Hanakoa Falls Hanakoa Falls is the other of two well-named waterfalls featured on the Kalalau Trail along the famed Na Pali Coast. In order to get all the way to Hanakoa Falls, I had to obtain a hiking permit (or a camping permit) because it required me to hike beyond Hanakapi'ai Beach. I managed to pick it up in person from the Department of Land and Agriculture building in Lihu'e. Moreover, I was able to get a day hike permit a couple of days before the hike (essentially the last minute) because I wasn't seeking a camping permit, which I understood required bookings several months (6 months?) in advance!
All said, it easily took me from day break to sunset to cover the 13 miles round trip. Indeed, it was a pace that was nowhere near the usual 2mph from more normal hikes. I also nearly dehydrated and suffered a heat stroke after running out of water so the lesson learned here was to bring a filter (you can read about my adventure here) or iodine tablets.
Once I managed to find the overgrown spur trail heading further inland, there were bright ribbons tied to twigs to help identify the difficult-to-follow Hanakoa Falls Trail. At times the trail hugged eroded ledges overlooking Hanakoa Stream. Other times, the trail disappeared into the dense shadows of vegetative overgrowth providing plenty of headscratching and doubling back moments for me. The falls finally became visible through the foliage about 1/2 mile from the turnoff. A posted sign warned against falling rocks, and the field of large boulders that have already tumbled down the hillside provided an additional warning against me venturing any closer. [Back to top]  Looking back towards Hanakapi'ai Beach Trail narrows quickly beyond Hanakapi'ai Beach Narrow trail with dropoffs. I was beginning to see why permits were required even for a dayhike! Descending into Hanakoa Valley Looking up at steep walls closing in at the falls Some infrastructure at the mouth of Hanakoa Valley Looking ahead at the coastal scenery along the Kalalau Trail on the return hike Fluted cliffs in the background I noticed this shameful display of litter near Hanakapi'ai Beach[Back to top] TRIP REPORTSFor more information about our experiences with this waterfall, check out the following travel stories.GUIDEBOOKS / OTHER RESOURCESNEARBY WATERFALLSHave You Been To This Waterfall?
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But even with that said, I struggled big time with the day hike because it was brutally narrow, hilly, and slow. It was wrought with hazards such as the nearly constant long drop-offs on the makai side along with nearly constant slippery and narrow sections of track almost forcing me to scratch myself against some of the overgrowth protruding onto the trail.
In terms of logistics, the turnoff for Hanakoa Falls was after the crossing of Hanakoa Stream about 4 miles beyond Hanakapi'ai Beach along the Kalalau Trail (or about 6 miles from the trailhead). There were picnic shelters nearby kind of hinting to me that the easy-to-miss signed turnoff was near.
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