Twin Falls, Ching's Pond, Piilanihale Heiau, Blue Pool, Waianapanapa to Hana coastal trail, Venus Pool, Red Sand Beach, Oheo Gulch

Thirty-something of us--almost all members of HTMC--invaded the Valley
Isle for a couple days of hiking, swimming, eating, and having fun.
The weather wasn't always the best, but as Grant said at one point during
the trip, "Even with the rain and cold, it's better than any day at work."
Yup, he's right about that.

We flew to Maui on Friday morning (5/4), the majority doing so on Aloha
Airlines (better rates? dunno?).  For ground transport, we used
two 15-passenger vans, a mid-sized car, and Mark Short's family van (Mark
is an HTMC member and recently moved to Maui).  Getting all the bags,
gargantuan food supply, and bodies into the four vehicles was a
challenge, but we're talking about folks with plenty of experience
putting cargo--human and otherwise--into the right place.  So no problem.

For the record, the trip participants (35) were as follows:  Mabel Kekina,
Carole K. Moon, June Miyasato, Deetsie Chave, Bill Gorst, Carmen Craig,
Ralph/Bev/Michael Valentino, Jason/Cera/Kimberly Sunada, Kris Corliss &
Larry/Ginger Oswald, Gordon/Connie Muschek, Mark/Jacob/Dylan Short,
Joe/Ruby Bussen, Pat Rorie, Arnold Fujioka, Nathan Yuen, Thea Ferentinos,
Justin Ohara, Grant Oka, Joyce Tomlinson, Ken Suzuki, Mike Algiers,
Helene Sroat, Jackie/Jamie Delgado, Dayle Turner.  A special mahalo goes
to Lynn Agena, who didn't make the trip but was the major mover in
purchasing and preparing the food we ate on the trip. Way to go, Lynn.

After figuring out what/who went where, we made a stop at Safeway in
Kahului to pick up lunch for the day plus snacks and other food items &
supplies needed for the next couple days.  A few people grabbed some
burgers at a nearby Jack in the Box.

Our first hiking/swimming spot was Twin Falls, located at Marker 2 on the
Hana Hwy well past Paia.  Anyone looking for this trailhead should have no
trouble finding it because of the tourist cars parked along the roadside
and a refreshment stand there as well. Many of the places we hiked/swam
began at trailheads with "Keep Out, No Trespassing" signs.  However, most
of these same spots are well-known (based on info available on the 'net
and in books) and well-used (based on the stamped-down nature of the
trails).  Whatever the case, the landowners seem not to enforce what is
said on the signs. As far as Twin Falls, a hike of 10 to 15 minutes
delivered us to a 30-foot cascade where about half of our entourage
took the first of what would be many plunges in the coming days.

Stop 2 was at Ching's Pond, a clear, pleasant swimming hole located on the
ocean side of the highway.  I don't recall the nearest mile marker for
this spot, but I do remember it is several miles before Pua'a Kaa
Park.  We ate lunch at Ching's Pond.  Afterward we made the 100-foot
climb back to the highway, crossed it, and then headed mauka on a jeep
road to a pool Ken said was fantastic.  Unfortunately, only a handful made
it to the pool (I didn't) to experience its fantastic-ness.  Maybe next
time.

Stop 3 was at Puaa Kaa Wayside.  No hiking here.  Just a quick stop to use
the lua and to stretch the legs.

Our next stop was supposed to be Hanawi Falls, accessed via a trailhead at
the end of the road down to Nahiku.  As would be the case during our trip,
plans changed often, sometimes minute to minute (okay, that's an
exaggeration but it seemed that way on occasion).  So instead of Hanawi,
we drove on to Kahanu Gardens, home of Piilanihale Heiau, the largest in
Hawaii.  We arrived after the 2 pm closing of the Gardens, but Mabel had
heard from someone that we could enter the grounds nonetheless, so that's
what we did.  The Gardens are immaculately kept and feature a variety of
unusual trees like jackfruit and eggfruit.  On the ~1-mile walk to
the heiau, we met some caretakers of the garden.  They suggested a $5 per
person donation for our visit, but our negotiators whittled the total
down to $60 for the 35 of us and later to no cash and a few hours of
labor in the gardens at a future date.  Hmmm, maybe $60 is the better
deal.

A bit about Piilanihale: it was built in the 14th century for the
benevolent, beloved Maui chief, Piilani.  The site was overgrown with
weeds until the 1970s and is now a National Historic Landmark. The heiau's
dimensions are 415 x 340 feet.  Huge and majestic.

The next stop took us on a short drive to the end of the road past
Kahanu Gardens.  From there, we rockhopped along the coast for five
minutes to Blue Pool, a wonderful seaside swimming spot at the foot of a
vegetation-covered cliffside cascade.  It was late in the day and overcast
during our visit, so conditions weren't optimal, but many of us took the
plunge nevertheless, including Pat in his spiffy, new wetsuit.

Waianapanapa State Park was our final stop of the day, and the cabins and
campgrounds there would be our homebase for the rest of our stay.  We had
four cabins reserved for 24 (plus 1).  Another six tent-camped at the
site next to the caretaker's house.  And four stayed at a rental in
Hana town.  Prior to the trip, we had all pitched in money for food, with
dinners (teri chicken & curry stew) prepared and eaten at a central
designated cabin.  Breakfasts (eggs, sausage, hot cereal) were prepped
and eaten at individual cabins (with tent campers and the four rental
dwellers eating at a cabin of their choice).  Sandwich fixings,
chips, fruit, and trail mix were made available to each cabin for
in-the pack lunches. It all worked out well.  I was one of the tenters and
enjoyed the benefit of a quiet night's sleep, which wasn't necessarily
the case for those in the cabins (read: snoring).  I had to deal with some
rain, with setting up and breaking down my tent, and with the half-mile
walk to and from the cabins, but these were minor inconveniences.

