2 hikes in a day?? Can it be done? :)

Staying in Lihue...

Want to hike the following in 7 days:

waipoo

hakaipai (first 2-4 miles of kalalau)

kuilau

pihea

and mahaelpu (sp? lol, i know this isn%26#39;t really a hike)

(what do ppl think of this? too much? defintely doable?)

but my question is based on location to each other, and length of the hike, is it possible to hike one from maybe like 7a-11a, take a break for lunch and rest and then hike from 1p-5p or something?

thanks to so much of koloagirl%26#39;s help (i am a bit neurotic on the PMs, I apologize!!), told me that Waipoo and Pihea are quite close to each other...would hiking these 2 in one day be insane or is it doable?

where are the other hikes in terms of location relative to one another and to where we are staying in Lihue, at the Marriott Beach Club...

thanks to all of you for all the help! I want to do all of this, but the point is to try to avoid driving the same 1 hour stretch 4 of our 7 days if the hikes are near each other we could just do them in one day instead of driving there and back, next day same drive and back, etc etc.

2 hikes in a day?? Can it be done? :)

We just came back from Kauai and we did all of those hikes....

If you are a really avid hiker with good strong legs AND if you start early (remembering that it takes a good hour or more to get to Pihea trailhead) AND if you take extra water and refill before second hike...then YES, you could do Pihea and Waipoo in one day. That is, if you do Pihea, you don%26#39;t march right down into the depths of the Alakai Swamp (I think you could spend a couple of days in there alone!). We turned around where the boardwalk intersects the next trails (actually wandered down one side a ways, but turned around since we were travelling with kids).

Neither are really long hikes - but if it has been wet, they can be slippery which slows you down a bit. If you are two adults hiking with strong legs...it is totally doable.

Mahaelapu can be a hike if you want to make it one...if you start at Shipwrecks you can hike past the horse stables to Gillins Beach and then another mile down the way to the next point. It is a hot hike though, so take LOTS of water. The Kokee hikes are cooler - but you work to climb up and down.

Hope that helps!

Cheers,

Susan

2 hikes in a day?? Can it be done? :)

awesome, thanks Susan!!

we%26#39;re not going til the end of March, so expecting it to be a bit cooler, but great to know that it%26#39;s definitely doable!!

So Waipoo and Pihea are close enough to each other to hike both in one day

what about the locations of Kuilau, Hanakaipai (Kalalau) and Maha?

thanks again!! I think we%26#39;ll plan to do both waipoo and pihea in one day!

Pihea is at the very end of the road in Koke%26#39;e (which is several miles up a long, narrow and windy road). There are several lookout spots along the drive which you will not be able to drive by without looking (the first time up!) - so you may want to budget some extra time, or steel yourself to keeping your eye on the prize (ie the hike) and keep moving. You drive past the trailhead for the Waipoo falls on the way up. It will probably take you a half hour or so to drive back down from the Pihea trailhead to the Waipoo trailhead (which is on the side of the highway at the Halemanu trail start). Pick up a hiking guide for Kauai - these will be in there for sure.

If you are adventurous - you might slip you swimsuit on under your clothes at the start of the Waipoo hike (or change at the falls if you are not too shy about changing behind a big rock). You will be hot enough to enjoy the chilly waters at the falls!

Enjoy!

Cheers,

Susan

I%26#39;m not sure it would be too easy to hike the kalalau and then combine with one of the other hikes. Especially if you are hiking to the falls. And also because the trail is not close to any of the other trails you have listed.

The others may be doable as 2 in one day. We also did all these hikes. You would need to look at a good map to see where all the trail heads are.

Kuilau and mahaulepu are in the east and southeast respectively, so they might be combined.

I would agree that if you hike the Pihea Trial, that you take off from the Pihea to the Alakai Swamp Trail. to the end of the alakai...About 8 miles round trip ( total ). You will see things in the alakai that you more than likely never experienced before.

Also on the Pihea, you will have magical opportunities for photos of the Kalalau Valley.

Also you can stop, on the way up, to Koke%26#39;e at the Waimea Canyon Lookout, for more great photos.

Everythng is on the same road, and easy to find.

Also, how about doing the :

Awa awa phui, cliff, nualolo loop ( up in Koke%26#39;e.)

about 11 miles total, and walking back to the awa awa puhi trial head, along waimea canyon road, to the car park at the trail head. You can try hitching a ride after finishing up on the nualolo back to the car. Erica is usually successful at this.

Both the pihea/alakai and also the awa awa puhi, cliff/nualolo loop will take care of a days each worth of hiking, and you will see quite different views, and geology.

If you are on the east side...

Near the Wailua River, head up Kuamo%26#39;o road to the trail head for the wonderful Kuilau Ridge trail ( easy ) , and extremely lush and beautiful. Views of Mt. Waialeale in the distance. You can hike up to the meadows and picnic table view, have a picnic lunch. This is only about 2 miles round trip, but different than you have already done. ( you can also continue on for different views out toward the ocean ).

Then, within a 10 minute drive heading back to the hwy, still on kuamoo road, you can take the Sleeping Giant trail head, all the way to the top, past the groves of Capt. Cook ( Norfolk ) pines, to the super 360 degree vista..what a view.

Also , stop on kuamoo road, as you return toward the coastal highway in Wailua, for photos at the overlook for Opeakea Falls.

Then it is only a 5 minute drive to the hwy, and your hiking day is complete.

We have been hiking the trails here for about 16 years now, both as visitors and residents, and never run out of places to explore, and we even like returning and hiking the same fabulous areas. Never get tired of Kauai%26#39;s beauty.

please read up on these trails and learn about what you will be experiencing, the difficulty level, and probably hiking boots might be in order for all the walking and climbing you will be doing.

Two great pubs are the Ultimate Kauai Guide Book and

Kauai Trails. We always read up in both of these for any trails that we plan on hiking. Yep, both !

We also have a great hiking map, as well as the $1.50 hiking pamphlet from the Koke%26#39;e Museum...a definite stop after the waimea canyon lookout and before any hiking up in Koke%26#39;e.

Do we bring all of the above on our hikes...you betcha. They Don%26#39;t do much good laying on the table at the condo.

Get the scoops on the trail conditons from the ladies at the museum. Good plan !

The above are quite diversified...but you also mentioned other trials, and no worries. Just pick what feels good to you.

But the above, really reduce the driving between trail heads.

Happy treking...

Denny

Thanks a ton everybody!!

ALso, we won%26#39;t be swimming in the falls as I%26#39;ve heard too much about Lepto and now am very nervous about swimming in the fresh water there....

Thanks again, we%26#39;ll look to combine waipoo and pihea and go from there! :) I also expect the concierge at the hotel to be able to help us with the planning a bit of these things! I have a map and a guide book so we%26#39;ll see! :)

Why just 2 hikes?

How about 3?

Assuming good weather, get off to an early start on the Pihea trail to maximize the chance for good views. You could proceed to the junction of the Alakai Swamp trail and return. A shorter version would be to return before you make the descent into the swamp. The previous route might be about 2 miles round trip. Then you can combine the Canyon trail to Waipoo Falls and then a good chunk of the Kukui trail as I described a couple of days ago:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g29218-i304-k24271…

Hopefully at the end of March you will have just enough daylight to do this. All these trail heads are fairly close to each other.