Search for Missing Mrs. Tam: Kalihi, Likelike & Burmeister Ridge Hike Log

Author: Wing C Ng  |  Date: September 5, 2004  |  Source: OHE-L Archives

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Initial Route & Likelike Highway Crossings

I went with Thomas Yoza and Charlotte Yamane to search for the missing Mrs. Evin Tam. Met at the end of drivable Kalihi Street, right where the Burmeister Overpass forks off. I initially thought she left the highway at the Overpass, but apparently not—she left at "two concrete blocks" near the guardrail.

I don't like that road—it is dark, wet, and ominous. Keeping going past the trail fork that we took back on Easter weekend 2003, Thomas tried to convince me to go through a tunnel under the highway filled with knee-deep water. I refused. Returning to the main path, the road soon split: the dilapidated left fork headed toward Likelike Highway, while the right went off into the jungle.

I decided to take the left fork to cross the highway, while they took the right. There was a "weakness" in the median partition right there, making it easy to hop across. Traffic wasn't too dense, so crossing wasn't too dangerous. Walking mauka on the Ewa side of the highway, I soon came upon the "two concrete blocks." I peered inside—no sign whatsoever of recent disturbance—so I continued onward. At the same time, Thomas and Charlotte emerged into view on the opposite side, and we shouted messages back and forth across the traffic.

Searching Near Likelike Tunnel & The Bowman Shortcut

I continued walking all the way to the closed road near the Likelike Tunnel. While there were concrete blocks along the way, I never saw "two concrete blocks" paired like that again, concluding the first spot was the key location. Returning to the original two concrete blocks, I climbed up easily into undulating terrain with light vegetation. I noticed a tree branch that looked broken about a month prior, but found no smells or further signs. Concluding I wouldn't find anything there, I came back down, crossed the highway back to the Kalihi Street extension, and walked mauka on an indistinct trail into a clear area.

Having exchanged positions with Thomas and Charlotte, I sat down for lunch just two feet from the highway edge. Charlotte gestured vigorously from across the road, pointing upward. Encouraged, I finished my lunch and crossed the highway again—this time over the full height of the concrete partition with no median gap. It was certainly the hardest rockface scramble I've done recently.

Upon joining them, they pointed out that I was actually on an old overgrown road—the same one used when climbing the Bowman "shortcut". This road parallels Likelike Highway and used to be paved. They had crossed via a third tunnel near the Bowman shortcut "duck-in" point and followed the road until spotting my orange trail ribbons and the two concrete blocks. If Mrs. Tam entered at the concrete blocks, walking along this old road seemed the most likely path. We decided to trace this road makai to investigate further, though it eventually became impenetrable with hau tangles before terminating.

Exploring Burmeister Ridge & Property

We then decided to follow the highway through the jungle on its Ewa side to reach Burmeister and cross via the Burmeister Overpass itself. I have always been fascinated by the Burmeister mansion tucked into the mountain, visible from the Bowman Trail above.

The trek involved navigating muddy terrain and climbing several ridge spurs descending from Bowman. We designated these ridges numerically for tracking (naming the main ribboned ridge Ridge #1 and estimating Burmeister Ridge around Ridge -3).

Eventually, we reached a road just inside a locked gate near the cellular towers (Nextel and Verizon) on the Burmeister property. Exploring Ewa up the Burmeister road, we observed various ruined, burned, and overgrown structures. Burmeister Ridge splits into two spurs at the bottom, creating a large flat depression visible from higher up on Bowman. Both ridge spurs joining toward Bowman appear climbable, with the mauka (north) side looking drier and more direct.

Wrap-Up & Observations

We exited through the gate, crossed the overpass over Likelike Highway, and followed an old dilapidated paved road back toward our vehicles. Near the end of the road, we marked a spot with orange ribbon near two plastic bags emitting a strong odor (likely dumped animal remains from hunters).

We returned to our cars at 2:05 PM. While we made no direct progress in locating Mrs. Tam, exploring these entry points and ridge paths narrows down the search grid for future efforts.

"My Chinese friends said this is a very good deed, whether rescuing her alive or finding her body for proper burial. Maybe we are rewarded for merely attempting to do a very good deed."