Day 2 (Saturday) was all about rain and dreary weather.  But as hardcore
HTMC folks, we're undaunted by such conditions.  After breakfast, we set
out in a light drizzle on the rocky coastal trail from Waianapanapa to
Hana town, a distance of about three miles.  Along the way, we
passed a shack maintained by fishermen and a couple of older shoreside
homes with guardian dogs.  Right before the homes we came to a dirt road
heading inland, which turned out to be the quick route to the road into
town.  A bunch of us with a disdain for dirt roads continued along the
coast to  eventually reach a black sand beach where we were able to
access a paved road leading to the road into town. A key turnoff en
route was a grassy  road marked by a fishing lure hanging in a tree.  A
pleasant surprise to me was that Jackie (my girlfriend) and Jamie (her
daughter) were able to stay up near the front of the group without
complaining since they don't hike as much as the rest of us. Good job to
those two.

We all were able to find our way to the road to town and ended up at the
Hana pier, where we had staged the vans earlier in the morning.  We spent
time at Tutu's Snack Shop (pricey but one of the few games in town),
enjoying warm coffee, cocoa, ice cream, and whatever else we wanted.  The
snack shop and pier sits at the foot of a massive 400-foot pu'u named
Kauiki.  On the opposite side of Kauiki is Red Sand Beach, our next
supposed destination of the day. But the due to the weather and rough
ocean conditions, the plan was altered and the next stop was changed to
Venus Pool (aka Waioka Pool). A few folks didn't get wind of the
modified plan and attempted to hike around the seaward side of Kauiki to
reach Red Sand Beach.  However, they discovered vertical sea cliffs made
this impossible, so they climbed up to the crest of Kauiki and down its
mauka side.

The trail to Venus Pool is just after mile marker 48 on the
Hana-town side of Waiohonu Bridge.  A 100-meter walk brought us to the
pool, which features several rocky outcrops for jumping and diving.  The
stars of Venus Pool were na keiki, Ginger and Jamie, who jumped off the
highest rock (~40 feet) several times each.  While a few of the men
leaped from this high perch, most macho types (like me) did not (yup,
chicken).  So hats off to the daring youngsters.

Our final stop of day 2 was Red Sand Beach, located on the southern side
of Kauiki.  Reputedly a place frequented by nude sunbathers, Red Sand
Beach does indeed have red sand.  What it didn't have on this day were any
nudists. In fact, members of our group were the first on the beach
thought after our arrival a few other folks arrived.  Yes, we shed our
clothes.  But no one shed all his or her clothes.  Cera, perhaps wanting
to burn some  excess energy, climbed partway up the steep slope
overlooking the beach. Way to go, Cera.

We returned to Waianapanapa after an hour at RSB, with most folks opting
to shower, change, snack, and relax.  Mark and I decided to hike the
coastal trail to the Hana Airport, and this took us about an hour.
Along the way, we passed a couple of fishermen, a rocky terrace that
appeared to be a grave, and a benchmark stamped into a lava rock.  A sign
on the trail directed us to the "Airport Exit" and the trail emerged at
the end of airport runway, unprotected by a fence or wall.  As we stood
there, we saw a plane heading for a landing.  We watched it touch down, do
a u-turn, and then taxi to the small single-story building that serves as
the Hana Airport terminal.

In about five minutes, Mark and I completed the walk to the terminal.  The
pilots of the just-landed plane had already unloaded its cargo, which
included stacks of the Honolulu Advertiser and a box of pizza destined for
the Hana Ranch Store. We chatted briefly with the terminal manager, a
low-key Hawaiian bla-lah, who asked us how our hike had gone.  After
watching the plane take off, Mark and I headed back to Waianapanapa,
meeting Jason and Pat along the way.  The two-hour hike was a good
workout and relaxing at the same time--just what I needed to end the day.

On the way back, I heard Gordon announce on the walkie-talkie that dinner
would be ready at 6 pm.  Noticing that it was nearing 5:30, I picked up
the pace a bit and decided against a visit to Waianapanapa Cave.  Instead,
I picked up a change of clothes from my tent, and then hustled over to
the cabin where Jackie and Jamie were staying.  I took a warm shower
there (that felt wonderful), changed, and  headed over to the dinner
cabin for kaukau (leftover teri chicken and curry stew--ono!).

The dinner cabin was the gathering place for the 35 of us, with folks
partaking of relaxing libations, good food, fun games (uno), interesting
entertainment (highlighted by Larry's dancing and harmonica playing), and
animated conversations.  I walked back to my tent at 10 p.m. and had
another quiet, restful night of sleep.

Sunday was the day we said aloha to Waianapanapa.  The game plan:  eat
breakfast; pack up our gear; clean up the cabins; group A would backtrack
along the Hana Highway to Nahiku to do the hike to Hanawi Falls; group B
would drive ahead to Kipahulu to Oheo Gulch for swimming and hiking;
Groups A & B would regroup at Kipahulu in the early afternoon then
continue on past Kaupo for a pit stop at the Tedeschi Winery in
Ulupalakua.

The above plan worked well.  I went with group B, having previously done
the Hanawi Falls hike and wanting to stick with the J&J girls.  The drive
from Waianapanapa to Kipahulu took about 30 minutes (Ralph did a
fantastic job of driving on the trip) and when we arrived
at the Oheo Gulch parking area, we were almost the first ones there.
Mabel suggested we head makai to the pools first and later head mauka. If
we flip-flopped the order, said Mabel, then the makai pools would be
flooded with tourists on our return. Made sense to me.

