lugged along my tripod again, as at Likeke Falls.
The weight of the tripod was worth it for pictures like this.
no subject
Date: 2021-12-30 02:29 pm (UTC)