Crouching Lion Hike

I think this hike tops the Pillbox Hike. The view alone was over the top.

I initially found this hike on Instagram (of course) and thought the views were so pretty so I quickly added it to my list of things to do. I read that it was fairly easy and wouldn’t take all day so I was all for it!

I did also read that this hike was really dangerous and it should only be done by advanced hikers. We almost didn’t get to it because we started to second guess ourselves. But I want to say I think what I read online is only half true.

One) It is really dangerous in a sense that you are scaling a cliff essentially, so it’s very steep and there is a section or two that you are on the edge of the cliff. SO yes, it’s dangerous.

Two) I wouldn’t exactly say It’s for advanced hikers because for one person in our group it was his first hike ever and he did just fine & I am nowhere near an advanced hiker and well, I survived just fine.

This hike was also easy to find and not overly filled with tourist.

Once you park in the designated parking spots (you’ll see it on the side of the road). You can cross the road and start on the trial.  You will also see some signs that say trail closed or do not enter. We just walked past those but up to you if you want to continue.

You will have to climb over a fallen tree and after that you will begin the trail up. The trail starts off right away going up. The first about 10 minutes are still walking through the foliage, so it’s not too bad. There is a rope to help you get to the top, you can use it if need be.

Make sure to pack a lot of water and wear some comfortable shoes. 

Once you get to the first look out is where it gets tricky. This is the part you need to be extra careful of your footing. We got some wise advice from a local – “don’t go on a hike after it’s rained” I would highly take this advice if you plan on going on this hike. I could see how this would get really slippery and become quite dangerous.

This part of the hike is the part that is on the edge. You go under a large rock to get to the top of the lions head. To be honest, I still can’t see the lions head in all this, so I am not sure why they called it “Crouching Lion”

Trying to look at how far up we, good thing I am not afraid of heights! I do recommend though, if you are skeptical of heights, you might want to pass on this hike. 

This is the top of the hike. The views were so worth the hike and the heights! Overall it wasn’t that bad of a hike. 

Now, you can keep going further up and that is a way longer and more intense hike. I would highly recommend doing some research on the longer trail. It looked really intense and I wouldn’t reccomend going if you don’t know what you are getting into.  

What to do in Oahu.

1. Take a stroll through Waikiki

-This isn’t something that I would put on the top of my list, but I feel like everyone needs to go to see Waikiki. It’s a super touristy spot but has some of the greatest spots for food, drinks and of course plenty of hotel options. 

2.    Go on a Hike

 – The Ehukai Pillbox Hike- North Shore 1.6 miles round trip

– I love that one you totally have to do this one when you come here. It’s easy enough for the whole family to do this one and the views are amazing! You can see more about this hike here.

– Crouching Lion Hike – 2 miles round trip (short distance trail)

-This hike is a bit more advanced. I only say that because it’s all uphill and gets really narrow on the top. I wouldn’t recommend little ones going on this hike. The views are unquestionably stunning and well worth the trek, read more here

-Manoa Falls Trial – 1.5 miles round trip

– This one is more of a trail, not a hike. This is suitable for any age. This path leads you to a waterfall that is really pretty. This one is open from 8am-4pm and costs $5.00 to get in. I would say though, this was my least favorite “hike” it was overly filled with tourist and the waterfall was quite disappointing. However, if you have little ones this would be a great thing to do!

            Apparently, there is another hike that is more advanced and will take you to the top of the waterfall and has an infinity pool where you can swim and take some cool photos in. This is a different trail and you have to take it from the beginning of the hike, not after you get to the falls like we thought we could.

3.    See the Byodo Temple – $5.00 cash only

– I like coming here because it reminds me of all the temples we saw in Japan. This is a nice spot to take the family and enjoy the day. This is a nice spot to have lunch or just walk around for a bit and kill some time.

4.    Go to The Sunrise Shack

– This is located in the North and is Locally owned. You might miss it if you’re going to fast, this is defiantly a spot you’ll want to stop by though! They sell bulletproof coffee and some yummy fruit bowls! Everything about this spot is Instagram worthy as well!

5. See the North Shore

– This is where you’ll see larger than life-waves. You can feel the pure power behind mother nature just by sitting on the beach and watching the waves roll in.

6. Eat at the Pupukea Grill

– This is on the North Shore too. This is a great spot to grab some lunch and you can a) sit in the little area they have for you or b) take it to go and find a beach and enjoy the sun! Either way, this food is filling and fresh! I got the Doner Kebab and it was so good!

7. Watch sunset at the China Walls

– This was a great spot to end the day and watch the sunset. The sun falls directly in front of you with no obstructing views and is a perfect place to bring some drinks and snacks. It’s just a short walk from a residential area so parking is easy, just be mindful of parking in front of someone’s home. Plenty of people come and watch the sunset here it’s very beautiful!

8. Picnic at China Mans Hat

– How cute is this spot. This would be a perfect spot to grab some lunch, shoot even some dinner and take in the views! This is easy to find, just type in china mans hat in google maps! 

PillBox Hike

This is the hike i’ve been waiting to do, since being on Oahu!