With J&J, Mabel, Cera, Carole, the kids, and others, I spent at least an
hour and a half swimming and taking it easy at the pools near the ocean.
A highlight was watching Carole jump off a rock into the lower pool.
This wasn't easy for her since she has personal demons associated with
rocks and water to reckon with.  But she did it.  Nice job!

Wanting some exercise, I shouldered my pack and headed up the trail into
the valley to Waimoku Falls.  Ralph, Bev, Jason, Joe, Ruby, Deetsie, and
others had earlier hiked ahead. The trail was dry most of the way, and a
good deal of its upper section is a boardwalk thru a large bamboo forest.
Waimoku, a 400-footer, was impressive, and I spent a few minutes taking in
its beauty.  I headed up the trail to the falls on the left before
Waimoku, and partway down I ran into Ralph, Bev, Deetsie, and Jason, who'd
visited the left-falls and were heading down.  I turned around at that
point and hiked out with them.

Jason, on the way out of the valley, went off to explore a side stream
leading to a lesser-known waterfall.  There he saw three pot-smoking guys
who shed their clothes for some naked swimming.  Not surprisingly, he
didn't join them for a toke or a dip.

Meanwhile, Ralph, Bev, and Deetsie stopped at the top of 200-foot Makahiku
Falls for lunch.  I joined them briefly and then headed back down to our
van, where I found that members of Group A had arrived after doing the
Hanawi Falls hike.  After another half hour of resting and eating lunch,
we all boarded our vehicles--now three vans and a car--to drive on the
rought road to Kaupo then Tedeschi Winery.  Several miles past Kaupo, at
a bridge crossing over a rocky gulch, Carmen's van pulled over and Carmen
and most of her passengers deboarded for a middle-of-nowhere potty
break.  In  contrast, no one in our van felt the need to answer nature's
call.  What's up with that?

The road on the way to Ulupalakua is dry and rocky, akin to the Makapuu
area on Oahu, but the roadway is narrower, rougher, and at times
meandering like a snake as if the road builders were drunk during
construction.  In our van, a battle of the songs began, with the kids
singing a can-can tune and Carole and Jackie belting out the itsy-bitsy
spider song.  The singers were having fun, no doubt.

We stopped for 45 minutes at Tedeschi, with some folks partaking of free
wine samples offered by the winery staff.  We then drove over to Joyce's
house in Makawao, where we cleaned up for the flight home.  After gassing
up the vans in Kahului, we headed to the airport for the flight home.

Jackie, Jamie, and I had reservations for the 7:25 Hawaiian Air flight to
Honolulu but we decided at the last minute to stay on extra day on Maui.
We grabbed a rental car, a room in the Maui Surf, and ate a sumptuous meal
of crispy chicken, 5-seasoning roast duck, and egg foo yong at a Chinese
restaurant.

On Monday, we ate at the hotel buffet (eggs and sausage!), then drove up
to Haleakala to spend the morning there.  We stopped at the visitor's
center, where I inquired about open spots in the cabins in the coming
month, and among the open dates were some on the Memorial Day weekend.
Anyone interested should call up the visitor's center (572-4400) between 1
and 3 pm to check for open dates.  We then drove up and parked in the lot
by the Sliding Sands trailhead (the road to the actual summit was closed
to vehicles).  We cruised around the area, taking a ton of photos,
including many of the crater's interior, free of clouds.

After a half hour at the top, we headed back down, stopping at the
visitor's center one more time (lua break), then on down to Kahului Costco
where we dropped off five rolls of film for the 1-hour quickie service.
We then ate lunch (McDonald's), and drove up thru rustic Wailuku town to
Iao Needle, where we hiked around the paved loop trail, snapping more
photos as we went.  For those who've never visited Iao, its significance
is well-documented, particularly as the 1790 battle site between Maui
defenders and the invading army of Kamehameha.  So many warriors died in
the fighting that their corpses blocked the flow of Iao Stream, leading to
the naming of the area as Kepaniwai, literally "damming of the waters."

>From Iao, we drove northwest on route 340 (Kahekili Hwy) in search of the
trailhead of the Waihee Ridge trail.  About a 20-minute drive from Wailuku
got us there, but since it was late in the afternoon, we didn't have time
to hike it.  Maybe next time.

We returned to Kahului, picked up the photos at Costco (Jackie has 'em
now so don't ask me to see them), dropped off the rental car, and checked
in for the 6 pm flight back to Honolulu.

Things I learned from this trip:

--With a big group and spotty weather, expect plans to change often.

--The weather, especially in the Hana area, is a big factor in daily
  planning.

--The more walkie-talkies the better.

--Even with walkie-talkies, communication isn't a sure thing.

--Hiking leisurely and taking it easy has its place.

--I'll never go hungry with this group.

--I'll never volunteer to drive a van on the Hana Highway (so don't ever
  ask me!).

--Always bring duct tape.

Aloha and pau,

--DKT

Waianae, Makaha, Dodge ridge to Kamaileunu

Pat, Ed, Steve, and I logged a good amount of hiking today.  We all
started in Waianae Valley and made our way up the No-Name Peak side
of the Waianae Kai trail, a no-nonsense climb  and a good
workout.  From there, we descended an ancient Hawaiian trail, nowadays
used mostly by hunters, to Makaha Valley.  This trail is well-defined in
its upper third but less so the rest of the way as it descends thru guava.
Pink ribbons helped us navigate our way.

Once down in Makaha, we headed makai on a well-used trail along
gently-flowing Makaha Stream.  At one point, Pat led us up a short side
trail on the right that took us in a couple minutes to a pu'u with a
panoramic view of the valley.  Pat and I agreed that the surroundings
reminded us of what one might see from Smoke Rock in Kalalau.  Very nice.

