In my mind Sacred Falls is hands down the most beautiful waterfall on O'ahu. I think its Hawaiian name is either Kaluanui Falls (since it's on the Kaluanui Stream) or Kaliuwa'a Falls (can't really tell since the place name is hard to read on TOPO! ).The bottom 80ft drop of this 1100ft waterfall was once accessible along a trail leading to a swimming pool at the base of the falls where the last 80ft of the falls could be seen. Unfortunately, a landslide at the terminus of the trail that killed several people and injured many others on Mother's Day in 1999 pretty much resulted in law suits that forced the state to close access to this trail indefinitely (probably a permanent closure as it has been over 10 years now). So the only way we could see the falls was by taking to the air on a helicopter tour. However, I think chopper tours on O'ahu are mostly a waste of money and fuel (especially if they don't focus on the Ko'olau Mountain Range, which was the case when I flew with Paradise Helicopters). Thus, unless you absolutely have to see Sacred Falls from the air, it's a tough call to determine whether it's worth a couple hundred dollars to see this jewel of O'ahu. Directions: Since I went with Paradise Helicopters to see this waterfall, I'll give you the directions to their helipad during my visit.Basically, I just drove along the North Shore on Hwy 83 until I reached Kuilima Drive. Then, I headed towards the Turtle Bay Resort on Kuilima Drive (the road is flanked by a golf course, I recall) until I reached the big car park. The helipad is hidden away on the east side of this car park.
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Pilot finally went into the Ko'olau Range towards the end of the flight
Sorry seats (or bad flying route) made for crummy views
With some cropping, I ended up with this photo
Notice the uppermost tiers of Sacred Falls
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