You may have read that Mt. Waialeale, Kauai’s second highest peak, is the wettest place on earth. What that means is that over many years, Waialeale has had the highest average annual rainfall (I’ve seen figures ranging from 450 to 480 inches annually). Other places may have a year or two of torrential rains that exceed that figure. But on Mt. Waialeale, every year is that rainy. The trade winds pick up a great deal of moisture on their long sweep across the open ocean to Kauai. The first serious obstacle they encounter on Kauai is Waialeale, and there they unburden themselves. Rain clouds enshroud both Waialeale and Kawaikini, Kauai’s highest peak and Waialeale’s neighbor, almost constantly; it’s a rare moment when you can see them. The huge amount of rain they get nourishes all of Kauai. West of Waialeale and Kawaikini lies an immense, forbidding swamp, the Alakai Swamp, maintained by the constant rains and home to some of earth’s rarest plants and animals. However, Waialeale’s constant rain need not concern you much, as there are no trails to Waialeale.
The driest sections of Kauai are along the southern and western coasts approximately from the big resort area at Poipu to desertlike Polihale and on up the Na Pali Coast almost to Hanakoa Valley. The east coast gets more rain; the north coast still more; and the mountain interior the most. At any given time, it is almost certainly raining some-where on Kauai, but in the coastal regions, it’s seldom prolonged or unpleasant. The passing showers offer you a chance to enjoy rainbows with your hikes. But if you’d rather not be rained on, head for the southern or the western coast.
If it’s rainy on the coast, you can be pretty sure it will be even rainier in the mountains. You may want to postpone your visit to Kokee State Park or Waimea Canyon State Park for a drier day. Or walk mountain roads instead of mountain trails; see the trips for suggestions.
You can’t expect resort-quality weather in hiking areas!
The relatively dry, sunny weather advertised for Hawaii is typical only of a few coastal resort areas, like Kauai’s Poipu and Polihale areas. That’s why Kauai’s biggest and busiest resorts are in the Poipu area. Much of Hawaii, including most of Kauai, is covered with rainforests and is very wet. That’s where the most beautiful and interesting hikes are! Be prepared for rain when you hit the trail, and consequently for weather markedly cooler than that of the resort you’ve left behind, especially if the trail is in the mountains.
Equipment Suggestions and Miscellaneous Hints
Let no one say
And say it to your shame
That all was beauty here
Until you came.
— Sign, Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania
This book isn’t intended to teach you how to hike or backpack. If you can walk, you can hike, especially the “very easy” hikes. You can learn about backpacking in Backpacking Basics by Thomas Winnett and Melanie Findling (see Bibliography). Just be sure the trip you pick is within your hiking limits.
This book is intended specifically to let you know where you can hike on Kauai, what to expect when you hike there, and how to get to the trailhead for each hike. And that, I hope, will help you decide which hikes to take.
This section contains suggestions which I hope will make your hikes even more pleasant, and perhaps better protect you and the environment. Of course, you’re the only person who lives in your body, so you’ll have to judge what’s really appropriate for you. But there are a few things you might want to know before you go—things that may be very different from the hiking you’ve done at home on the mainland. (Maybe you already know them, but it’s hard to shut me up when I think I have some good advice.)
It’s up to you
No book can substitute for, or give you, five things only you can supply: physical fitness, preparedness, experience, caution, and common sense. Don’t leave the trailhead without them.
Minimum equipment for very easy and easy dayhikes
Wear or carry these items as a minimum:
Sunglasses
Coach’s whistle—you can blow a whistle for help longer and louder than you can shout
Appropriate footwear
Strong sunblock applied before you set out
Insect repellent if you are attractive to mosquitoes and deerflies
Food—recommended minimum for easy hikes: high-energy, concentrated-nutrition snack bars
Water—no open source of water in the U.S. is safe to drink untreated, so fill water bottles from treated sources (e.g., the bathroom tap at your hotel). Recommended minimum: 1 pint for very easy and easy hikes, 1–2 quarts for moderate hikes, 2 quarts for strenuous hikes
Lightweight “space blanket”—a couple of ounces of metallized mylar film usable for temporary shelter or rain protection
Appropriate clothing so you can keep warm when the temperature drops, when it rains, and when it gets windy. Even in Hawaii, and especially in the mountains, the weather can turn nasty quickly. Be prepared with extra, appropriate clothing— especially a warm cap—when it does so. See Hypothermia?, On Kauai?, below.
If you wear corrective lenses and/or require special medications, take extra lenses and carry a small supply of your medications
Minimum equipment for moderate and strenuous dayhikes
Start with the minimum equipment for easy hikes, above. Add—
Extra food and water—for moderate and strenuous hikes, carry lunch and some snack bars
Extra appropriate clothing—see Hypothermia?, On Kauai?, below
Map (and compass if you can use it)
Flashlight with extra bulbs and batteries
Means to dig a hole 6–8 inches deep and at least 100 feet from water, in order to bury solid body wastes; tissue that you will also bury (or pack out)
Pocket knife
Firstaid kit—backed by firstaid training
Waterproof matches and something you can keep a flame going with (such as a candle) only when necessary to start a fire in order to save a life
Equipment for backpacks
The following is a minimal checklist for backpacking equipment.
Minimal Backpacking Equipment List
Everything listed above for dayhikes
Permit
Backpack
Tent
Sleeping pad
Sleeping bag
Cookware and clean-up stuff
Stove and fuel*
Eating utensils
Boots
Socks
Shirts
Shorts or long pants
Hat
Rain gear
Underwear
Personal medication
Toiletries
*You cannot take stove fuel on a plane. You must buy it at your