CROUCHING LION HIKE

PU'U MA'ELI'ELI DIGGING HILL

The one thing I love most about being home is hiking. It's incredible how amazing Mother Nature is, especially in Hawaii. This hike I went with one of my best friends Clay. He mentioned a hike in Kaneohe where that was a WWII bunker at the top that offered a panoramic view of the east side of the island. I am always down to go on new hikes, so we decided to go early in the morning in order to catch those glorious morning rays. Good thing I am slightly still jet lagged and Hawaii is 3 hours behind of Seattle, so waking up at 6 am was pretty easy. It was a pretty short hike, but with a lot of steep, rolling hills that we were huffing and puffing by the time we got to the top. But my god, when I saw the bunker in my sight, I started running towards it and suddenly all I saw was miles of pristine, blue ocean in front of me. The Ko'olau mountain range was to the left, and also peeking like a small mountain in the middle of the ocean was Chinaman's Hat in the distance. We ended up staying at the top for quite a while soaking it all in. This is a pretty hidden trail, so we didn't encounter anyone during our time hiking. I wouldn't have it any other way. 

HOME

... I miss everything about this place. 

NORTH SHORE

ISLANDS IN THE SUN

Why did I ever leave again?

SLIP SLIDIN' TO THE FALLS

 Oh Manoa Falls, you are always so mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful.

YOU JUMP, I JUMP, JACK!

After a week of on and off rain showers, the sun finally came out of hiding and brought some clear, blue skies.  I had some friends visiting from out of town so it was perfect timing to show them a little bit of the island.  The North Shore up country is one of my favorite places to visit.  I would go more often if the drive wasn't so long.  We went to one of my favorite beaches Waimea, where there is a famous 20-something foot rock.  Many people do heart-dropping, dare devil flips off the ledge into the ocean.  That day it was low tide so it was perfect for some rock jumping.  Come winter though, the swells can reach up to some terrifying heights.  This time I only jumped off only once, but one of my friends jumped off a total of 12 times!  Even though I've jumped off many times before it's still scary every single time.  The water seems a million miles away when you're standing on top.  But sometimes you just got to face your fears and take that leap of faith because that rush of feeling you get is euphoric and always leaves you wanting more.  To top off the day we quenched our thirst with some delicious Matsumoto shave ice.  Best post beach treat ever.  

I LIKE THE FISHIES SWIMMING ROUND IN THE SEA

The last time I went to Hanauma Bay was back in middle school for a marine biology field trip.  It was my first time ever snorkeling and I definitely ended up choking on more salt water than I did snorkeling.  I think that episode scarred me for a while, because I never returned to the bay until just recently.  Some of my friends were going and the promise of seeing lots of fishies was enough to make me face my fear.  Fortunately, this time around was way better!  The water was crystal clear that it was easy to spot the numerous tropical fishes even without a snorkel.  Although you're not suppose to feed the fish, my friend brought a bag of soybeans - shhh.  The fishes intuition knew instantly there was food and they would suddenly swarm and nip at you.  It was pretty freaky how close they would get to you.  It was still pretty amazing to see all the marine life that I'm used to seeing at the aquarium in their natural habitat.  I definitely need to come to Hanauma Bay more, especially after I found out that admission is free for locals!

KA'AU CRATER

I absolutely LOVED this hike.  It's a rough and tumble hike that takes you to three beautiful waterfalls and extremely close to the rim of a Ka'au crater.  There was a lot of rope climbing in which you have to traverse up the mountain right next to the waterfalls.  When you're done though you're standing on a ledge right where the waterfalls begins.  So terrifying and exciting at the same time!  I never heard of Ka'au crater before, but I'm not surprised because it's so hidden deep within Palolo Valley.  It's so lush and green.  It's nice to see land that hasn't been tainted by commercial development.  I felt like I was in the middle of Africa and half expected to see some gazelles prancing through the grass or giraffes grazing on tree leaves.  I hope this hidden beauty stays mysterious forever.  

