This is Justin Ridgely. He’s a rock climber in Hawaii. You can see him climbing in a bunch of the “Bouldering in Hawaii” photos and in this video.

This is his kava plant.

These are his pineapples.

And this is his rock climbing gym.

Justin is the owner of Volcanic Rock Gym. He just opened a new location in Kaka’ako, a neighborhood in Honolulu. The grand opening was on Saturday, April 13.

Volcanic Rock Gym is a rock climbing gym (bouldering specifically) where folks can come to get strong. Pictured above is Beau.

Justin, a former carpenter, built the rock climbing walls by hand with the help of several volunteers from the Hawaii rock climbing community. The place was built fast. Like, in under a month.

Here’s how it went down…

Back in late February, a space opened up in Kaka’ako that seemed like it could be used for a rock climbing gym. Justin was interested and started thinking about how he could turn it into a gym. He sent me a text with this photo. I texted back asking if this was some sort of rock climbing gym for ants.

Then at the beginning of April, Justin signed the lease. Volcanic Rock Gym started as this long space that was formerly a weight-room for Powerhouse Gym. We went to check it out and congratulate him. The space was raw.

From that point forward Justin went into a building frenzy. In less than a week the space was cleaned up and the walls were framed out.

A few days after that, plywood was cut and installed. He was working like a mad man. Justin then announced that the new rock climbing gym in Honolulu was being built and invited anyone who was curious about it to come have a look.

Then came the painting process. Juri, a fellow Hawaii rock climber, was a huge help here. Painting this much wall space is not easy. One night I was here, we painted until 4 in the morning.

The cinder block walls got a new coat of paint as well and the place started to take on that new-gym feel. This photo was taken just a couple weeks after the lease was signed.

Justin is a big fan of Reuse Hawaii and built this desk with help from Nick and Juri.

This is where you’ll check-in and sign up.

A railing was built next with help from Johnny. The rail would section off the climbing area from the walkway.

Justin then built modules that would be mounted on the wall.

Sean, Evan and a few others helped screw in hundreds of t-nuts that are used to mount rock climbing holds to the plywood.

The back section of the gym also needed some attention. Justin installed lockers and built some rock climbing focused training equipment. He also had to build a door for the bathroom and install the toilet.

Lucky Olelo painted this piece.

This one’s by Jeff Gress.

One night I went over to help build a hangboard mount. I watched this dude (who I mostly know as a rock climber) measure, cut and construct a piece of work out equipment from scratch. You could tell he had done this sort of thing many times before when he used to build houses. It’s always interesting to see your friends’ hidden skills.

Once the construction and painting was complete there was still work to do. The floor was filled with shredded rubber, more furniture was built, and all he holds were set. All those long days of building and sleepless nights paid off and only a month after signing the lease, Justin was open for business.

There’s a lot of wall space here with plenty of overhung routes and roof climbing.

The back is now cleaned up and has been turned into strength training room. This is Nick on the campus board. It’s used to build finger strength and lock off strength.

Nick is doing assisted one arm pull ups on the rings.

You’ll also find these huge and heavy pieces of rebar that you can use to build your grip strength and shoulder muscles. You’ll probably want to get some tips from Justin on how to train with the rebar.

Rock climbing shoes and chalk are available to rent.

Drinks are available as well.

There’s a lounge space in the front where you can chat with other climbers or use the free Wi-Fi. If you come here during the daytime on a weekday you might see here on my laptop looking nerdy.

There are some fun routes set on the wall and more going up very soon.

Come check out Hawaii’s new rock climbing gym located conveniently in Honolulu. They open until 10pm.

Volcanic Rock Gym is located at 432 Keawe Street.

See also:

• A list of rock climbing spots in Hawaii.
• Get updates on VolcanicRockGym.com and on Facebook.
• Follow Volcanic Rock Gym on Instagram.

This is Jake Marote and his pet goat Billy.

Billy is a baby.

They go everywhere together.

Jake is a local boy from Big Island. He lives on Oahu now and spends his free time adventuring and photographing the island. You can follow him on Instagram @jake_of_all_trades to check out his adventures.

Jake grew up surfing on Big Island and has lately been working on his surf photography.

He’s been shooting with Zak Noyle (staff photographer for SURFER Magazine and RVCA advocate) and is developing a tuned eye for shooting people in the barrel.

