The last couple weeks have been crazy hectic, I've recently returned to school to finish my bachelor's degree, I've been babysitting my neighbor's kids during the week, and I had a karaoke contest that was 2 months in the making for the finals. Stressville, population me! I've been wanting to "Chase the Sun" for weeks, but every time we planned on it, something went wrong and we had to postpone. So this last week, in the midst of all my stress, chasing the sun with my husband and boys was a necessary activity.
I did a bunch of research on the Koko Head Arch hike, I've seen a lot of people doing it for sunrise, and I thought, "what a magical spot, we must go!" Sunrise was at 0510 that morning, so we got up around 0330 to get ready and drive out there. I had seen most people can do the hike in under 30 minutes, but since I was bringing my children, I figured it would be potentially an hour for us. The best place to park for Koko Head Arch is at the blowhole parking lot for Halona Blowhole. Cross the street, and walk up the road back towards Hanauma Bay. There is a large rock formation at mile marker 15, we climbed up here, however on the way back down, we noticed that if you keep walking past marker 15 to the next little ridge, it is a much easier beginning spot to the hike. Once you reach the main ridgeline, the path is very straight forward.
Make sure to wear grippy shoes as the hike is steep, and sandy over rock. We wore our regular hiking boots, which were sufficient, but we saw a few people in flat vans and things that were having slipping issues. When you get to the arch, there are two ways to get underneath, you can go to the right side, that side looked pretty steep and slippery, or to the left side, by climbing over a tiny ledge, but it was fairly easy to navigate. We reached the underside of the arch with about 20 minutes before sunrise, and it was beautiful to see. We could see one of the neighboring islands off in the distance, and there was a nice breeze. The only downside is it was crowded with people playing current pop music, which kinda killed the serenity, but it was gorgeous otherwise.
After we sat for a while, I climbed around a bit to get some good pictures of the arch, and then we sat and waited for the large group before us to leave, and enjoyed the last few moments of sunrise splendor. On the way back down, a light misty rain began, and there was a rainbow over the arch, it was a wonderful moment!
We went about the rest of the day as usual, and then we headed out to the west side of the island to tackle Pu'u o Hulu. First time I took the boys on this hike, we chose the harder section of the hike by accident, going up the trail beginning at between the 7th and 8th light poles on Kaukama Road. If you are a good climber, I suggest going this way as it was intense, however if you are with kids and just wanting a nice hike with a little bit of incline, go to the 10th light pole where there is an obvious trail that is quite easy to find. Hike in a bit, and where the trail splits, head left.
There are so many great views along this trail! Early on you cross a white tree that is growing with its roots cascading down the side of a rock formation, it was truly a pretty sight. As you get up higher on the trail, the views of the valley, Waianae Mountain Range, and the ocean are just breathe taking.
When you get to the top of the ridgeline, there are 4 bunkers that are pretty easy to get to. The ridgeline is a bit narrow in places, but not something that feels unsafe. We picked a bunker that wasn't too full of people, and had some snacks and settled in for watching the sunset. In all honesty, I wasn't really expecting much variation from the sunrise hike, I mean how different is the sunrise from the sunset, but holy guacamole was I wrong! The lighting during this sunset was magical! It was so much fun watching the light go from a heavenly white glow, to a nice soft orange and pink, into the intense vibrant colors of the descending sun.
Overall, I am so happy that I got to finally "Chase the Sun". I had this idea in my mind for a while, and it was even better than I imagined it would be. It was a bit tough, as I carried my Buddha on both hikes, and I had been working out just the day before, it hurt at times, I was out of breath at times, but having my boys with me made it worth the discomfort. As I was hiking up the steeper parts of Pu'u o Hulu, I was reminded of one of the universal truths of Buddhism, "Life is suffering" there are many things that can cause suffering, it is how you deal with it, and overcome it that is important. For me chasing the sun was the best remedy. I started the day focused on the stresses that were in my life with the first rays of the starting day, and I finished it by focusing on releasing the negativity that was surrounding me and replenishing my spiritual well with the last rays of the sun! I felt so centered after that day, my children and husband also had a great time. I am so happy that we were all able to be there together making those memories together!
Until the next hike...
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