So I got distracted by my new toy and never got to write the last vacation article I had meant to. Before we went to the Volcano we decided that the Waipi'o Valley would be interesting place to check out. When we were at the Big Island for our Honeymoon we had flown through the valley in a Helicopter. The view from above was amazing. The place looked like something from Jurassic park, or any other jungle themed remote location.
M and I decided that we would drive over and check it out. The guide books all say driving to the bottom is a bad idea. We did have a 4x4 Jeep Wrangler and I am certain that the jeep would have made it down and up again. But we decided that the hike would be more worth while. I mean we are on vacation and didn't have anything else to do. So why not attempt to slow things down for a bit.
We get to the top of the Valley and the view from above is amazing! Around 900 feet below us is the incredible black sand beach that looks completely unpopulated. There are a number of small houses visible throughout the valley, but in general it is very unpopulated. The cliff walls are so steep it is almost as is if we have the same view from here as we did from our helicopter 2 years ago. At the top there is a small viewing area where people can just stop and take in the amazing view. It seems that there are a lot of locals driving down and a few ill advised tourists. Then there are the gawkers at the top who have no intention of going to the bottom.
We gather our gear and head down. The first thing we notice is that the guide books are right. We don't think we have ever seen a steeper road. We are used to steep roads along the Hudson Valley but these don't come close to the rode we are walking down. The road follows the edge of the cliff "straight" to the bottom of the valley. It is a 900 foot drop in about a mile. At the bottom you enter a very lush, dense Forrest. The setting is very peaceful, every once in a while you get passed by a 4x4, usually local, some times tourists. From the bottom of the road it is a short hike to the actual beach. Before you get to the beach you can see this amazing waterfall off to the right.
M and I decided to head over to the water fall before we went to the beach. the water coming off the cliff falls almost directly into the ocean. It is really an amazing place to be. You can see the falls behind in this picture.
After checking out the falls M and I decided lunch was in order. We headed over to the beach and grabbed a rock. Amazingly the beach was much larger than we expected. from above it looks like a rather small strip of sand, but being down there the beach is probably a mile to a mile and a half in length. And there were more people than we expected. From above you don't actually see the area where most people use the beach. There were families surfing and playing in the water and a few who had driven down just to sit in their cars.
Mary and I ate then spent a few minutes wading in the water and exploring the beach. After sitting for a few more minutes we decided to head back to the top. While we were enjoying the valley we had discussed how we were glad we hiked down to the bottom. It was much more fulfilling to be standing under the waterfall and waling along a beach that we had hiked down to. We would soon discover that we may have been wrong.
The hike out is, in a word, steep. I have done lots of hiking, much of it in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and I have come across some steep trails. This has to be one of the steepest. Not to mention since it is a rode on the side of a cliff it is very exposed to the Sun. The first hundred feet wasn't too bad because we were still excited about the wonderful valley we had just been in. The last 800 feet were a challenge. We passed a few people walking down with in flip-flops, with out water. We had to wonder how they planned on making it out. M and I had packed water and saved a quart for the hike out. But we quickly finished that and wished we had brought another. It seemed amazing that people were planning on spending time in the valley and getting out with out any hydration.
After about 300 feet or so we were offered a ride to the top from a nice local. We decided that we would be able to make it out no problem, we just needed to take it slow. We thanks the man and up he went. I guess that is how most people get out of the valley.
We finally arrived back at the car a little tired and without water. It turned out that the hike out wasn't as bad as I had imagined. It was steep and exposed, but at one point I told some people that they were almost at the bottom, believing we had made it about half way up. Only to have turned a corner and realized we were very close to the top. (Sorry guys)
When we finished we stopped at the top to look back on the valley one more time. We talked with a few people who were considering going to the bottom. Headed back to the car and downed the remaining quart of water we had saved for the ride home.
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