He shoots mostly with a GoPro and iPhone (in a Watershot housing), which just goes to show, it’s not about how expensive your gear is. If you are in the right place and right time, any camera can take a good photo.

Case in point.

Jake also fishes.

And, he bow hunts.

And that’s how he came to own a pet baby goat. He found this little guy while on a hunt. Yes, for goats. And yes, Jake realizes the irony.

But the mother had abandoned the baby and Jake decided to take it home and take care of it. The umbilical cord was still attached. The baby was a male and male goats are called billies so Jake name him Billy. (Females goats are called nannies.)

I met Jake through Instagram. Some of Jake’s friends had taken Billy for a hike up Koko Head and I ran into them. I took this photo and posted it to Instagram. A couple weeks later someone tagged Jake in my photo and that’s when I found out who the owner was.

I figured it would be fun to meet the goat and take photos of him. What resulted was a day of cute overload. Here, Billy is chewing on a dried up orange peel.

I went to meet up with Jake out a the Halona Blowhole Lookout. I figured it would be fun to take little Billy on a hike up to the Koko Crater Arch.

When Jake arrived the first thing he wanted to do was feed Billy. He found a farm supply store that sells goat milk formula and that’s what Billy has been living off of. That and orange peels.

When Billy saw the bottle he attacked it. I’ve never seen a goat drink milk so voraciously. I have also never seen a goat drink milk before this day.

He splattered milk all over his face and we were all like “awwwwwww.”

Then Billy went back to the orange peel.

Once we got over to the trail, Jake took off Billy’s leash and the goat just followed him around. Apparently goats are very loyal.

This goat is freakin’ cute dude.

It looks pretty soft here but he’s all fur and bones.

But his little chin is pretty soft. It’s hard to see because they are so small but his tiny baby goat horns are just starting to come out. You can feel them when you rub his head.

Billy is not trying to go for a kiss here, he’s trying to eat Christina’s hair.

Hello.

At one point, Jake left Billy with me and Christina and went to take this photo. With Jake gone, Billy started to cry and cry. It was cute for a minute but then it got annoying so I stuck my finger in his mouth.

He likes sucking and gnawing on fingers. It totally shut him up.

When Jake came back, Billy was all happy and stuff.

Billy is one of those goats who knows he’s cute.

Look at those tiny little hoofs.

We stayed up at the arch for an hour or so talking story and getting to know Jake. When we got down we walked off dramatically towards the horizon.

Bye Billy. I miss you.

See also:

• If you want to see two examples of Instagrammers who totally epitomize the outdoor Hawaii lifestyle, check out Jake (@jake_of_all_trades) and his adventure buddy Shaun (@2scoopsofaloha).
• If you want to see more photos of Billy, check out the tag #billybaahba on Instagram.
• See the Koko Crater Arch hike.

There’s an arch on the windward facing side of Koko Crater in southeast Oahu. It’s super easy to get to.

It’s a great place to check out and take pictures if you’re around the Hawaii Kai area or on the way to Sandy Beach.

Most people know Koko Crater for the tramway trail that goes straight up the face of it. People hike up it regularly to get a work out. I try to go once a week or so to get some cardio exercise.

You can hike up the tramway and then down the crater rim to the arch if you like. But a faster way to get there is to park at the Halona Blowhole Lookout and hike up to it.

Halona Blowhole Lookout is also where you park to go to Cockroach Cove (a.k.a. Eternity Beach).

This lookout offers some ridiculous views. During winter months you can typically see whales from here.

After you park you’ll walk along the road for bit. Stay on this side of the guard rail.

You want to make your way toward the Japanese fishing shrine. It’s that circular rock wall with the large stone in the middle.

But don’t go all the way to the shrine. Cross the street at the end of the railing. Hop the railing and descend to the right into the ravine.

Walk along the rock for a couple hundred feet and then make your way up the to ridge.

As soon as you see a way up the ridge that you are comfortable with, make your way up.

There’s no real trail to follow at this point.

But the sooner you get up to the ridge the sooner you’ll see these views.

It’s nicer to have views of the coastline than to be stuck in that ravine.

Look up at Koko Crater and you can see the arch. You might have to look closely as it sort of blends in.

The trail is well defined here though and you can’t miss it.