The valley trail led to a Board of Water Supply well and a paved road
leading to the well.  We walked down the road, our next objective being to
find a trail on the left that would lead us to a spur ridge up to the
terminus of the Kamaileunu Trail.  HTMC vet Fred Dodge has hiked this
before, so I christened this Fred Dodge's Ridge.

We walked past the obscure trail on our way down but after backtracking,
we found it (a large pole, and now pink ribbons, mark the spot).  The
trail proceeds into a forest of coffee and macadamia trees for 50-60
meters then veers right on a contour.  After that, the way became
indistinct, and we switched into path-of-least resistance mode, with Pat
as the hammer man.

After about 15 minutes of pushing through, we began climbing a distinct,
rocky ridge.  Yes, this was Dodge Ridge, which we hoped would deliver us
to the summit of Kamaileunu.  We were optimistic yet apprehensive
since none of us had ever hiked this route all the way before (Pat,
Steve, Wing, and I had explored the lower section a few years ago).

Happily, the ridge was quite good, with no chopping necessary and no
overly challenging or taxing rock climbing, at least until we neared the
summit. Goats rule this ridge, evidenced by the well-used paths they've
created and the piles of dung they've left behind.  Additionally, the
acrid aroma of goat urine leaves quite an impression.

As we approached the 2000-foot level, Pat picked up the pace and pressed
forward ahead of the rest of us.  As we neared 2500 feet, we reached a
level section where we could see Pat 100 meters ahead.  He had stopped at
the base of a radical-looking rock section, and it was obvious to us that
Pat had ceased hiking because the section was a dangerous one.

Steve, Ed, and I eventually reached the base of the rock section and
followed Pat to the left on a narrow bypass used by goats. A
big drop had us moving very cautiously.  We decided that this left
bypass was too risky, so we backtracked to the face of the rock section
and explored bypass possibilities on the right.  These didn't pan out, so
the only option was to attempt the face straight on if the summit were to
be acquired.

Testing every foot- and handhold several times, Pat went first.  As we
nervously watched, he made it and then reported that ridge ahead looked
doable.  Ed, exercising the same kind of caution, went next.  Success.
Next in line were Steve and I.  Admittedly, I was very nervous about
climbing this face but after watching Pat and Ed make it okay, I felt I
could do it.  Steve, a very cautious sort, opted not to try it, even
after my concerted pep talk about what a great climber he is (which is no
BS).

Not wanting Steve to have to descend the ridge and find his way out of
Makaha alone, I decided to pass on the summit and head down with him. I
yelled out our plan to Pat and asked that he drive over to the end of
Kili Drive in Makaha to pick us up.  Pat said he would.

So Pat and Ed continued up the ridge to reach the Kamaileunu terminus and
then hiked makai on that trail to Kepauula and the ridge that descended to
the junkyard in Waianae Valley. Earlier, Pat had left his vehicle on a
residential street near the junkyard.

In the meantime, Steve and I headed back down, stopping at the 1400-foot
level to examine what we thought was a halapepe tree.  We eventually
reached the BOWS road and headed makai on it toward Kaneaki Heiau.  Just
mauka of Kaneaki, we veered right on a trail, leaving the road behind.
This trail was overgrown with grass but still discernible.  We crossed
the stream a handful of times and then emerged on a fairway of the Makaha
Valley Golf Course.  Not wanting to walk out on the golf course, we
backtracked a minute on the trail and found another trail heading off in
the direction of the Makaha condo towers and Kili Drive.  We followed
it. Steve and I eventually emerged on Huipo Drive, where we turned right
for the short walk to the end of Kili Drive by the security checkpoint
for the Makaha Towers.  We sat down  to rest on a bus stop bench and five
minutes later Pat and Ed pulled up to pick us up.  Great timing!

In all, it was a good day of hiking.  The weather stayed fairly cool all
day, with just a brief passing drizzle around 2:30.  By 5 p.m., we all
were motoring off for home.

Some notes, not necessarily hike-related:

1.  Posthike, on the way back up Waianae Valley to pick up my vehicle, we
passed a large gathering of people in an undeveloped lot where Waianae
Valley Road veers left and narrows.  Chicken fight!

2. Regular unleaded gas is $1.76 a gallon in Nanakuli!  I filled up on the
way home.

3. Around 5:30, Ed (passenger) and I (driving) witnessed an accident on H1
right by the Waikele offramp.  While traveling in the center lane, we
saw a car two lanes to our left slam into a light pole along the center
median and flip over 5 to 6 times. We pulled over to render aid and Ed
called 911 on his cell phone.  Miraculously, the driver and his
passenger survived!

--dkt

Friendship Garden and Kokokahi

Date: Sat, 21 Apr 2001 17:01:20 -1000
From: Shelly Bermudez <sbermudez@ywcaoahu.org>
To: turner@hawaii.edu
Subject: Friendship Garden

Aloha,

My name is Shelly Bermudez and I am the Program Manager of YWCA Camp
Kokokahi.  Upon conducting a word search of Kokokahi, I came across your
webpages about your hiking experience and the spirit dog.  Mahalo for
sharing your story.  For the past 5 years that I have been at the camp, I
have been interested in hearing any ghost stories about the Kokokahi
site.

Some brief history on Kokokahi.....

Dreams are realized in a diversity of ways, but few so beautifully as
that of Theodore Richards who envisioned  a Hawaiian valley where people
of many races would work, play, and pray together in harmony.  This was
"Kokokahi" of one blood.  This was the name he gave the valley when his
dream came to life in 1928.  His vision of Kokokahi was inspired by the
moving sermon of St. Paul in Chapter XVII of the Acts of Apostles.

