Contact Us: Contact@hik3beasthawaii.com
Hikers Welcome HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
HOME > HIKES > OAHU > OHIKILOLO RIDGE

Quote

" If we move to fast, we break things.

If we move too slow, we miss things.

And if we don't move at all, we won't see things for how beautiful they truly are."

Updated: April 14, 2019

Disclaimer: If this hike is not a part of the Na Ala Hele "State Maintained" Trails, it may be illegal or dangerous to hike, so do not attempt or HIKE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Hik3beasthawaii is not responsible for any injuries, fines, violations you may incur. This website is solely to showcase the beauty that nature has to offer on the island of Hawaii. *****

Location: Located in Makaha, this hike follows a fence line up a narrow ridge with epic views of the valley and shoreline!

Type: Ridge hike

Hike Difficulty: Advanced

Total Time: 10 to 11 hours.

Distance: ~8 miles

Elevation: ~3000 feet

Things to Consider

  • Kid friendly: no
  • Pet Friendly: no
  • This hike is one long hike. You can stay over night in the cabin, or if you are planning to do it in one day, start around 6am or 7am. We were on the trail from sunrise to sunset.
  • The trail is very crumbly as you get closer to the summit. Death drops on both sides. The only thing between you and death is a fence.
  • The trail follows the fence line the whole way up the ridge.
  • The hike can get very hot, with little to no shade for the whole hike. Make sure to bring lots of water.
  • There will be many times where you need to hop over the fence because one side will have no trail or just a vertical drop off. You will perfect your fence hopping skills on this hike.
  • Do not trust the fence with your life! The fence can be really unstable or wobbly. Do not put your whole weight trying to pull yourself up with the fence alone. Parts of the fence are old and could break off at any moment.
  • The cabin is big enough for ten to twelve people. It has a beautiful balcony view of the summit!
  • There are thorns, cactus, and sharp twigs in the beginning part of the hike. Be careful what you grab or where you step!
  • There are many ways to head up to the cabin. Others include Ohikilolo Middle Ridge, from Kea'au Ridge, or from upper Makua Cave.

Your hiking backpack

  • Sun Screen
  • Long pants/long sleeve shirt
  • 3 to 4 Liter of water
  • Snacks/lunch
  • Sleeping bag/blanket (if staying in cabin)
  • Head lamp
  • Gloves
  • GoPro/camera

Directions

Take Farrington Hwy towards Waianae and head towards Makaha. We parked at the Pray For Sets (Pray For Sex) Beach parking lot and crossed the street to head up the ridge.

Our Journey

 We started early in the morning because we knew it would be a long hike. We parked at Pray for Sex Beach and was on our way. You could either head up the side ridge or up above Makua Cave. I think heading up Makua Cave is a little more sketchy and steep, so we chose to head up the left ridge. The sun was peaking up over the mountain as we crossed the street and made our way through the bushes. There were a lot of thorns, twigs, and cactus so watch where you step. There was only a faint path, but once we reached the fence, we just followed it up. The fence soon intersected with the main ridge line and we turned left. The views were amazing! We hopped the fence a couple of times as we made our way up. As we gained elevation, the trail became more narrow and crumbly. Makua Valley was on our left, and we could see the Ohikilolo Middle Ridge on the right. The sun was beaming on us, which was very tiring on the body. Sweat and cramps the whole way up, but the views were worth it! There are times on the hike where one side of the fence will have vertical drop offs. Always stay on the safe side of the fence. Keep hopping over as many times as you need to! As we got closer to the cabin, the rocks were crumbly and broke into pieces in your hands! The steep drop offs were also very dangerous as one slip and you could fall to your death. We took steps one at a time and really relied our life on the fence at some points. There was really no other way to by pass some areas without relying on the fence for help. The fence was our best friend on this hike. The section right before the cabin had a vertical drop on the left side and the fence was on the right of us. The fence was loose and we had to crawl across the narrow trail at this point. Every rock we held on to crumbled in our hands! However, there was another short hill and we finally reached the cabin! We checked it out took lots of photos and some of the group even continued on to climb the summit! I also wrote in the journal of our adventures that day. We stayed in the cabin for a bit, and met some girls who were staying the night as well. We had other plans and wanted to head back before dark. By now it was about 3:30pm and it took us nearly 6 hours with breaks and lunch. However, we blazed through on our way back and made it down by 7:30pm as the sun was setting. What a day! I got the worst tank top tan ever and my skin peeled for weeks. Definitely a hike for the books! Now time for a bath and massage!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sun was rising up over the mountain. Our long journey ahead of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And it begins. It's gonna be a long day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Making our way to the fence along a faint trail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet the fence. It will be your best friend for the rest of the hike.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heading up tho the main ridge line.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking out towards Makua Valley below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The trail is very wide open in the beginning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We found a rock to take some nice pictures on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The trail goes as far as the eye can see, and then some!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We hopped the fence and continued on up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking back at the beautiful view!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A little introduction to the rock climbing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We relaxed as we reached the main ridge line. More inclines from here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As the sun rose, it got hotter and hotter. The sun was getting unbearable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The long road ahead of us. Lots of false peaks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sun blinding us on our way up!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More rock climbing practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Windward Jerky was fueling our hikes!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Small spots of shade, but for the most part you'll be in the sun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I guess we'll rest here for a bit under the tree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The trail started to get narrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another false peak in the distance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Man...what a view! So amazing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crawl or fall...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The narrow, crumbly trail ahead of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Literally holding on to the fence for our lives. The trail gets extremely narrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basically hugging the fence the rest of the way up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting closer. The end is in sight!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally a spot to sit and relax! #breakfastclub

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to hop a fence 101.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This part was so sketchy. You can slip and fall to your death because the ground is so crumbly in this section.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But shortly after, we reached the cabin! Ohikilolo Cabin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lots of space to stay the night in the cabin!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Really nice balcony view!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More bunks on the other side!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

View of the summit from the balcony.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We decided to put up a hammock to enjoy the view!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We didn't stay too long because we wanted to make it back down before dark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was one of the crumbly sections where rocks would just break apart in our hands!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a long way back, but we made it back pretty fast.

Woody Frames to help us with the blinding sun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heading back down. Looks a lot scarier than when we were heading up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the edge of death!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Almost down! We got so burnt! Sunscreen didn't help!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trying to beat the sunset, but we made it down right before dark!

What an awesome day!

Add a comment about this post! Was it helpful? Love the hike? Comment below.

Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
Privacy Policy Terms and Conditions Hiking Etiquette/Disclosure

Since 2014

 

 

Contact Us: Contact@hik3beasthawaii.com
HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
Contact Us: Contact@hik3beasthawaii.com
HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
HIK3BEASTHAWAII
  •  

Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
Contact Us: Contact@hik3beasthawaii.com
Hikers Welcome HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!
Contact Us: Contact@hik3beasthawaii.com
Hikers Welcome HIK3BEASTHAWAII
Ohikilolo Ridge and Cabin
> > > OHIKILOLO RIDGE
Related hikes you might like.
Follow us for more adventures!!!