Once you reach the arch you can walk over it or under it. We started by going under. The dirt is all loose gravel here you so you’ll want to be wearing shoes with good grip. We went down the right side of the arch.

From here you can explore the area a bit.

It’s best to come here with a few people so you can have someone stay at the arch while you traverse the slope to get to this vantage point. On this day I came with Christina and Jake (Instagram: jake_of_all_trades).

If you’re going to go up the top of the arch you definitely want to be wearing some grippy shoes. The top is very steep and slippery.

I would advise against hiking up it in slippers. Sometimes there’s a rope up there but don’t count on it.

If you wanted to you can hike all the way up the rim of Koko Crater and then up to the top of the stairs. On this day we just wanted to take some photos and talk story at the arch.

Jake tried coming down this side of the arch and found that it was much more slippery (on account of the loose gravel) than the other side.

He went back up to find a comfortable place to sit.

Christina and I joined him back under the arch. We hung out for a bit happy to be away from any crowds. It’s a little tough to find a comfortable place to sit up here though as the slope is at an extreme angle.

Looking south we could see a bit of Hanauma Bay and Koko Head.

Eventually we went down the same way we came up.

Watch your footing here, the gravel is super loose.

We made our way up the left side of the arch.

The grade is super steep here too but the ground is course and easy for your shoes to grip on to.

At the bottom we made our way back into that ravine and back to the street.

It takes just 10-15 minutes to get to the arch from the parking lot. Once you’re done there are plenty of things nearby that you can do.

The closest “attraction” would be Cockroach Cove.

Other activities nearby:

• Hike the Koko Crater tramway.
• Go to Sandy Beach.
• Visit Portlock Point or China Wall.
• Hike down to the Makapu’u Tide Pools.
• Go to Pele’s Chair and Alan Davis Beach.

See also:

• Directions to the Halona Blowhole Lookout on Google Maps.
• Jake Marote’s incredible Instagram feed: jake_of_all_trades.
• Another story about the arch on HawaiianForest.com: HTMC and the Arch at Koko Crater.

Spending the day in a Hawaii forest is a wonderful escape.

Even if you get stabbed by these every once in a while.

On this day we’re at another spot rock climbers in Hawaii have been bouldering. There are free standing boulders all over the place in this valley.

Many first ascents were had on this day.

This Hawaii bouldering spot is called Jagger Valley.

We hiked up to the valley a few weeks ago to check it out.

When I arrived a bunch of the guys were already climbing.

Crash pads were layered under the boulder.

Men held hands.

It was overcast and rain sprinkled on us throughout the day.

The guys were projecting a difficult boulder problem.

The route starts low and traverses the bottom park of the rock.

The holds are tiny and slopey.

There were many falls trying to make this reach.

Notice how small the left and right hand holds are.

Once you get your feet over to the other side, you’ll have to figure out a way to climb up the arete.

It is not easy. No one completed the problem on this day.

After many attempts, it was time to take a break and move on.

We also worked on a route that started low and went straight up the face of the boulder.

The start is easy, but the lip of the boulder had very tough slopey holds.

Up above the lip there’s a small rail you can grip on to.

It’s much more difficult than it looks and careful spotting is required.

The route is completed by topping out.

After we had grown tired of the first boulder we walked up the valley to look for more.

This river rock seems to get plenty of water.

Then there was this boulder.

This side of the rock is probably more for keiki.

Dogs ran through the forest.

Endless energy in this one.

We inspected another boulder with potential for some good climbing.

The guys brushed off moss to reveal potential climbing holds.

Matt climbed to the top to have a look at the view.

At the top, he gazed about in wonderment.

Phil got to the hard to reach places.

It took some teamwork.

With everyone pitching in the boulder was clean in no time.

Justin stretched out.

This problem starts low on the rock and goes up the arete.

The hill slopes down sharply so a fall here could send you tumbling down the hill.

As they climbed, the guys struggled to figure out which cracks and bumps in the rock could be used as holds.

One by one they figured it out.

And eventually the problem was completed.

There was another problem on the other side of the boulder.

This one takes you up the face of this boulder. While it’s not that tall, the problem is difficult. A fall here would put you on a pile of sharp smaller boulders.

Jagger Valley is tucked away in a remote part of the island.

The forest is lush.

And it’s full of life. Watch where you sit though. I almost sat on this sleeping lizard.

