Today we decided it would be a great idea to hike the Koko Head Crater Trail. The trail is 1.5 miles round trip, 1028 steps, and 1200 feet elevation. The trail used to be a railway tram track that was used during WW2 to haul supplies to the military bunkers on the top of the crater. The people on the hike range from grandma/grandpa to small children and even mothers carrying their infant children. It took us and hour to get up and hour to get back down. Going up was HELL. My asthmatic, unfit, skinny self had a very difficult time getting through this hike. At some point there is a part of the trail where the track turns into a bridge with no bottom. It was very scary & dangerous at the same time. Going up this bridge was easy but on the way down I had no shame in crawling back down. People judged me and some guy even took a picture of me – which I’m sure will surface on the Internet at some point and I will become a laughing stalk – but I don’t care. It was terrifying. All this said the view at the top was breathtaking! I would definitely recommend everyone to do this hike – except bring lots of water, do it early in the morning, and don’t wear a lot of layers. At the top you get to see Diamond Head, Hanauma Bay, as well as a 360 degree view of eastern Oahu and the Pacific.
While we were at the top of the crater Doc spotted four jets. She took a picture but at the time we had no idea what was going on. Later we saw on the news that it was the four F-22 Raptors from the Hawaii Air National Guard which flew over the service at Punchbowl for the late Senator Daniel Inouye.
After the hike we rewarded ourselves with Li Hing Icees from the Crack Seed Store. Li Hing is a red powder that is used for flavoring on top of pretty much anything. It was delicious and it tasted really good especially after our intense hike! I’m going to stock up on some Li Hing powder and bring it back to MI!
Afterward we did some grocery shopping in Chinatown. At the apartment Doc cooked as I cleaned the apartment for Mama & Lil Bro when they come tonight! I’m super excited for their arrival! This will be the first family vacation – as in all 4 of us together – since going to Spain in 2010! Can’t wait for the fam bam to be together!!!
so crazy! this isnt the same as stairway to heaven though, right? was this the trail we saw going up into the mountains?
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this was not stairway to heaven – however it should be called stairway to death!! It is right next to Hanauma Bay!