I went on my first trail-clearing hike last weekend. (Hence, the weed wacker you see in the photo above.)

The hike took us into a remote part of Oahu.

At the end, a swimming hole.

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Not only was this my first trail-clearing hike, this was my first time hiking with the Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club (HTMC). The club has been around for over a hundred years and they organize a hike every weekend.

One of the benefits of hiking with the HTMC is that they can get access to a lot of trails that are typically off-limits or behind locked gates. The Kawai’iki Trail is one such trail. It takes you several miles deep into a valley on the West side of the Koolau mountains. All on restricted land.

On this day the HTMC’s goal was to clear the overgrown parts of the trail and mark it with ribbons for an upcoming hike on February 12.

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The Lanikai Pillboxes trail overlooks the Lanikai neighborhood and the “Moks”.

On the trail there’s a small crag that some people climb.(On Reanne’s back is a bouldering crash pad.)

The Lanikai Pillboxes hike (a.k.a, Ka’iwa Ridge Trail) is well known for being one of the easiest hikes on the island and one of the most scenic. That’s a rare combination. You can complete the hike in an hour or less if you wanted to. But once you see the sweeping views of Kailua and Lanikai from the ridge, you may want to spend more time on the trail.

Come at dawn or dusk for the best views.

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There’s this great little hike that shoots off the Pali Lookout. It’s short and sweet. In just 20 minutes after you park, you’ll be up on a narrow ridge over looking East Oahu. The hike is less and a mile round trip. It’s the perfect trail for those days when you wake up late but want to get out on a ridge. This was my first time checking out this trail and I would definitely come out here again.

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Up until last weekend I had never swam in a fresh water pool in Hawaii. I was always worried the water would leave me with that not-so-fresh feeling. By that I mean leptospirosis, a gnarly bacterial infection. Last Sunday was different though.

It was a sunny day but had been raining for a week before. Perfect conditions for checking out a waterfall. We did the short (3 mile round trip) hike to Waimano Falls and it was gushing. There are two pools you can swim in. The water was clear and moving fast so I figured all the funk had been washed away. After watching everyone else in the crew jump in the water, I did a quick check to make sure I didn’t have any cuts (i.e., entry points for bacteria) and took a swim. The water was cold but felt great.

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