I’ve seen this a million times over on Instagram, so of course I had to do it. Last time I came to Oahu, I did the famed Dead Mans Cat Walk, which is now sadly gone. The view is still there, just the slab of concrete is gone. Probably a good thing, that wasn’t too safe, basically scaling the side of a cliff. 

Anyways, this hike was a bit of a trek- only of course if you’re out of shape like me. 

Just kidding, its a good one, there was like 5 year old kids running for joy at the top. Except me, just trying to breath and not pass out. Damn kids and there natural energy. 

It took about 30 minutes for me to get up, only because once again, I am out of shape. It really also depends on your pace. 

But, like I said. It is so doable. 

You start at the entrance, which is right by sunset elementary school. 

I recommend going early before the sun makes it almost impossible to go on. Also, bring water. 

I wore work out clothes, and a pair of shoes I didn’t mind getting dirty. 

It’s perfectly paved for you, not so much in the sense of a concrete path way, but more of like a million people have made a natural walk way for you. 

You always want to stay to the left and once you get to a bench, you know you’re on the right track. Also, if you see white flags tied to the trees, you’re in the right spot. 

Once you pass the bench, you are about half way there. 

Now, you come to a first Pillbox, which is not the one you typically see on Instagram. It’s pretty cool though, It looks like something they would use in the war to spot enemy ships coming. You can walk into the bottom part of the bunker too, kinda of creepy but really cool. I kinda of felt like I was in history for a moment. It makes you think, like what went in on in here. 

After you spend a few moments in there, you can walk to the main spot everyone post about. 

It’s an amazing view and my 5 year old self was really stoked, because you can color on the slab with chalk. (They have chalk there, no need to bring your own.)

Bottom line, no matter if you are a professional gym rat or a professional couch potato, you can certainly do the hike. 

It’s only slightly challenging on the way up anyways, going down took us like 20 mins- If that. 

Most certainly worth your while in Oahu. 

See, he’s not even in real hiking clothes & he made it, just fine 🙂 

 

 

Oahu in 24 hours.

I know it’s not normal to stay in Hawaii for less than a full day, but lately that has been my life.

Usually, you spend months researching a trip to Hawaii, but for me it’s a little different. I pretty much decide the night before if I want to hop on a flight.  My usual Island of choice is Maui, but I decided to switch it up this time.  Now, since I don’t get much time, I have to jam pack the Island into a day, which is totally doable. I know, you’re probably thinking what the hell, how is that possible? Trust me, it’s easier than you think.

How to start: 

Before I decided to go to Oahu, I did a tiny bit of research and found the best hidden spots of Oahu. I landed upon a few places. On the top of my list was the ” Dead Man’s Cat Walk”  the pictures I saw were incredible, so I knew I needed to see that. Next was the Byodo-in Temple, Sharks Cove and of course Pipeline.

Where to stay & get around: 

For Hotels and getting around the Island, took some more thinking. After endless hotel sites, I found the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel. This hotel was perfectly located in the heart of Waikiki and our view was absolutely perfect. Now, you can take a bus around the Island for around $2.00 a person, but lets be real with everyone on Island time, I didn’t have time for a snail bus. So I rented a car ( yes, you can rent a car under 25, there’s just an extra fee) I chose the last minute deal, so it cut the cost down a bit. My rental car was Awesome, thanks to Fiat! That zippy thing, got me around the Island with a breeze, now my poor boyfriend being 6’4 probably didn’t care for it too much.

What to do:

First on my list was the “Dead Man’s Catwalk” this hike was a killer, literally. I almost died. I would of crawled the rest of the way, to see this view though. I wasn’t going to give up. Make sure to bring lots of water and Park at the very top of hill. You don’t need to add any extra uphill walking. There is a very large fence atthe bottom of the hill that says ” NO HIKING” but just ignore that, just keep going. Once you’ve successfully sweated out your soul and thought you could die at any second, you should come across another fence. Don’t go to your right once you’ve reached this fence, unless you wish to fall off the face of the earth. If you are my sized and I mean tiny, like small child size, then feel free to squeeze threw this fence, however if you’re more like the rest of the world, there is a hole on the side of the fence to get threw.  Trust me all this is worth it.   And the plus side, going back is all downhill!

After we cooled off from this we made our way to Byodo-In Temple. This Temple is hidden in the hills and is a quick must see, you feel like you went straight to Japan. Its quite a site and I recommend it for a quick see, don’t stay long enough to disrupt Buddha like, I probably did. ( I dropped my shoes in the temple, which is a no no, ooops)

After these two spots, we made our way to pipeline and sharks cove. Pipeline was more of a 5 minute stop, I came, I saw, I left. Not a big surfer so I wasn’t too amazed by it, except the waves are seriously massive. Don’t go swimming there. Sharks Cove is apparently, the best spot to go snorkeling. I don’ t know if we came on a bad day, but I wasn’t impressed by this place. I spent most my time not trying to smash up against the rocks or get sucked out to sea. There was a lot of fish however, so don’t be so quick to remove this off your list.

Overall, we jammed packed the whole island into one day. I am always so impressed with these Islands. I love the beauty they each hold. Now, I know you’ll have more time to explore the place so spend some time enjoying the beauty of Hawaii and of course don’t forget to have a Mai’Tai!

Safe travels babes.