Friendship Garden was a part of the whole Kokokahi system.  Mr. & Mrs.
Jack Gillmar, their children and numerous volunteers labored for 25 years
to restore and maintain the garden. In 1998, The Friendship Garden
Foundation obtained the deed for the property from the YWCA.  Mr. and
Mrs. Gillmar believe it is very important  to maintain the garden to
continue Dr. Richard's dream.  Mr. Gillmar's grandfather, Frank Schudder,
a Congregational missionary was a friend of Dr. Richards and played an
active role in Kokokahi's early days.

Russell Porter and Ted Talbott, two Windward residents were helpful in
restoring the trials that connected to the garden. One of the trails that
ties into Friendship Garden is named the Dudley Talbott Trail.  It was
built by Ted Talbott in honor of his grandfather, Paul Dudley.  It is
said that Mr. Tolbott, with the help of a few friends, worked about 1,000
hours and completed the trail in about 9 months.

If you are interested in more information about YWCA Camp Kokokahi,
please feel free to call the camp at the phone number below.

Aloha Nui Loa,

Shelly Bermudez
YWCA of O'ahu
Camp Kokokahi
45-035 Kaneohe Bay Drive
Kaneohe, Hawaii   96744
(808)247-2124 ext. 11
www.ywcaoahu.org

Bearclaw Ridge

I dislike hiking in streambeds and along narrow ridges with rotten rock. As things turned out, I did both today probably because I'm a hardheaded son of a gun. Or maybe I did it because it was April Fool's Day, and I'm the king of fools. Today, the TM gang was slated to work on the Kipapa Trail in cooperation with the feds, but that outing was cancelled at the 11th hour. So, in place of Kipapa, Mabel requested that the crew hike/work on the Pu'u o Kona route for an upcoming club hike. So a bunch of us showed up at the end of Kalaau Place in Kuliouou Valley this morning to do our thing. I'd hiked the o Kona route last Saturday and reported to Mabel that not much work was needed on it. Given that, the day was designated more one for hiking than for labor. No complaints from me in that regard. The assembled throng dispersed hither and yon. Some folks went up the direct route to Kuliouou Ridge. Some went up the middle ridge via the end of Papahehi Place. I went with a group of folks up the valley trail that led to the waterfall trail that led up to Kuliouou West by an airplane wreck near the summit. The valley/waterfall group had a good workout. Our crew included Peter Kempf, Ed Gilman, Pat Enomoto, Brenda & Dick Cowan, Jay Feldman, and Jason Sunada, and me. We all made it up to Kuliouou West in good stead, after a romp thru a dry stream (which, as mentioned earlier, I dislike) and a huff-n-puffer of a climb. After climbing up the middle ridge from Papahehi, Nathan Yuen, Thea Ferentinos, and Tom Yoza arrived at the pu'u by the airplane wreck about the same time as our group. Looking across the valley, we saw a string of hikers topping out on the Kuliouou state trail. They turned out to be Justin Ohara, Mike Algiers, and friends, who were bound for Makapuu along the summit. We also were in radio contact with other folks in the TM crew, who were working in Kaalakei Valley and up Mauna o Ahi Ridge. Lynn Agena, who's been tied up with work on Sundays since starting a new job, was with the crew today. Also on hand were Mabel Kekina, Deetsie Chave, Bill Gorst, Connie and Gordon Muschek, June Miyasato, Mel Yoshioka, among others. Our group summited, rested awhile, then began clearing the trail along the crest toward Pu'u o Kona (not much work to be done). Once at o Kona (elev 2200), we took a look at Bear Claw Ridge, the massive spur that extends down to Waimanalo. Many of us have looked at this ridge from the summit and from Waimanalo, wondering if we'd muster the nerve to ever attempt it. Well today a few of mustered up some muster. After some rationalizing and feet dragging, we took the plunge. I went down a side spur and then bashed and slashed left into a wide, heavily vegetated ravine that was a mess of 'ie'ie and strangling plants. Ed later followed my basic line of torture. Meanwhile, Jason damned the torpedos and went down the direct ridge, and Peter edged after him. My way was safer but required more energy expenditure. Jason's way was direct but more exposed. It was pick your poison. I eventually made my way thru the vegetation stranglehold, while being urged on and peppered with advice via walkie-talkie from comrades watching my progress up on the summit ridge. After hearing from Jason that the main ridge was "okay" (a relative term in the HTMC), I clawed my way very steeply thru 'ie'ie and buffalo grass to regain the main ridge where Jason had stopped to wait for me. At this point, Peter had decided to head back up and Ed was still battling the tangling flora (Ed later gained the main ridge and then headed back to the summit). So Jason and I slowly and carefully continued makai down the Bear Claw. We moved gingerly down some steep, crumbly slopes that obviously were negotiable and edged to the right of a couple of pinnacle rock formations. While edging, I had to move extra carefully because of my wide and heavy bulk ("walk lightly" was my mantra). Many of the rocks along the ridge, some boulder-sized, were rotten and ready to dislodge under the weight or tug of an unwary hiker. Fortunately, Jason and I are experienced enough to know what and how much to grab, lean on, and put weight on to avoid a big plunge. We passed to the left of a large ironwood tree and the ridge narrowed right after it. We crept along the thin, rocky ridge and then jumped down on the right. In the process, I dislodged a piece of the mountain. Looking at the ridge I'd destroyed, Jason said, "I hope we'll be able to climb back up." I hoped so, too. Not far after that, we arrived at a place where the main ridge narrowed and veered to the left and a broader side spur split off down to the right, with a broad, vegetated ravine between the two. The main ridge dropped to a vertical rockface of 8 to 10 feet. On the other hand, the right spur could be descended without aids. While I watched from above, Jason descended the right spur ten feet then did a left slabbing contour to get over to the main ridge, bypassing the 8-10 foot rockface. While I continued to watch (I'd decided not to go any further), Jason went down the main ridge a bit more then came back, saying he felt a little nervous. In a way, it was good to hear him say this because I was plenty nervous. Nervousness loves company, it seems. Jason, having decided to descend the main ridge no further, reslabbed back to the righthand side spur, descended that for a bit, then came back up to where I was. From this position, we were at the ~1800 ft level (altimeter watch check) and about 100 meters mauka of the ironwood grove that marks the point where the two claws of the ridge split steeply downward to the Waimanalo foothills below. It was around noon and time for lunch, but we both agreed not to eat until we had returned to the summit since somehow food would probably be unenjoyable with thoughts in our heads of the dicey climb still looming. Moreover, clouds started massing along the summit ridge, an indicator that rain might soon follow. Precipitation plus steep eroded slopes equal bad news, so even moreso were we motivated to return to the summit without delay. After discussing crossing over the ravine to our left to ascend a spur on that side, we decided to stick with the main ridge, which we carefully made our way up. When we reached the narrow section by the ironwood tree, Jason slabbed left past the tree while I used its branches like a ladder to regain the ridgetop (thank heaven for strong branches), bypassing the narrow neck we'd hopped down (and I damaged) earlier. We then ascended the steep, eroded hill we'd come down earlier, did a twister contortionist routine thru a thicket of christmas berry (I did a bit of chopping there), then climbed steeply and carefully up a narrow hogback to the summit. Safety. Yes. Breathing proverbial sighs of relief, we turned south to hike along the summit to the clearing at the top of the state trail, pausing on occasion to look back at profiles of Bear Claw. We ate lunch at the top of the state trail with Peter and Ed, who waited for us there. After lunch, we headed down the state trail, admiring the new stairs we'd worked on last Saturday, and eventually arrived back on Kalaau Place. Notes: We found no ribbons or old cuts on Bear Claw today. It seems that no one has done this recently. We also left no ribbons. On my way home, I drove the Waimanalo backroads to take a good look at Bear Claw from below. Both claws appear do-able. In fact, we know that Al Miller, John Hall, Fred Durst, and others have done Bear Claw. John, who was in attendance today, told me he last did it about 30 years ago but can't recall if he went up on the left or right. He did remember that the climb required no cables/ropes and that access in Waimanalo wasn't problem. In typical HTM fashion, he described the climb as "not too bad." Miller, who has done it more recently, says the right claw is THE WAY to go and that cables are required in several spots. Will it be right or left? Hmmm... A week ago Monday, Ed and Roger Breton completed the section between the Moanalua Saddle and Keahiakahoe. This was a daring, dangerous undertaking since it involved an ascent of a very narrow ridgeline much of it over rotten rock. Nice job to those two. This past Saturday, I hiked Kawaewae Ridge with the club. Jason and his wife and daughter were there as were Thea, Thea's sister and her two kids, Justin, Fred Boll, George Shoemaker, Peter, Steve Brown, Lin Black, Richard McMahon, and many others. It was a fine outing in good weather and everyone seemed to have had a good time. Go HTMC! --dkt

