Hiking on Oahu on the Pu'u Maelieli Trail

My affinity for tramping into the hills has fostered a keener sense of the beauty of the seemingly mundane. Mountain tops and valleys, for instance, are no longer just distant map points. For once I've grunted, puffed, sweated, and labored to reach a mauka pinnacle or a rich valley, these places are transformed into sources of idle-time musings, of pleasant dreams, and of deep- seated pride.

A case in point is a modest pu'u on the windward side of Oahu. Standing in the backyard of my Kaneohe home and turning to the northwest, I can see the 700-foot peak four miles distant. And it's been there for the 40-plus years I've lived in Kaneohe and long before I entered the world.

But, as if invisible, I never saw it. Never, that is, until I set out and climbed to the top of that beautiful hilltop nestled between Temple Valley and He'eia Kea Boat Harbor.

My first venture to the top of this pu'u in the latter part of 1995 was an unpleasant one. Without water and food, and clueless about where the trail began, I set out to blaze my own path and ended up scratched-up, muddy, fatigued, and miserable. Although I made it to the summit, my experience was less than enjoyable.
But I discovered that the hike needn't have been so torturous.

The real hike-path begins along Kahekili Highway just on the Kaneohe side of the Temple Valley Shopping Center (a McDonald's is a standout landmark there). Park along Hui Iwa Street (or an adjacent side street) near McDonald's and hike back down to Kahekili Highway. Once at the highway, turn left (toward Kaneohe). Follow the highway for about 100 meters, passing townhouses on the left. Just past the last townhouse, find a brushy trail on the left. Look for ribbons to lead the way. Though the way may seem obscure, push on and you will find the trail and ribbons.

After a few minutes of uphill ascent, the trail will transition to an old jeep 4x4 road. Follow the old road, which can be obscured by brush at times. At times, the old road will dip but after a while the trail will ascend steadily to the 718-foot high point of the pu'u.

Along the way you will pass sections of Christmas Berry and sweet-smelling lauwae ferns, and then a steeper open section littered with crumbly rock. You will know you are nearing the have hike's terminus when you reach a sign that tells the history and cultural significance of the hilltop. Facing southwest you will see the Koolau Mountain Range.

The trail continues along the top of the summit for a short distance until it reaches an abandoned military bunker. From that bunker-top vantage point, magnificently-blue Kaneohe Bay sprawls out to the far-off horizon. About three miles due east, Mokapu Peninsula-- home of the Kaneohe Marine Corps Base--stands like a fortress wall to protect the calm, resplendent waters of the bay. Ahu a Laka Islet, a protected seabird sanctuary, lies about a mile off shore to the northeast. An eighth of a mile shoreward from the islet, the bay's sandbar, a popular spot for windward-side boaters, may be hosting the occupants of several watercraft.

Off in the distance due north, Mokoli'i (Chinaman's Hat) Island sits like a green-foiled Hershey's Kiss on a glassy tabletop, taunting a hungry, lunchless hiker. Beyond Mokoli'i, Mo'o Kapu o Haloa Ridge, strong and majestic, hovers above Kualoa, one of Oahu's most sacred spots. Nearer, the water of the bay varies in color from deep- to pale-blue. Huge expanses of underwater coral gardens, appearing like jagged-edged white paper circles, dot the waterscape. You may even see a fishing boat, following a buoy-marked water highway, chugging through the maze.

After you have spent time at the summit bunker, head back the way you came.

Ma'eli'eli is short but wonderful hike. Give it a try. And if you have time, check out the Byodo-In Temple, located right across the highway.