We wanted to do this the last time we were here and couldn’t because of the wet weather. We got there around 10:00 AM and there was no parking so we parked in a suspect spot. And got a ticket. The trail was beautiful but rocky, slippery, muddy, and just generally constantly difficult footing. And almost constantly up and down. It’s also narrow so we were constantly stopping to let people pass. (I AM the slowest hiker on the trail! It took us 6 hours roundtrip to Hanakapi’ai Beach. The estimate is 4 hours.)
The hike to the first two overlooks was well worth the effort even if you can’t or don’t want to go farther.
Just before Hanakapi’ai Beach, you have to ford a stream, which was refreshing if a small hassle. We changed into Tevas for that which worked well. It was really muddy.
We spotted a heron in the stream as we were crossing.
The beach is a nice place to rest before heading back. Swimming is not recommended. We also saw kayaks there.
It’s a gorgeous hike along the coast with ever changing views of the shore and the mountains just inland. Here are just some examples of the great views.
As we neared the end of the trail, sweaty and exhausted, we passed this guy headed off down the trail in his flip flops.