Waimano, Waiau campout

I'm on vacation this week (Spring Recess).  Ditto for my friend Bill
Melemai.  We hadn't hiked together for a bunch of months, so Bill
suggested an overnight backpack.  His first choice was Haleakala and his
second was Poamoho-Schofield. However, circumstances indicated we best
not attempt these. The third option was Waimano-Waiau, and we agreed that
this would work.

We started at 12:45 on Tuesday afternoon at the Waimano trailhead. Bill's
wife, Donna, dropped us off and she'd pick us up at the end of Kaahumanu
Street at the end of our trip sometime on Wed afternoon.  I was carrying a
fairly light load--no more than 15 lbs. In comparison, Bill's pack was
about 35.  During our trip, he heard me extol the virtues of lightweight
backpacking so much that he's  convinced he should make modifications to
what gear he'll use in the future.

Our plan for Day 1 was to pack in to the five-mile marker campsite along
Waimano. From there, we'd make camp then fetch water via the trail down
to the stream just before the 5.5 marker. Our hike in was slow and
leisurely, and we took a long break at the picnic shelter just past the
2.5 marker.  We arrived at five-mile camp at 4:30 and set up our tents
quickly as dark clouds swept down toward us from up-valley. I was using a
Walrus Micro Swift bivy and Bill a Peak 1 Cobra. These held up well though
mine lacked roominess.

We obtained a couple of gallons of H20 from the stream via a trail just
makai of marker 5.5.  Back at camp, I added iodine to the water and later
filtered a liter at a time with my SafeWater Anywhere squeeze bottle.
After adding some Crystal Light iced tea mix, we had plenty of drinkable
fluid for hydration for the night and next day.  Since we were just
overnighting, we decided to go the cookless route.  For dinner, I ate a
can of vienna sausage, some peanuts, and a protein drink (2 scoops of
whey with some Waimano Stream Water Iced Tea).  Bill ate an MRE entree
with a Tiger's bar for dessert.

After dinner, we talked story in the clearing next to our tents under a
splotchy night sky that hid all but a handful of stars.  Rain chased us
into our tents around nine, and after gabbing for a few minutes, I
was off into z-land.  The night turned a bit chilly and I could have slept
more restfully if I had packed a sleep cover and a long-sleeve top.  I
decided not to bring the former and forgot to pack the latter.  That'll
teach me. Camping, as I always discover, is a never-ending learning
experience.

