Camping

Exploring Oahu: Camping Kouli'ou'ou

cwilcox — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:35:29 +0000

Exploring Oahu: Camping Kouli'ou'ou

The Kuli'ou'ou ridge trail is one of my favorites on Oahu. It's a 2.5 mile trek that ascends roughly 1700 ft to the top of the Ko'olau mountains which cut eastern Oahu in half. I've done this hike a number of times, and each time I'm amazed by the stunning views. So, of course, when we learned that camping permits were available for this ridge and its surrounding trail system, Barry and I simply couldn't resist.

We decided to take it easy on ourselves the first night. I stepped on the trail with 30 lbs of gear strapped to my back, so I was in no hurry to the top. About 1/2 way up, there is a nice little area with a covered picnic table, so we decided to set up camp nearby in a clearing. Our amazing dinner consisted of sunflower seeds, peanut butter and guava jelly sandwiches, and Pringles. We hadn't decided if we were going to camp for one night or two, so we carried enough food and water to last us for three days. The one major downside to camping on ridges is that there's no fresh water - there aren't even any major streams in this area, unless it's been raining a lot. The water was the heaviest item we carried.

After a night under the stars, we made a beeline for the summit. Along the way I marveled at the native plants, like the 'ohia, and the beautiful rainforest on either side of me. Even this high up, though, invasive species are everywhere. Some of them, at least, are beautiful (like the orchid on the left). It was a little overcast and cloudy up in the mountains, but the view was still stunning. We made it to the top before 9 am, had breakfast, and came to the sudden realization that we had all the time in the world but no idea where we wanted to go.

Behind us lay the Kouli'ou'ou ridge, which, if we retraced our steps, would lead back to a valley trail we've never explored. To the left lay a narrow, perilous-looking trail leading to the highest point on the Ko'olaus. To the right, a narrow, perilous-looking trail leading into the unknown. I had just worked hard to make it to the top of the range - I was damned if I was just going to go back down again. The valley could wait. The question was, right or left? For me, the answer didn't take long. The trail to the left ends in a steep ascent of a scary ridge, and I was not as nimble a normal, what with a giant backpack on. No, we decided - the summit could wait, too. To the right it was.

The trail to the right carved across the top of the mountains. We were never far from the edge of a cliff - most often, we were on it. It was only a foot or so wide, though well trodden and marked so there were no really scary moments. Of course, it had it share of breathtaking views:

Eventually, though, the trail headed downhill. Energized by a spirit of adventure, we headed down. The trail was steep and slippery, not because it was wet but because it was coated in loose pine needles that readily gave way. I knew that there was no chance I'd be climbing back up that section of trail, not that day. We'd been hiking for a couple hours at this point, and my backpack was starting to feel heavier. When we finally reached a point where it leveled off, we decided to take a break, eat some lunch and rest. We ended up curled up on a bed of pine needles watching the clouds for over an hour. Finally, though, we pressed onward.

Where the trail leveled out, we again faced a decision. We could continue straight, which looked like it may lead down and out somewhere, or we could explore the valley through a trail that hooked back around. Well rested and feeling spritely, we headed deeper into the valley. Maybe, we thought, it would connect back to the Kouli'ou'ou ridge trail or the mountain top trail.

It did... sort of. After winding its way through the back of the valley, we ended up on the Kuli'ou'ou ridge... just not where we had been. No matter where we went, we couldn't find a trail leading up to the Kuli'ou'ou ridge trail. Of course, we didn't figure this out then. Then we concluded we must have ended up on some other ridge. After hiking for 5 hours, we reached the end of the ridge, and it became clear we weren't where we thought we were. As to where we were, we had no clue.

We decided to head down hill on whatever marked trails we could find to get off the ridge. We ended up on a number of trails to nowhere that dead-ended in the middle of woods, and kept having to re-trace our steps. At least, though, the area was stunning. The forests were beautiful, and we even got to see some cool critters, like the Jackson's Chameleon in the picture (also invasive, by the way, but still neat).

In the end we had to hike all the way back to that cross-roads at the base of the trail. We went straight this time, and ended up on a neat little ridge trail that looked much more used. Soon enough, we encountered an old man hiking. He told us where we were and how to get back to civilization. Although we had thought about staying another night, we'd been hiking with our packs for over 8 hours. We hadn't picked a good campsite, and we were both unbelievably exhausted, so we decided to head out and find our way to a bus stop to go home.

