After we wrapped up our tour with Wild Side Specialty Tours, we realized that the day was still young and we had plenty of time for a second adventure! We had heard great things about the Kaena Point hike. One of the unique things about this trail is that it ends at the Kaena Point State Park, a bird sanctuary. When we found out that we were lucky enough to be there during the Albatross mating season, we knew we had to do it. You can read more about the facts and legend of Kaena Point here.
STATS:
Where:
Ka’ena Point Hike trailhead– Waianae, HI 96792
Coordinates:21.556306, -158.248494
Parking:
The coordinates will take you directly to the small parking lot right in front of the trailhead of the Kaena Point hike. It is a small dirt lot. Parking is limited. You can always park further down the road and walk over if the lot is full. Parking is free. Make sure to hide your valuables. There are a lot of break-ins!
Distance:
5.69 miles R.T.
Elevation Gain:
180 ft
Level:
Easy, mostly flat
Estimated Completion Time:
2.5 – 3.5 hours
Ideal Weather:
Dry days are the best. The trail can get very muddy after rain.
Ideal Time:
early morning or late evening. There is minimal shade. The trail can get very toasty.
Albatross Mating Season:
November – June/July. They begin breeding and nesting in November. Chicks usually start fledging in June through July and occasionally in August for late hatchers.
Caution: If you plan on entering the bird sanctuary, dogs are not allowed!
Kaena Point hike is mostly handicap accessible. There is a little hill before the gate that might be a bit challenging. It is very sandy once you go through the gate.
GETTING THERE:
Coming from Waianae, simply stay on highway 93 until it dead ends. it is pretty much impossible to get lost! Drive all the way to the very end of Keawaula Beach. You’ll pass a few parking lots along the way. The trailhead is at the end of the main road. Restrooms are located at the Waianae side, back up at the beach some mile east of Mokuleia’s parking lot. Be careful leaving valuables in your car – this is a high theft area!
THE TRAIL:
We lucked out on parking once we got to the Kaena Point hike’s trailhead. Someone happened to be leaving just as we pulled up. It was quite a busy day at the beach. This hike is almost completely exposed to the sun so be sure to bring sunscreen and plenty of water. There are several trails from the parking lot. The one closest to the ocean looped around the basalt beach area and lead back to the main trail. The main trail is the middle one. The one closer to the hill is the alternative one in case the main trail gets muddy. That was the case for us.
As we headed to the trailhead, we were advised by a hiker that there was a lot of mud on the first part of the trail, and it would be better for us to take the alternative trail. The good thing is, they all go back to the main trail so you won’t have to worry about getting lost, whichever way you choose to go.
We only stayed on the side trail for about 0.1 miles before jumping back onto the main trail. This portion of the hike is on a nice wide dirt road. As you hike along, be sure to pay attention to the ocean side. The views are breathtaking from both the front and back. There are also little alternative trails, mostly on the ocean side, to give you a better view and also a good way to avoid the mud. Don’t worry if you take a fork because they always come back to the main trail. I highly recommend taking them. They usually take you out a little closer to the cliffs for some truly breathtaking views.
White waves exploded against the rocky shore of the raised sand dunes. Basalt climbed out of the deep ocean and led to the dramatic, volcanic peaks forming the peninsula. Every cove has something unique and beautiful. Dustin was on a mission that day to get an awesome shot of the waves crashing into the coves. Lucky for us, the ocean was definitely more restless that day. Among the few hundred of photos that he took, Dustin got several that he was very happy with by the end of the hike.
Right around the 0.3 miles, you will come to a yellow gate. Go over/under/around it and continue down the trail (I chose the under route). Around 0.5 miles, you will get to the point where you can enjoy the gorgeous rocky coastline both in front of and behind you. It seemed like it was getting prettier all the time. Make sure to bring a camera. You will want to take lots of photos. Also, keep an eye out for whales and spinner dolphins. Depending on the time and season, you can spot them out in the water, usually early in the morning or later in the evening. We saw a humpback whale when we were on our way back. They were a bit too far out for us to be able to get a good photo.
One very interesting thing about the Kaena Point hike is all the abandoned cars I am not sure what the back story is, but there are a bunch of cars out there, whether they are upside down in the bushes or driven off the cliffs. I would love to know why they are scattered all over the place. Some of them gave us a good laugh, but it’s too bad that someone had to leave a mangled piece of metal in a spot that would otherwise be a scene straight out of a postcard. There was one up on the hill at the very beginning of the hike. Another one off the side of the cliff 0.5 miles in. At around 0.8 miles, you can see that someone realized that minivan life wasn’t for them!
About 1.2 miles into the hike, you better get your armor on and sharpen your sword because you are about to encounter a dragon! (Disclaimer: Dustin insisted to put this in the article, he thinks it’s clever). Don’t worry, it’s only the Dragon’s Breath blowhole. It wasn’t shooting a lot of water that day. But it was definitely letting out a few roars! And if that isn’t cool enough, there is also a small sea arch around the corner from it! If you keep going about 500 ft, from the small sea arch, you’ll come across a bigger one right off the road. This one, you definitely can get on top. Just be careful of loose, sharp rocks.