The patter of rain on our tents greeted us at 6 the next morning.  By
6:30, the light shower had passed and we were able to emerge from our
tents to check out what kind of day we'd have.  Though the sky was gray up
toward the summit, the makai skyline was brighter, giving us hope
we'd have a decent day to hike.

And we did.  We were packed up and on our way up the trail to the summit
at 7:30.  The earlier rain made the trail a bit muddy, but on the whole it
wasn't bad. Just like the day before, we hiked leisurely, arriving at the
summit at 9:00.  The summit crest was clear and a brisk breeze swirled up
the pali from Waihee Valley below us.  I pointed out to Bill the wrong-way
ridge in the crossover section toward Manana and, looking in the
opposite direction, the broad flat-topped summit plateau of Waimalu middle
ridge.  I also made an entry in a logbook someone had left in a bottle at
the summit.  Perusing other entries in the book, I spotted a handful of
familiar names.

Bill had never made a summit crossing in this section of the Koolaus, so
he was a bit unsure of what to expect.  As I've done with others in the
past, I rehashed the maxim of summit hiking:  If you have to fall, fall to
the right (the left, in this case, being the sheer windward pali).  Bill
laughed nervously at my words.

The crossover to Waiau is brief, only taking about fifteen minutes, but
it's one of the windier summit stretches.  Upon arriving at the heavily
ribboned Waiau terminus junction, I stopped to plant the stalk of a red ti
plant I'd obtained on a lower section of Waimano.  Hopefully, the
plant will grow and flourish there and be a marker of this location for
future generations of hikers.

Bill and I made our way down Waiau Ridge and really enjoyed the upper
section of the trail, which is still wide open from the TM the club did
back in mid-October. The footing was also excellent, with no mud.   About
midway down, the trail became brushier, and I recognized this as the
section where the TM crew started pushing thru due to fatigue and time
limitations.  Nonetheless, Bill and I had no problem hiking with our bulky
packs.

We ate lunch at the junction with Brandon Stone's trail down to the old
cabin by Waimano Stream.  There's not much of a trail to speak of but I
recognized the telltale double ribbons marking the spot.  Plus, a visual
reckoning told me the spur heading down to the stream had to be the one.

After lunch, we continued down the ridge, arriving at the Big Dip.  I
pointed out Wing's rescue spot and also the point where I had stopped to
yell out for him a couple hours before he summoned Fire Rescue to pluck
him out.  We passed the junction with the trail down into Waimalu Valley
and then began the notorious rollercoaster middle section of Waiau.  This
wasn't fun, especially since the heat of the day intensified, but taking
one hill at a time, we progressed toward our final destination.

Further down, we met a lone male dayhiking up from Kaahumanu.  The guy
told Bill that the rest of the way was all downhill, but I told Bill that
this statement was false.  In fact, we still had several big hills to
climb.  "This is one helluva downhill," I yelled to Bill as we huffed our
way up every ascent we encountered on the way out.

I found the new Halapepe Nui trail that connects Waiau to Waimano and
hiked it for a short stretch.  The club will conduct its maiden hike on
this route on April 28.  Check it out, HTMC members.

The final section of Waiau follows a jeep road, which leads to a
watertank and then a paved road down to the end of Kaahumanu Street.
Prior to reaching Kaahumanu, Bill called Donna via cell phone and she said
she'd drive up to pick us up.  Along this final stretch, I spotted a black
rabbit, likely a pet someone let go, dashing off into the brush.

Donna was delayed by afternoon traffic, so Bill and I walked down
Kaahumanu. Next to the curb about a quarter-mile down, we found a turtle
crawling along the road.  Bill took a liking to it and decided he wanted
to take it home as a pet.  So he took a towel out of his pack, wet it
down, wrapped the turtle in it, and stuffed the towel-covered turtle in
his pack.

So earlier, I'd spotted a rabbit and now Bill had a turtle.  Maybe we'd
interrupted a race between the tortoise and the hare?  Ok, sorry, bad joke.
:-)

To my surprise, a security guard was on duty at the shack at the start of
the gated community of upper Kaahumanu.  I approached the shack slowly,
thinking the guard might read me the riot act for hiking out of the area
past his post.  But he was a nice guy and said hikers are allowed access
in vehicles past the security post as long as they leave their name and
the guard records the license number of the car.  Good deal.

Bill and I hiked down to Waiau District Park and kicked back in the shade
of a large tree as near us Little Leaguers practiced fielding grounders
and teenaged soccer players honed their kicking skills in a massive green
expanse.  A few minutes later, Donna arrived and presented us with
super-sized soft drinks and hot dogs.  Without pause, Bill and I scarfed
these down.  Thank you, Donna!

So ended our overnight trip.  In all, we covered about 15 miles and
enjoyed decent weather.  Though this route can be done as a dayhike, using
it as an overnight backpack trip was a pleasant and interesting variation
that others might want to try.

--dkt

Haleakala, Holua, Waikau cabin site

Date:   Mon, 26 Mar 2001 14:06:26 -1000
From:   nota yahoo <notayahoo50@hotmail.com>
Subject: Waikau overnight  

After hiking down the Halemauu trail I turned left on the unmaintained trail 
that leads across Koolau gap to the old Waikau cabin site and up to re-join 
the Halemauu trail near Bottomless Pit. This trail makes lots of twists and 
turns through the very rough lava fields.

With the normal situation of hiking in the clouds it is very easy to lose 
your sense of direction and even to lose the trail. One area was covered by 
what looked like a lichen(?) forest. All the lava was covered by the gray 
stuff, which was from one to three inches high, and occasionally green. I 
was looking for some large pine trees I was told were at the cabin site but 
found they had been blown down long ago.