WILIWILINUI RIDGE

Although the weather wasn't in our favor, and the trail was crowded with overgrown fern that scratched up our legs, and the rope climb to the summit caused some near disastrous falls, and that we may have fallen on our asses more than once, and that we looked like we rolled around in a pile of shit by the time we finished...it was still a gloriously, fun hike. 

SKY HIGH

A few summers ago, I impulsively decided to go skydiving with a few of my friends.  It was one of those situations where we were bored and wanted to do something new and exciting but everything else suggested seemed "been there, done that."  That is, until skydiving was thrown into the mix and suddenly we piled into the car and found ourselves driving to the North Shore, our hearts racing to keep up with our nervous excitement.  I've always wanted to go skydiving, but was too scared to ever go, so in hindsight the best way to get me to do it was probably in the spur of the moment.  During the two hours of pre-waiting I was a nervous wreck of emotions and it was even worse when we were flying thousands of miles above the Pacific Ocean in a rinky dink plane, but at least I was strapped to an instructor with a parachute.  So I felt safe.  That is until...

The fall. 

Initially, it was a dizzying tumble through the sky that I was so disoriented as to where I was I didn't have time to feel scared.  When we finally stabilized and falling stomach first, I was surprised at how I felt.  It felt like I was floating down (albeit very fast) instead of just a rush of speed.  My stomach wasn't in my throat like I expected.  It was actually...very calming?  I could open my eyes and see the vast blanket of fluffy, white clouds.  Once we got passed through the clouds, I could then see all of the North Shore below me.  It was so spectacular and unreal. The dive was over in the matter of minutes and when I landed I was in a daze of, "Did that just really happen?"  I also paid extra money to have pictures taken aka sacrificing another person's life so I could have photographic proof.  I thought it would be a once-in-a-life-time experience, but I'm already gearing up for more!  Next on the agenda: bungee jumping. 

HILO DAYS

I found an old box of photos and discovered these gems from when I used to go to Hilo to visit family friends.  I must have been two here.  I obviously don't remember this particular time because I was too young, but those tidepools  have always been etched vividly in my memory.  I remember going to that same spot when I was a few years older and going fishing and paddling.  Those were some pretty great times I wish I could go back too.  

STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN

Whenever I find myself driving on the H3, I always look towards the Ko'olau mountains for a set of stairs leading up the steep cliff side.  This is the Haiku Stairs or better known as "Stairway to Heaven."  At 3,992 steps to the top (about 4x the amount of Koko Head) this is one of the most thrilling yet daring hikes on Oahu, and not only because of the steep elevation.  The hike was closed down to the public in 1987 due to liability concerns and neighborhood complaints (since the entrance is literally right across from people's backyards).  However, hikers have continued to sneak on the trail despite there being a guard and the risk of being cited.

My friends and I finally decided that we were ready to do this hike on the Fourth of July.  After thorough research about what time the guard was going to be there, we finally settled on starting the trail at around 2:00 am.  I felt like such a rebel sneaking around in the night time although we weren't very good at being stealthy, as Shane and I got the case of giggles as we sneaked by the sleepy houses.  It was a bit daunting trying to navigate in the dark, but we ran into other hikers along the way which was comforting.  As for the hike itself, the climb to the first platform (there are 4 in total) was the steepest and biggest cardio burn.  But after that, it was all smooth sailing.  I'm glad I didn't get vertigo, because there were some instances were it seems like you are climbing a straight ladder up the mountain.  When we finally got to the top we had to wait two more miserable cold hours for sunrise which we ended up not even seeing because it was too cloudy.  However, the hike back down was ahhhmazing.  Once we got under the clouds we could see all of Kaneohe illuminated by the morning light.  Maybe I was delirious because I was running on no sleep, but it all felt surreal and dreamlike to be standing on the Ko'olau mountains at dawn watching the cars drive by on the H3 below.  It was such a unique perspective.  Best illegal hike ever!