For Adventure Seekers, Climb Up The Olomana Hike In Oahu, Hawaii

The incredible view from the top

As the name suggests, there are three peaks to the Olomana Ridge Hike. To the first peak is only 1.5 miles, which is roughly 2.4 kilometers. It is a fairly short hike, however, the elevation is more than 1,000 feet, which is over 300 meters, so you definitely want to be prepared for a challenge going up the first peak. There are some areas which are pretty steep, so the ropes are there to help you climb up those rocky areas. If the ground is slippery after it rains, make sure you pay extra attention. You may see locals at other hiking trails wearing flip-flops, but this is one of those hikes you need to be better prepared for than sorry. Make sure to wear comfortable sneakers, so that hiking won’t get harder than it should be. After all that, you get to the first peak, and the view from there is incredible. Unfortunately, the day I visited it got foggy, and started to sprinkle a bit, so you could not see the panoramic view of Kailua. However, the fog still made the scenery pretty spooky, and interesting.

Having some rock climbing experience comes in handy!

I am not trying to scare anybody, but the Olomana Hiking Trail is really for those who have a little more experience in hiking, and outdoor life. At other hiking trails, you see children and the elderly having fun going up the trails, but at this hike, people who you run into are mostly fit adults. This is a more challenging hike, which definitely requires more awareness of the body. If you happen to have indoor or outdoor rock climbing experience, it comes in handy for sure. As you see in the picture above, you see a wall of rocks appearing in front of you quite a few times on this trail. You have to use your coordination and strength to go up the rocks with the help of ropes, which happen to be placed at a few spots. Even if you are an experienced hiker, or rock climber, you want to know when to back down if the condition is not good. When my friend who is a regular hiker and I visited (I am a dancer and athlete with experience in rock climbing), we had to turn back after the second peak because it started to rain rather than sprinkle.

Going to the two other peaks or hike back!

There are three peaks in total with Olomana Hiking Trail. Many people just go to the first peak, and it is 1.5 miles (2.4 km), so the round trip is around 3 miles (4.8 km). For those of you who have more energy, and feel comfortable to keep on going, you can continue the path to the 2nd and 3rd peak. These two peaks are not as high as the first one, but the trail gets more challenging, so you might want to listen to your body, and ask your hiking partner if you have enough energy to return after the 2nd and 3rd peak. Unfortunately, there is no shortcut of coming back, so you want to make sure you feel secure not only going forward, but also coming back!

In addition, just to be clear, there have been people who have fallen between the first and the second peaks of Olomana Hiking Trail, and unfortunately passed away. Some of these people were experienced hikers at Olomana Hiking Trail, so you just want to be honest with your body, and trust your instincts when you make decisions at this hiking trail.

Don’t be afraid to get dirty!

When hiking this trail you will be walking or climbing the rocks, but you will also be hiking a good amount of soiled areas, which could get pretty slippery, and messy after the rain, or when it is sprinkling. The rock area could also get slippery, so definitely make sure you choose a pair of sneakers that you are comfortable with, and are hiking friendly. Maybe not so for hiking up the trail, but on the way down, you see many people with dirty bottoms because many tend to slip and slide, and get their bottoms dirty on the way down. Again, there are ropes, so make sure to support yourself at areas that may be steep and slippery. There are no areas at the entrance of the trail to wash yourself, so when you go on this hike, make sure to bring plenty of fluid to hydrate, and also to wash yourself off after hiking.