Listed as one of the world’s best hike by National Geographic, me and Joel went on a trip to Kauai to hike the Kalalau Trail. In this post, I’ll explain our preparation and show you unedited photos of the route and scenery, and hopefully, I will leave you inspired to do this hike, because it was amazing (although it was a sweaty and difficult hike!). Scroll further down to see photos from the hike.
Distance: 22 miles (35 km) round-trip
Elevation Gain: 800 feet, 244 meters
Duration: 2–3 days
Weather (Sep): Day 86 °F, 30 °C – Night 59 °F, 15 °C
Three things I loved with the trail:
1. Na Pali Coast is outstandingly beautiful and magical.
2. Loads of sweet guava that you can just pick from the tree and eat.
3. Spend a relaxing day in Kalalau Valley and just soak in the scenery.
Three things I liked less with the trail:
1. The mosquitoes!! My blood type was the perfect food for them.
2. Hippies who lived in Kalalau Valley and walked around naked.
3. Surprised by the amount of dirt and garbage people left behind.
Permit
You must reserve a permit to hike Kalalau Trail and can do so online one year in advance. If you haven’t reserved one in advance, people do cancel their permits so go online every day to check if there are any released. We did just that and were lucky to get permits less than a month before our travels!
Gear
I won´t give a full list of the things we packed as I assume that you are an experienced hiker choosing to do the Kalalau Trail. I don’t recommend this hike for beginners unless you are fit and well trained. Below I have mentioned a few things to have in mind for gear when doing this particular hike.
- Gear and clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty because the mud is hard to wash off.
- Light clothing (it is so hot you almost don’t want to wear anything)
- Robust hiking shoes (a muddy trail because of rain)
- Mosquito spray!!!
- Sunscreen, sunglasses and a cap/hat
- Possibly skip sleeping bag and sleep in a hammock (it is so hot that you don’t need to cover yourself with anything and thus can pack more light, perhaps bring a light blanket)
Route
We did the hike on September 3rd, 4th, and 6th, 2015. The night before we camped at Haena beach which is 5 minutes from Ke’e Beach where Kalalau Trailhead is. Parking at Ke’e Beach gets full before noon so make sure to be there super early to get a parking spot. Except for the dedicated camp sites in Hanakoa and Kalalau Valley, you’re not allowed to camp anywhere on the trail. Since we don’t recommend camping in Hanakoa it means that you have to hike the entire route into Kalalau Valley which is around 11 miles on one day. The campsite is in the middle of the jungle full of mosquitoes and not as close as beautiful as Kalalau Valley.
Day 1
Climbed the first hill of the trail and we had a great view over Ke’e Beach behind us.
The stretch to Hanakapai’ai Beach was well covered in trees and bushes with an occasional view of the ocean.
After a downhill hike we arrived at Hanakapai’ai Beach and it was raining. Swimming here is not recommended because of strong currents. We continued our hike which went uphill…
Our hike continued in the jungle! With occasional rainfalls which made the trail very muddy and sometimes slippery.
Eating some sweet and natural grown guava! Pick the yellow and soft ones!
Now I believe we´ve completed a third of the trail.
We are now at Crawlers Ledge, and you can probably guess why it has its name. You are literally walking at the edge of the coastline with a steep fall right into the sea. Walking the Crawlers Ledge was actually easier than I thought it would be. However, I was still very nervous and afraid that people would be coming from the other direction because the path would only fit one person. If you´re afraid of heights then the crawlers ledge will be pretty scary. The picture below doesn’t give justice to how the complete stretch of Crawlers Ledge looked like.
Since we started our hike late (started at noon) we just crossed Crawlers Edge at 6:24PM and the sun was starting to go down. We had a long way left to Kalalau Valley and ended up walking one hour in the dark and made it to the camp at 8PM. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed walking in the dark with headlamps, but we got to see some mountain goats on the way in the dusk.
Day 2
We made it to Kalalau Valley and woke up to this beautiful view. There are plenty of camping sites but make sure to find a place near the beach. I did not swim in the sea as I was afraid of currents, but other people did.
You can also kayak to Kalalau Valley, but the permit is still required in order to land on the beach.
I was slightly disappointed on the waterfall (you can see it on the right side of the photo) as I was expecting a huge waterfall. It was quite small. People both took drinking water and showered in the waterfall, just make sure you are taking drinking water from the actual fall and not the pond.
Day 3
Since we arrived at Kalalau Valley in the dark we missed the sign and took a photo when we started our hike back.
On our way back the sun was so hot that every step forced sweat that was dropping like during a Bikram yoga session (if you ever tried it before). This path with the sun burning against the skin was the toughest part of the hike. Surprisingly, Joel could still put on a smile for the camera.
Saying goodbye to Na Pali Coast! Truly one of the most beautiful hikes!
When we got back out of the trail we saw the sign below. They had closed the trail during the day because of a tropical storm. Phewww….that we were not trapped in any tropical storm. Except from one small rain fall, we did not encounter any tropical storm so we were a bit surprised about the sign. Fortunately, we made it back alive!
Despite the few occasions where I felt uncomfortable such as being attacked by mosqitos, crossing the Crawlers Ledge and walking in the dark in total blindness, having completed the hike was such an rewarding experience. It is one of the most beautiful backcountry hikes I’ve done. I strongly recommend this hike and if you are thinking if you should do it or not. Do it!
Let me know if you have any questions and I would be happy to share any advice regarding packing, the trail, or for things to do in Kauai.
