Kaiwi Coastline Loop

“Makapuu lookout to Alan Davis” is a great hike, or any hike that involves the Kaiwi coastline for that matter. The route we (Reanne Solomon, Larry Tang, Rylan Miyasato, Troy Takara and I) took today is not conventional by any means, though I’m sure some people have connected these trails before.

The particular combination of trails starts at Makapuu lookout (same place where you would park for Makapuu Crag to rock climb).

Within 20 minutes or so, the trail summits at some pillboxes / bunkers…

… then descends to Makapuu Lighthouse lookout,

From there you will travel the paved road back down for about 5-10 minutes until you reach this informative sign about humpback whales,

and then take the “most defined” path down to the Makapuu Tidepools. It’s not difficult, though be cautious as many of the rocks are loose and the ground is considerably uneven.

From the tidepools you walk “south” around the shoreline to Alan Davis or “Pele’s Chair.”

Looking back on Makapuu Tidepools (above).

The coastline here has amazing rock features which can easily distract eyes… however, you should be mind your footing because the ground here is made or either loose rock or slippery rocks.

There are several large pools along the shore, some of which are almost too unreal to believe!

Ideally if swimming here, you should do so in the morning… once the sun passes overhead, this area is far too cold to be wet.

Another danger you should be attentive to are high tides and ocean swells / surf. In addition to unstable footing, crashing waves can easily knock you down on the slipper rocks and potentially pull you into the churning ocean. Ideally, you should always be attentive to never turn your back to the ocean when near the shoreline…

There are more pools down the coastline, but they are not as deep as the one mentioned prior…

However, they may receive sunlight for a longer period of time.

You should round the corner towards Alan Davis after a 2-3 hours of hiking, however if you stop at all the tidepools to relax and swim, you will obviously take longer.

… We stopped just before Pele’s Chair to have a few beers in the last couple hours of sunlight and do some fishing.

After an hour or so of catching several reef fish,

…it was time to head home. And we ran out of beer. lol.

Awesome hike with awesome people.

Makapuu Lookout to Alan Davis is not a conventional route, and there are several shorter and safer routes to access Makapuu Crag, Makapuu Lighthouse, the Makapuu Tidepools, Pele’s Chair and Alan Davis. If you plan to do this route (or its reverse), make sure to have appropriate footwear (felt-bottomed or spiked)… and I personally suggest using tabis over other types of footwear, particularly for the wetter portions of the hike. It is also extremely important to verify the tides and surf conditions for the eastern shoreline prior to hiking. Do not attempt on a rising tide / high tide AND/OR if the surf is 3 feet or higher. You’re going a to be a long ways from your car as well, so do not risk injury by demonstrating unsafe hiking practice. Make sure to take plenty of liquids as most of this hike is in direct sunlight and hot. If hiking at a continuous pace, you should anticipate hiking for at least 3-4 hours. If you take several breaks, make sure to leave before sunset… especially if you parked at the “lower” parking lot for the Kaiwi Shoreline access (it closes at sundown). The last I checked, the “upper” parking lot for Makapuu Lookout is not gated… but still not a good idea to leave your car there for extended periods of time. If your party comes in more than one car, you should consider staging the cars so that you do not have to walk the 0.25 mile distance between the parking lots. More questions? Just ask!!!

More photos from this adventure can be found 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. Thanks for visiting and come back again soon!