West Side Region of Kauai, Hawaii
Less than 2 hours drive north west of Lihue airport will take you to Waimea Canyon and Kokee State parks. These parks have one of the most beautiful lookouts and feature some of the most thrilling hiking trails. A day should be good for exploring the main lookouts and for hiking some of the main trails roughly 8-9 miles in length . However, there are plenty of main trails and campsites available, so if you want to do more then set aside at least 2 days for this region.
1. Waimea Canyon State Park
Enter the park by driving through beautiful Hwy. 550, also called Waimea Canyon Dr. The Hwy. has twists and turns, which gradually increase in height and bring with it beautiful views. As you enter the park, you can stop by at different lookouts and hike on various trails ranging from difficulty level easy to moderate.
You will have one of the first glimpses of the Waimea Canyon from Pu'u Ka Pele Lookout.
Out of the many trails that the park features, we decided to do parts of the Canyon Trails.
Canyon Trail:
Canyon trails consist of the following trails:
New spur trail
Cliff Trail
Waipo’o Falls Trail
You start at Waimea Canyon trailhead accessible from Pu’uhinahina lookout. New Spur and Waipo’o falls trails are the main trails, while Cliff trail is a small offshoot trail at 0.5 miles (0.8 km) from Waimea Canyon trailhead.
Access: There are 2 ways to access Waipo’o falls trail:
From Pu’uhinahina lookout: Beginning of the trail is steep. Therefore, hike back to the Waimea Canyon trailhead can be challenging for some, as you have to climb steep slopes. Washrooms are available here.
From Halemanu Road. If you don’t have parking available at Pu’hinahina lookout and/or want to avoid steep slopes, then you might want to access Waipo’o falls trail from here. There are no washroom available here though.
Length: 1.8 miles (2.88 km) one way. Round trip hike is almost 3.6 miles (6 kms).
Round Trip Time: 2-3 hours for hiking, relaxing, taking shots.
Difficulty Level: Easy to Moderate. Can be challenging in wet conditions.
Restrooms: There are no restrooms along the trail.
Features: Unparalleled views of the Canyons. Wildflowers and dense forest. Small waterfall at Waipo’o falls trail.
Don’t start the hike to Waipo’o falls trail, thinking that the trail will lead you to a view of a beautiful 800 ft high fall, which you see from the lookout on Hwy. 550. The trail takes you to the top of the fall. From there you will get to appreciate beautiful views of the Canyons, but the fall will be beneath you, therefore you won’t be able to see it.
NOTE: Do not a) turn left halfway down the New Spur trail (after cliff trail) and b) do not follow the signs to Koke’e stream/Kumuwela road, if your destination is end of Waipo’o falls trail.
2. Kōkeʻe State Park
A further 15-20 min drive up north from Waimea Canyon State Park, will take you to Kōkeʻe State Park.
You don’t want to miss Kalalau and Pu’u O Kila lookouts in the park. They offer phenomenal views of the Cathedral like cliffs of the Nāpali Coast. The area is well recognized and popular amongst tourists, because Jurassic Park, King Kong and other movies scenes were filmed here.
There are many beautiful trails in this park as well, but since we allocated only one day to this region, we did only Kalepa Ridge trail.
Kālepa Ridge Trail:
Access: The trail is accessible from Kalalau lookout. The trail is not officially maintained, so you will not see any signs posted. If you are facing towards the Kalalau lookout sign, on your left you will find the trailhead.
Length: I am not certain on that but I would say that it’s almost 3.2 to 4.3 miles (5km -7km) round trip.
Elevation: The trail starts at almost 4000ft and the elevation decreases at some places where it can be precipitously steep.
Round Trip Time: 2-3 hours for hiking, relaxing, taking shots.
Difficulty Level: Moderate to difficult. It does require a fair bit of scrambling up and down steep hills.Wet conditions, soil erosion, precipitously steep inclines can dramatically change the trail path, so not recommended at all under those conditions.
Restrooms: There are no restrooms along the trail.
Features: Breathtaking views of the Kalalau valley and the Na Pali coast.
Warning: This trail is not officially maintained for a reason. I would not recommend going if the conditions are not suitable and/or you don’t have proper gear and if you are on your own. The trail is not for someone who have fear of heights.
Do stop at Pu'u Ka Pele Picnic area after finishing the hikes.