As it ended up, we had found our way onto the Haha'Ione valley system, a set of trails we had never even heard of - though now we can't wait to explore more. Despite being lost all day and hiking until my feet were about to fall off, I had a great time. We plan to go backpacking somewhere in the Ko'olau range again soon. Until I do (or do something else cool on Oahu)... Aloha!

cwilcox Thu, 06/03/2010 - 01:35

Exploring Oahu: Camping at Malaekahana

cwilcox — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 04:11:49 +0000

Exploring Oahu: Camping at Malaekahana

This weekend, Barry, Brian, Aziem and I headed up the windward coast to go camping. We went online and got a permit for a site on Malaekahana State Recreation Area, a 37 acre gated park just north of La'ie. Camping is one of my favorite things that I rarely seem to find the time to do, and since Barry and I have our hearts set on hiking out to Kalalau Beach at some point, we figured we'd better try out the new small tent we bought and get some practice roughing it a little. More importantly, I figured I'd give my brand new Canon EOS Rebel T2i a spin.

Here are some shots from the trip:
Here you can see Barry poking his head out of our tent. In the background, you can see the short path down to the beach. Our campsite was just a few short steps away from the water!

The beach was beautiful.

On the sand, small crabs scurried back and forth. I couldn't help but pick one up for a closer look - and a test of my new camera's macro ability.

As the sun set on the other side of the island, we knew it was time to head back to camp and get ready for a chilly night.

By chilly, of course, I mean somewhere around 66 degrees Fahrenheit - hey, we live in Hawaii! That's cold to us! Besides, it was windy. That means it was more like 64 degrees, with wind chill.

The obvious way to stay warm was to build a nice campfire. Of course, a campfire allowed us to do what I consider to be the most important camping activity: making s'mores. I simply refuse to camp without eating at least one s'more. To do so would be sacrilegious.

I took advantage of my new camera to take this shot of the campsite at night.

We woke to see the sunrise. Unfortunately, the clouds blocked the sun from being seen. But with the morning came low tide, revealing an almost complete land bridge to the larger island that was just offshore. The island is called Moku'auia Island, but it's better known as Goat Island. I don't know why they call it that - there aren't any goats there. The island is a seabird sanctuary, and walking through the middle of it is strictly forbidden. However, you are allowed around the outer edge, so long as you don't disturb any nesting birds.

The far shore reveals the island's volcanic nature, and is littered with tide pools sharp cliffs.

Being the nerd that I am, I liked this side of the island the most.

The shallow pools were filled with various small critters, including crabs, fish and urchins.

But most people would consider the gem of the island the north facing shore. Protected by the rocky cliffs to the east, this secluded little beach is calm, quite and serene. The sand is soft and the water clear. The only footprints here were our own and the gentle impressions left by seabirds. There's something unbelievably romantic about having an island to yourself, especially when it contains such a stunning little strip of beach.

All and all, it was a fantastic little trip. I wish we'd had more time and could have stayed a couple of days to really explore Malaekahana Beach and enjoy the serenity of Moku'auia Island.

cwilcox Mon, 04/19/2010 - 00:11

SciWo's Storytime: Bear Scouts

sciencewoman — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:14:44 +0000

SciWo's Storytime: Bear Scouts

Gosh it's a difficult time of year, when the desire to frolic outdoors in the late fall/early winter chill is tempered by the mountains of papers to grade, endless meetings to be held, and the lurking danger of syllabi for next semester. It's the time of year, when you have every intention of taking dog and kid for a walk after work, but that by the time you reach daycare, it is pitch black, and even though you haven't gotten there any later than you did a few months ago, you feel terrible about leaving your kid in the care of strangers so late into the night.

Minnow and I have been trying to find ways to counter these daylight confines by squeezing in fun adventures on weekends (trips to living history farms, nature centers, and local playgrounds) and by using our long winter evenings to read about the adventures and misadventures of other outdoor enthusiasts. With that as an intro, I present the current favorite book in the Science household, Stan and Jan Berenstain's The Bear Scouts.

(Isn't it amazing how Minnow is picking up on the rhyming and able to supply her own words to end some of the lines of text? In another take she did far more of it than displayed here.)

After we're done reading about the Bear Scouts' adventures, we can retreat to the cozy four-season tent...

pitched inside my home office. Do you think my students will believe me if I tell them their papers aren't graded because I've been camping every night this week? (As I write this, Princess Pup has made herself comfortable in the tent, as she patiently waits for me to finish and play with her.)

To all the students and faculty out there, good luck with the end of the semester crazies and may you find time to escape to nature when it is all over.

sciencewoman Fri, 12/04/2009 - 00:14