Luaalaea, Naniuapo and Waiakeakua Falls – November 5, 2011

After seeing a plethora of waterfalls at Moole Valley earlier, the three of us (Baron, Justin and I) headed to Manoa Valley to complete the “Waterfall Marathon” we set out to do that day. The main waterfalls included Luaalaea, Naniuapo and Waikeakua Falls… all of which are located east of the well known, Manoa Falls.

To access Luaalaea, we started from the Manoa Falls Trailhead. Within 10 minutes, we jumped off the main trail and to a connector trail to Luaalaea…

Once you get to Luaalaea Stream, the trail is well-worn and apparent…

much more-so than the last time I had been here for at least 3-4 years when we surveyed this manoa tributary for work.

The landscape here, as well as, along many of the other waterfall trails in Manoa are surreal and the further in you go, the most beautiful the scenery becomes.

At the end of the trail, there are two amazing falls… a smaller one (left) and the larger, Luaalaea Falls just behind it (right).

After an amazing eye-gasm at Luaalaea, it was off to Naniuapo Falls. We had to backtrack almost the entire trail to Luaalaea to find an obscure connector swath to Naniuapo Falls (left). Justin and Baron standing next to a HUGE Albezia tree (right).

Unlike the other three “more well-known” falls in Manoa, I had not been to Naniuapo before.

I was surprised to see how much water was flowing in the stream, as I’ve heard that the discharge at the falls is typically less-than spectacular.

As we got nearer to the falls, I spotted a large amount of water coming out from under this huge boulder. You probably could drink the water directly coming out of the rock here as it probably been filtered through the lava rock and hasn’t seen sunlight in ages (making it really cold!).

After joining up with Waiakeakua trail a short while later, we soon found ourselves at a royal bathing pool, once used by ancient Hawaiians.

Just above the bathing pool is a small waterfall, which is often overlooked as it is not visible from the main trail.

Roughly 15 minutes above the bathing pool are a beautiful series of small step-falls (left). Though it’s depth may appear deceiving, the “small” pool (maybe 4ft x 4ft) in the center of the pool is probably about 6 ft deep and is extremely fun to jump into (right).

The last of the short series of stepfalls can be difficult to climb, but there are some “old” ropes there which may help you advance up the trail (left). Use them at your own risk as they are very worn… though are likely much safer than free-climbing up the slick rocks (right). You have to wade through the waist-deep pool to get to these ropes, but I have also known hikers who have contoured left around this set of falls to avoid getting wet.

You may be able to see in the previous photo that this falls is fed by two stream forks… here are some of the falls found above the east stream fork.

We didn’t go the left stream fork (more well-known west stream fork) today, but here’s what the beastly 60 foot waterfall looks like (David climbing up rope, left). Again, this rope has been here for many years and is worn, so please be careful and use it at your own risk. Try not to put your full weight on it; free-climbing the same route is by no means safe or recommended because of the slippery rocks. Whoever goes up first in your group, make sure to inspect the rope and check the anchor at the top. You may also want to bring up your own rope “to supplement” the use of the old one.

The three large waterfalls east of Manoa Falls are all amazing waterfall hikes. Though they may not be easy to find, there is ample information on other hiking websites to help you find them. Luaalaea and Naniuapo are easy / beginner waterfall hikes, though Waiakeakua is probably medium / intermediate in difficulty due to the rope climbing on slippery rocks on the upper part of the trail. Waiakeakua does go beyond the 60 foot waterfall, and there are more falls found upstream… I will detail these in a separate write-up specifically for Waiakeakua Falls to the Koolau Summit Trail soon.

In addition to typical hiking gear, be prepared to get muddy / wet, particularly on Waiakeakua Trail. To ensure you have maximum grip while walking on the slippery stream rocks (for this and any other stream/waterfall hike), I strongly suggest you wear felt bottomed footwear. Felt-bottomed footwear have been long known by stream/river fishermen to be best for walking on slick rock, particularly while hiking in/around streams. The more pressure you put on the felt, the more water gets pressed out the sides of the sole, making surface-area contact better… unlike traditional rubber-soled hiking shoes. Felt-bottomed “tabis,” a type of reef-walking footwear, can be as cheap as $20 at Walmart for those on a budget. Some of them are compact enough to fit in your pack, so that you can wear them as needed. Hanapaa (local fishing supply store) has rugged, well-protected, felt-bottom tabis “with studs” for ~$50. I’ve hiked streams both with felt bottomed boots with and without studs, but I’d prefer the tabis over either for hikes on slick rocks or ones that require you to get you to repeatedly get your feet wet. Moreover, the large studs found on the boots have a similar effect on the rocks as spiked boots, where the rocks get scratched / scoured out pretty badly.

To see the the write-up for the hike we did earlier “Waterfall Marathon Day,” The 8 Waterfalls of Moole Valley, click here . To view this location on a Google Map also known as my “Adventure Map“, Click Here. For more adventures of the Lost Trailblazers, either look at my other blogposts and “Adventures with the Lost Trailblazers” photo gallery.