My first visit to Hawaii, county of Kauai

Trip Report

by MH2

Friday April 22, 2016 10:19pm

from Bernard on 3 January, 2016

hello Andy,

The kids and I had a wonderful time in Kauai and I am seriously considering going back in March/April.

I would like to return to explore climbing possibilities on lava rock which seems quite solid and certainly very abrasive, as well as wanting to hike the Napali coast.

Any interest?

Over the phone Bernard told me that on Kaua’i he had the best oranges he ever tasted.

Bernard had sent me a link to the Napali trail which I did not want to look at, preferring to see the actual place with as few as possible preconceptions. But a couple weeks before our flight I thought that perhaps there could be things I would need to know. The link said that the Kalalau valley at the end of the trail was, “remote, wild, and unspoiled.” It also called the Napali trail, “world famous.” Alarm bells. I asked Bernard if he had gotten the necessary permits. He said, “Permits?”

Is there climbing on Kaua’i?

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Is this Hawai’i?

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Or is this?

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We climbed

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We saw

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Visit on googleusercontent.com

The Napali trail

Thanks to our well-developed lack of foresight we did not have permits to camp on the beach at the end of the Napali trail. We asked everyone we met about permits and found a wide variety of opinion on whether they were needed or not. There were said to be many long-term residents who got re-supplied by boat or jetski. On the day we walked part of the trail a helicopter brought in 3 rangers who issued citations to people who did not have permits. That is done only rarely, though.

The waves were big and the views good on the early part of the trail.

We met people who told us about a falls on a side trail 6 miles in. I wanted to go but Bernard decided to return. On the side trip to the falls I saw no other hikers.

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Too late but I found 14 posts on SuperTopo (but not a lot of pictures!)

jstan 28 May 2007

we started near Kapaa and then paddled up the Napali coast to Kalalau where we camped for nearly a week. A really bad place.

The Crux

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Next time, Molokai

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MH2

About the Author
MH2 is a climber from .

Comments

drljefe

climber

El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson

Apr 22, 2016 - 10:59pm PT

Very nice.
Favorite shot: sunbeams through the trees.

Thanks for posting!

Jan

Mountain climber

Colorado & Nepal

Apr 22, 2016 - 11:36pm PT

Very nice photos. Thanks for posting.

Vegasclimber

Trad climber

Las Vegas, NV.

Apr 23, 2016 - 02:26am PT

Awesome! My wife and I spent part of our honeymoon there, and want to go back sometime soon. Our way of seeing the Ne' Pali Coast was via a catamaran sailing/dinner cruise.

Great shots, thanks for posting. No rooster photos? :D

this just in

climber

Justin Ross from North Fork

Apr 23, 2016 - 07:09am PT

So many great shots Andy. But definitely the sunbeams through the trees is something above the rest. One of the coolest pics I've seen. Big thanks.

MH2

Boulder climber

Andy Cairns

Author's Reply

Apr 23, 2016 - 07:29am PT

As some will know, it is almost impossible to take a picture on Kauai without a rooster or chicken (actually junglefowl) in it.

The sunbeams effect was thanks to mist coming in from the huge surf.

MikeL

Social climber

Southern Arizona

Apr 23, 2016 - 08:04am PT

Yeah, that trail IS a hike. Nice island. TFPU.

Kauait

Big Wall climber

salt lake city

Apr 23, 2016 - 08:48am PT

Nice pics!!

Ezra Ellis

Trad climber

North wet, and Da souf

Apr 23, 2016 - 11:05am PT

A truly amazing place,
Wonderful pictures!

BrassNuts

Trad climber

Save your a_s, reach for the brass...

Apr 23, 2016 - 06:33pm PT

Looks like fun! Glad you got to spend time on Kauai - such an amazing place :-)

jstan

climber

Apr 23, 2016 - 07:36pm PT

Somewhere around 1999 five of us kayaked the Napali coast, camped at Kalalau, and then
kayaked down to Barking Sands. Those sit on kayaks could easily be upset by a tiger shark, so
while our trip was amazing, I would not try it again. From newspaper reports it appears the
sharks are definitely more active now than they used to be.

The state policed Kalalau back then so it was a great place to spend some time. I have heard not
so much anymore. The original people engineered the entire valley used to reach the falls.
Those really huge volcanic rocks were quite light. Along the coast I looked at a couple of cliffs.
I don't understand how rock that poor can actually be overhanging. Edges were all
sharp as a knife.

On the take out at Barking Sands I was feeling pretty good about my boat handling skills. Art
was on shore madly waving me to the right, just as the waves overturned me and the boat
came down on my head. It was an exciting trip.

ß Î Ø T Ç H

Boulder climber

ne'er–do–well

Apr 23, 2016 - 07:45pm PT

Attack of the CRABS !!!

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