Halapē / Nāpaʻu — Day One

Halapē / Nāpaʻu — Day One

I joined two other members of the Mauna Ala Club for this trip a day late, which actually worked out well since we now had a second car available for the Nāpaʻu shuttle.

On Saturday I made my way to Hilo and then on to Volcanoes National Park. Patrick Rorie had suggested I ask a ranger about the newly re-routed Halapē Trail. The ranger initially said there was no such thing. After I persisted and explained that I had been told the route avoided the nēnē nesting area, she drew a fire road on my map connecting near Kīpuka Nēnē to Keahou. She told me the Halapē Trail itself would be closed forever.

Keahou was a new trail for me, so I decided to hike down that way and return via Hilina Pali. I started hiking around 11:00 a.m., taking my time and enjoying the solitude. At Keahou Beach I took a walking tour, then, satisfied that I was completely alone, lay down on the beach and took a nap. I checked my watch occasionally and made a mental note to get up at 4:00 p.m. for the final 1.6 miles to Halapē.

On a section of trail running very close to the ocean, I was startled by a loud whoosh sound. “That sounds like a whale,” I thought. I turned and there it was, cruising nearby and looking at me. I resumed walking, and the whale followed slowly. As I turned away from the coast, I wondered if it would meet me again at Halapē.

Soon I was walking through a very crowded Halapē camping area. I headed straight for the brackish crack and dove in for a refreshing dip. After soaking for a few minutes, I continued to Halapē Iki to say hello to Pat and meet Brian Hill. They had the entire area to themselves and invited me to stay, but I explained that I needed to check in with my group as planned.

Back at Halapē proper, I joined Dave Brown and Jack Schultz. I was surprised to find there were only two others on the trip. I asked Dave if there were many backpackers in Mauna Ala. He replied, “You’re lookin’ at ’em.” Dave is a Maui hiking veteran and has been actively involved with Nā Ala Hele, the Sierra Club, and other groups. We talked about the possibility of starting a Maui chapter of the HTMC, and I mentioned that OHE is also a great resource.

After cooking and eating my dinner—Lipton’s cheese broccoli rice with Cajun sardines—and swapping a few stories, Jack crawled into his tent for the night. Dave and I talked for a couple more hours. When Dave turned in, I stretched out under the stars and enjoyed a wonderful night’s sleep.

(Day two to be continued.)