As I set up my tent it began to rain lightly, after I was all set it rained 
more heavily and began to get dark. I was snug in my tent, having put on dry 
longjohns and enjoyed my dinner. Later that night I had to go out despite 
the cold and the prospect of putting on wet shoes. I was rewarded with a 
clear night sky and as I gazed at the beauty of the stars I momentarily 
forgot that I was standing in freezing cold weather with wet freesing cold 
shoes on.

In the morning I was not able to light my Esbit fuel tab. I had left it out 
all night and it seemed to have absorbed moisture and frozen, also my 
lighter ran out of fuel. So I decided to pack up, hike awile and have a cold 
breakfast. The puddles around my tent from the rain at night was frozen and 
the tent floor had to be broken free, this required my hands to be re-warmed 
a couple of times as I folded up the tent.

Again the trail was unmaintained but now the sky was clear with the lava 
formations looking like castles & other impressive structures against the 
back drop of the early morning lighted walls of Haleakala Crater.

At Mamane hill I stopped to dry out my gear & eat breakfast, just relaxing 
in the quite & solitude. Once back on the main trail I exchanged good 
mornings with hikers headed in to the crater.

At Holua I had a snack and while trying to enjoy the quiet I was diturbed by 
some loud yahooing in the distance. Since I was annoyed I decided that this 
is where the derogatory term Yahoos came from. I then decided not to be 
annoyed, that these Yahoos were just expressing their appreciation for the 
beauty of the wilderness.

I then proceeded up the old switchback trail. This was a first for me and a 
good work out. The bottom portion is completly wiped out so it is a straigt 
up affair. The switchback portion is littered with large rocks and goes up 
at at a good angle almost all the way to the parking lot. I tryed to 
memorize the junction so I can take it down next time.

This was a great short trip and I look forward to some longer explorations 
of this area.

Waikane, Kaaumakua

Paying us will probably be the worst thing for the HTMC TM crew. 
If we ever were paid, then the amount of work we'd do, plus the
quality of that work, would drop off drastically. I say this because as
volunteers, with the only compensation being a couple of cold soft
drinks and a piece of cheese cake (and occasionally hot dogs or
meatballs) we do a helluva lot of work on Sundays.  And if do say so
myself, pretty damn bang-up work, too.  Put a crew of paid workers up
in the mountains to do what we do, and, yes, they'd get the job done. But
likely in 3 to 4x the amount of time.  And better? Probably not.  But I'm
biased.

Today, we worked on the Waikane Trail, which has traditionally been
tough to clear because of numerous fallen trees, fast regrowth of
trailside flora, and ongoing trail slippage.  In short, we have to bust
tail to clear this trail.  But we inevitably do a good job. And
today we did a helluva job.  We started at 8, commencing with a hard hour
of hiking just to get to the point where we began working.  The last group
was out at 5:30.  That's 9.5 hours, with not much dillydallying. 

While we traditionally use just machetes, sickles, and loppers to do
battle, today the heavy artillery also came out, namely chain saws (3),
hedge trimmers (2), picks, and shovels (several).  The end result was a
trail that in many sections is now as clear and well-graded as the Aiea
Loop or the Maunawili Demo.

Coordinated by Pat, the hike (members only) on April 1 will start at Kam
Hwy and Waikane Valley Road.  There's an hour walk on the dirt road in the
valley to a water flume of the Waiahole Ditch (a good place to
rinse/cool off on the way back).  Next is a ~30 minute segment on the
ditch trail to the Waikane saddle and the start of the Waikane
Trail.  Then add an hour to hour and a half climb to the
junction with the KST (some magnificent sections of trail carved into the
steep, vertical pali). Finally, finish with a 20-30 minute jaunt on the
KST and a final scramble to Pu'u Kaaumakua, the piko of the Koolaus, where
on a clear day you can see forever.  I hope 100 people turn out for Pat's
hike.

More than a dozen of us reached Kaaumakua today on one of the clearest
days I've experienced in the mountains.  Looking north, visible was the
KST pointing toward Poamoho.  Two large, recent landslides have raked over
the summit trail just south of Pu'u Pauao.  We're eager to find out what
damage, if any, to trail occurred.  To the south, about a mile and a half
away as the apapane bird flies, was the summit of Kipapa Ridge.  To
leeward were the large, remote drainages of upper Waiawa where, in the
land where no man roams, pigs rule.  To windward, we looked down on the
pointed pinnacle of Pu'u Ohulehule and its nearby cousin, Mo'o Kapu o
Haloa, home of Kanehoalani.

The way up was the way down but the outbound leg went quicker than
inbound, thanks to a beautifully cleared trail.  While hiking down the
mountain and admiring the work we'd done, I thought that if I were paid
to do this, I'd stop trail clearing, for the work would then be a
job. And I have one of those already.  Sundays and trail clearing are a
means to escape the world of my job, at least for the 6 to 8 hours I'm
out in the hills.  Somehow, getting paid would kill the escape.

Roll call: Mabel Kekina, Bill Gorst, Deetsie Chave, Connie & Gordon
Muschek, Pat Rorie, Larry Oswald, Kris Corliss, Mike Algiers, Helene
Sroat, Dick & Brenda Cowan, Charlotte Yamane, Cera Sunada, Grant Oka,
Georgina Oka, Ed Gilman, Peter Kempf, Tom Yoza, Ken Suzuki, Carole
K. Moon, June Miyasato, Nathan Yuen, Carmen Craig, Pat Enomoto, Mel
Yoshioka, Ralph Valentino, Reuben Mateo, Dayle Turner.  Hats off to the
gang.

Next Sunday, the TM outing will be Pu'u Ohulehule.  Meeting time is 8
a.m. at the parking lot on the mauka side of Kam Hwy across from Kahana
Bay Beach Park.

--dkt