To learn more about bouldering in Hawaii, talk to the folks at Volcanic Rock Gym.

See also:

• More Unreal Hawaii stories about rock climbing in Hawaii.

When the sun comes out, the ocean off of Waimanalo (Oahu) glows electric blue.

The views are energizing.

These views can be seen by standing at the top of the mountain.

Tom (myspacetom), Dawn (djdawn) and I hiked the summit of the southeast Koolau Mountains to take photos of this view. Below us, Waimanalo.

See more »

I’ve posted about the cliffs on this side of the island before in a post called “Oahu’s Unreal Coastline.” On this day’s outing, we went to check out another section of the coastline. The cliffs are easy to access as they are just a 40 minute hike away from a major road.

The strong wind and constant waves have created a landscape full of beautiful textures.

One of the highlights of the area is this little rock bridge.

This wind eroded rock is another highlight.

We walked around and explored the coastline.

WARNING: Please note that it is extremely dangerous to stand on rocks along any coastline in Hawaii. Rogue waves can crash on the shore and sweep you away. Do not attempt what you see in the photos on this website.

This section of the coast formed a bowl. The water would rush in sideways, swirl around and suck out exposing the rock and coral.

To the right in this photo, you can see a small cove.

These little guys were all over the place. They are hard to the touch.

I haven’t heard and couldn’t find any background information on this rock bridge. It appears to have been formed by erosion.

There’s a big crack in the middle of it so I would not recommend standing on it. If you do, you are doing so at your own risk. So, please do not stand on it.

If the bridge were to collapse, you would fall into this swirling death hole.

Of course, some are willing to test their luck.

After we finished checking out the bridge we walked along the cliffs a bit more.

The wind shaped ridges make some excellent benches so we sat for a while and had some snacks.

While we were walking back to the trail a truck had appeared on the cliffs.

We headed back to the car and called it a day. But I would return about a week later to take some more photos.

On my second outing to the rock bridge and cliffs I invited some Hawaii photographer friends. I wanted to come back and get some different shots of the rock bridge and I figured it would be fun to go with a small group.

Partly cloudy seems to be the best lighting conditions for this area.

As we hiked in I noticed there were little pukas (“puka” means “hole”) in the rock.

These guys are John Hook and Zak Noyle. If you haven’t already heard of him, Zak is a Hawaii born professional surf photographer. He currently works as a staff photographer for Surfer Magazine. If you’ve seen his profile video by Red Bull, you probably know this guy has a pretty fun job. John is taking portrait shots of Zak for his sponsorship profile.

As Zak was standing on the bridge (which I do not recommend you do), a huge wave hit the rocks and splashed all over him. The waves were much bigger on this day. Tom (myspacetom) was snapping away and got this crazy photo.

John decided to face the waves head on and take photos of them.

The reason I wanted to come back to these cliffs was to get this photo. I screwed on a neutral density filter to my lens and took some daytime long exposure photos.

The waves end up looking like clouds.

We then walked further down the coastline to check out the cliffs.

These cliffs were also majestic.

Each one of these naturally formed pedestals was screaming to be yoga-posed on.

Waves splashed up on the cliffs and as they drained, formed some nice textures.

One of the many nice things about adventuring with photographers is that you get to borrow their lenses. Dallas Nagata White let me borrow a telephoto lens to get this shot.

Then she walked to the edge of the cliff to pose for me and Tom.

We should have been concerned but Dallas looked pretty comfortable up there.

John ended up pretty close to the edge as well.

Walking back we passed through this field of trees. The white bark stood starkly against the lush green grass.

Check out the work of my companions on this day (all of whom are Hawaii photographers):

• Dallas Nagata White – www.dallasnagatawhite.com
• John Hook – www.johnhookphoto.com / handsomeunicorn.tumblr.com
• Jonas Maon – www.jonasmaon.com
• Samantha Hook – instagram.com/sticksxstonesjewelry
• Tom Anderson – instagram.com/myspacetom
• Zak Noyle – www.zaknoyle.com

See also:
I have two other stories that feature this strip of Oahu coastline.

• Oahu’s Unreal Coastline
• Hidden Cove

WARNING: Please note that it is extremely dangerous to stand on rocks along any coastline in Hawaii. Rogue waves can crash on the shore and sweep you away. Do not attempt what you see in the photos on this website.