Waiale Falls

Hilo, Hawaii, USA

About Waiale Falls

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Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Waiale Falls (or Wai’ale Falls) is a lesser known waterfall further upstream from both Pe’epe’e Falls and the popular Rainbow Falls near downtown Hilo.

The falls itself actually consists of two tiers.

Waiale_Falls_004_03092007 - Wai'ale Falls
Wai’ale Falls

The lower tier appears to be man-modified with a wall built beneath the falls flow.

I still have yet to figure out why man-modification was done for this waterfall though I speculate it either has to do with erosion control or flow regulation further downstream.

The upper tier doesn’t appear to have this type of treatment.

Besides a roadside view of both waterfall tiers, an overgrown, sometimes faint 0.25-mile “trail” leads to pools at the top of the falls.

When I tried this faint trail, I had no intention of swimming so I didn’t finish the scramble as I realized the views of the upper waterfall got more overgrown and obstructed the further I went.

Waiale_Falls_018_03092007 - Closer look at the upper drop of Wai'ale Falls
Closer look at the upper drop of Wai’ale Falls

It has been said that Waiale Falls has noticeably greater water flow than Pe’epe’e Falls a short distance downstream.

This may be because of water seeping into the more porous lava under the river near Pe’epe’e Falls.

Also, there is downstream water diversion just above Pe’epe’e Falls for the Waiau Hydro Plant.

Authorities

Wai’ale Falls resides in Wailuku River State Park on the Big Island of Hawaii. For information or inquiries about the general area as well as current conditions, you may want to try visiting the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) website.

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Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.
Tagged with: hilo, hawaii, big island, waterfall, roadside, scramble, bridge, waiale, wai'ale, wailuku river



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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
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