Right at the 2.3-mile mark on the Kaena Point hike, you will come upon the trickiest part of the trail. Don’t worry, it’s not that bad. The main trail looks like it kind of stopped and crumbled away. However, if you look toward the right-hand side (the hillside), there is a smaller trail for you to connect to the other side. It is a narrow, rocky path that goes up and over a small hill.
Once you go over the hill, you’ll see the big metal gate and fence that blocks the whole trail. We were a little confused when we reached the gate. We weren’t sure if that was the end of the road. However, we saw some hikers on the other side of the fence and realized that the gate was unlocked. Beyond the gate is the bird sanctuary. The gate took a good little push to open, so don’t be afraid to get a little tough with it.
Once you cross into the sanctuary, keep heading down the trail. Soon you will notice the landscape changing magically before your eyes. It will go from sharp jagged rocks to beautiful white sand. The first thing I noticed was the beautiful sea of foxtails. As the wind blew through, the foxtails moved in waves, almost as if they were beckoning us to come on in. It’s almost mesmerizing to watch the foxtail dance to the sound of the ocean as the graceful albatrosses soared through the sky.
If you walk a bit further, you should find yourself right in the middle of the albatross breeding grounds. At this point, the Kaena Point hike is on soft sand. You’ll come up to several splits but they all seem to come back to the main trail. It’s a loop so as long as you head back toward the side of the ocean where you came from, you should be good. However, the sanctuary is accessible from both sides of the island so make sure you don’t follow the wrong trail back.
It was such a unique and beautiful experience. Some of the albatrosses were hanging out in what I can only assume was an albatross singles club. They were squawking and showing off their best dance moves ( Dustin was taking notes). Others were tending to their newborns, which I must say are a mix of cute and ugly at the same time.
The third group of albatrosses was treating us to an amazing aerial show. They were diving and swooping through the sand dunes with such incredible grace. It was so impressive! And if their moves weren’t impressive enough, they were riding wind currents and tearing through the dunes at completely insane speeds! It was one heck of a show watching these birds do what they do best!
The albatrosses here are Laysan Albatross. They are monogamous. If one of the mates should die, they will most likely create a new pair bond. On land, albatross are very awkward and often have difficulty taking off and landing. This has gained them the nickname “Goony Bird”.
Although albatrosses are so awkward on land, they are graceful and impressive in flight. An albatross in flight can be so perfectly attuned to wind conditions that it may not flap its wings for hours, or even for days, it can also sleep while flying. It takes advantage of the air currents just above the ocean’s waves to soar in a perpetual graceful motion. Albatrosses are so beautiful in the air that superstitious sailors believed they were the reincarnated spirits of dead sailors who were searching the oceans for their lost friends.
We could have stayed all day to watch them fly but we knew that we needed to get moving if we wanted to be back in the car before it got dark. We did a quick loop around the sanctuary, which allowed us to see several more nests that had newborn little chicks in them. It seemed like the bushes that had newborn chicks were marked with a pink ribbon. If you make your way to the point, you’ll come across a few abandoned structures with some neat graffiti. From here, you can hike down to the beach to see the monk seals. We were in a hurry so we didn’t have time to look for them.
The cool thing about the way back is that you will be able to see all of the gorgeous coves and coastlines from the opposite direction (unless you were looking back the whole way out). The coastline here is absolutely gorgeous! I loved watching the waves crash into what looked like 1000 coves that stretched as far as the eye could see.
If you do the Kaena Point hike in the evening, make sure to stay for the sunset. There’s something magical about Hawaiian sunsets. The combination of the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocky shore, the glowing dramatic sky, the gorgeous reflection of the sun over the ocean, and if you’re lucky, a whale tail perking up above the waves, equal everything that one could ask for in life. Don’t forget to check out our top 10 off-the-beaten-path things to do in Oahu!
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RECOMMEND GEAR:
Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
• Sunscreen:
Always helpful with the Hawaiian sun. We use eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen. Alba Botanica Hawaiian Sunscreen or Sun Bum Sunscreen
• Comfortable hiking shoes, preferably with treads
The trail is mostly flat but you will want to explore the basalt area, so comfortable hiking shoes are recommended. Vy’s shoes are North Face HedgeHog GTX. Dustin’s shoes are Coleman Tasman Hiking Shoe.
• Water
Water. It gets hot on the trail since there are minimal shades. Bring lots of water! Vy uses the Camelback L.U.X.E. Dustin uses the Clik Small pack (sadly Clik is no longer around).
• Snacks
It’s a decent hike. I get hangry so I always pack snacks with me.
CAMERA GEAR:
• Camera:
Sony a99
• Lenses:
Sony 24 -70mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar T Zoom Lens
Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX
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