Kuli'ou'ou Ridge Trail

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Since we moved out here I’ve been dying to find a trail to take us back into the high interior of Oahu.  The mountain range that rises behind Honolulu is almost always capped by clouds and its sharp peaks are divided by deep green rain forest valleys that stretch back into the range.  This morning we had a big breakfast and drove about twenty minutes to the East side of the island to hike the Kuli’ou’ou Ridge Trail, which didn’t disappoint.
The hike was two and a half miles one way that started in a low valley and proceeded up to a high ridge eventually summiting one of the medium height peaks.  The rain forest was beautiful on the way up, changing from the low tropical valley, to a mid range of evergreen type trees, and eventually changing back into more tropical vegetation as we neared the summit.  We experienced a short but drenching rainstorm about halfway up but luckily we were just passing the trails only shelter.  We stopped in to have a granola bar and wait out the shower.  The trail was muddy and slick and the clouds were always threatening more rain, but luckily none delivered.  As we neared the top, the clouds eventually completely enveloped the peak, and so unfortunately it was a white out at the summit.  While we were disappointed that we didn’t get to see the view, it was still a cool experience.  Standing inside a cloud felt pretty otherworldly, complete silence in a world of white.
Hope you enjoy the pictures, thanks for reading!

Posted by John

The valley ahead is where we’re headed!





Snack time.
The rain lasted about fifteen minutes and made an already muddy and slippery trail even more so.  We got lucky that we were right next to this shelter when the rain started.

 A look up through the thick tropical foliage.
 An impressive tree.  I don’t know what kind it is yet but I’m hoping to get a hold of a Hawaiian plant identification book soon.
 Looking across the valley shows the clouds resting on the neighboring peaks.


 The view to the ocean was pretty incredible.  Hard to believe there is nothing out there for a few thousand miles!
 Starting to lose visibility.
 Rach being mischievous… typical.
 The end of the world?

Some local wildlife. 


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