More Waterfalls and Coastal Lava Tubes: Likeke Falls and Lava Tube Lookout

A bit late on writing this blog, but we did these hikes on the same day about a week ago.  The boys were still in a waterfall mood, so we decided to head out to Likeke Falls, as I had heard it was a really short hike, and I wanted to hit the lava tube after. 

The Likeke Falls hike starts at the back corner of the Ko'olau Golf and Event Center on the windward side of the island.  There is a access road with a chain across it, that is the beginning of the trail.  Now I had read a lot of info about this hike, so I knew that while it was a short hike, there are multiple ways to get there, and some are slightly easier than others.  The crucial turning points on this trail come up on you quite quickly.  Almost immediately once you've set out on the paved access road, you will see a water tower up ahead covered in graffiti, just before you reach it, there is a path that branches off to the left, take this path.  Follow the path for a while, you will come upon a section that is all cobblestone and really pretty, a little ways past the cobble stone there is another path that branches off to the right just before a big white tree that has tons of people's names carved into it.  Take that path to the right, you have to take a few steps down off the cobblestones, but it isn't in anyway tricky or dangerous.  From there you just keep hiking until you hit the falls.  One thing to note though, while many people hike this child carrying, or with packs (like I do), there are some pretty tight spots that you have to maneuver through, and having a large pack, or carrying a child in a harness could be a bit difficult, so just be aware of that.  I had to crawl on my hands and knees in a couple spots just to get under some of the overgrown branches.

Somehow, I ended up leading two other groups of hikers, they were small groups mind you, but I couldn't help but laugh about it, as I had never done this trail before either, so I felt like the blind leading the blind.  Anyway, this path gets pretty muddy, and I was surprised at how many people I saw hiking in flip flops, or slippahs as they are called on the islands.  I guess personally I wouldn't recommend that.  I saw one child having a particularly bad time on the trail due to his flip flops, and another group of tourists took twice as long as we did to reach the falls, hiking in flip flops.  I know this is an easy trail, but when you are hiking even if only for a couple miles, always wear decent footwear, it just makes it a better experience.

When we reached the falls, my kids ripped of their shoes and socks and started splashing around in the lower pools.  This is a cool waterfall in that it has multiple levels that are fairly easy to climb up to, so the falls was covered in locals and tourists climbing up to the higher levels and taking photos.  If you are going on a weekend and want a good shot, expect it to take a while.  We hung out there for a bit, and then as we were leaving, noticed that one of the groups of people we originally led in, who had already packed up and left, had left a bit of trash behind.  If you pack it in, make sure you pack it back out.  I was a bit concerned in some areas due to broken glass right at the falls and what not, let's show some respect for the trails and the Aina' and make sure we clean up after ourselves.  Anyway, the hike back to the car was fairly uneventful, so we went to get some food and head over to the lava tubes for a quick little jaunt down to the coastal reefs.

I know that I normally give detailed directions on locations, however this is a spot that took me a lot of research to find directions to, and that locals prefer isn't shared openly on the internet, so if you want to go to the Lava Tube Lookout, the directions are out there, just do a quick google search and you will find a way.  I will say that it is between Makapu'u Lighthouse Trail and Hanauma Bay, to narrow it down for you.  The reason I've changed my tune on sharing spots that aren't as popular is because of how trashed the lead trail to the tube was.  The trail couldn't have been more than 50ft long, but it was littered with broken bottles, cigarette packaging and butts, abandoned towels, socks, and shirts, and tons of fast food cups and what not.  So, in regards to respecting the land, I've decided to keep spots that I see being abused to myself and do my best to clean them up when I go.

Now onto the Lava Tube.  I've seen in some blogs that a flashlight is required to traverse the tube, I didn't find that to be true, and the views you get when you pop out the other side are spectacular!  We were there on a lucky day, as the resident monk seal was sunning himself on the rocks, and allowed us to get fairly close for pictures.  I didn't get too close, and we made sure to stay quiet as not to disturb him too much.  I brought two different zoom lenses as I knew that running into the seal might be a possibility and I wanted to get good shots, (which I did).  The descent onto the flat reef wasn't scary at all, the rock was solid and had good grip and it was an easy climb down. 

We went at high tide, so as we explored there were large waves crashing on the shore next to us, which made it an even more magical place to me.  We got to she some tide pools with fish, some crabs scuttling over the land, and of course the large monk seal.  Overall it was an amazing place.

As we left for the day, I vowed to come back later in the week and clean up the trail, as I didn't have my trash bags with me that day.  So, we went back a couple days later, during low tide, and got to explore more of the area, which was really neat!

I didn't see a cool bridge the first time we went, and we got to walk out to the edge of the rocks and see some urchins hanging out.  It was also an extremely clear day, and we could see another island off in the distance.  It looked so close, which was an interesting thing because it seemed almost like you could paddle there (I'm sure that would be a dangerous undertaking, and definitely do not recommend it).  But it was once again a very peaceful place to be, with beautiful views, and not too crowded. 

On our way out, we spent some time and cleared the trail of all the broken glass and rubbish we came across. And I have to say it looked so much better, and it made me feel so happy to see the trail looking nice again.  I'm definitely adopting this tiny trail and going back to keep it clean. 

I guess what I learned from these hikes was simple, respect the land and the hikes you are on.  It is such a gift to be able to go out and enjoy nature, what a shame that some people don't respect the beautiful land that they are going to and forming magical memories of.  If you pack it in, pack it out.  Be respectful of those who came before and those who will come again, don't leave a trace of yourself behind.  Enjoy the moment for what it is, and move on to the next adventure, there is no need to tag rocks, or carve in trees, or leave rubbish behind to destroy a beautiful area.  Live in the moment, embrace the experience you are gaining, and move forward with that.

Until our next adventure...