Puu Heleakala

Posted: November 19, 2009

Due to the rain, we abandoned our original hiking plans in favor of joining the Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club (HTMC) to climb to the summit of Puu Heleakala, the rocky hill/ridge on the Waianae Coast of Oahu.

Puu Heleakala is the 1,900 foot rocky ridge that descends from Palikea in the Southern Waianae Range and separates the valleys of Nanakuli and Lualualei. Because Puu Heleakala is in the rain shadow of the Waianae (and Koolau) Mountains, it is very dry. When rainy conditions threaten the island, Puu Heleakala is often one of the few unaffected places.

Heleakala - Kiawe - Nanakuli - SML

Most long-time residents are familiar with the legend of the demigod, Maui, who snared the sun at the summit of Haleakala (which means “house of the sun”) on the island of Maui. But many people are not aware that there is a competing tradition that says Maui snared the sun at Puu Heleakala on the Waianae Coast of Oahu. Our hike to the top of Puu Heleakala, which means “where the sun is snared” or “where the sun’s rays are broken” would take us to where this legendary feat was performed according to Waianae tradition.

Heleakala - Justin - Nikolaj - Thea - Climb - SML

Our adventure started from the steeper northern side of the ridge where the hill/ridge itself shaded us from the morning sun. Justin Ohara, Nikolaj Nordkvist, and Thea Ferentinos make their way up the rocky slope dominated by dry alien grasses, kiawe and other drought tolerant plants.

Heleakala - Snail Fossil

Not long after we started our climb, I stumbled on the fossilized remains of a native snail shell almost three quarters of an inch long bleached white by the sun. The shell looked like an Achatinella shell which would indicate that this area was once much wetter that it is today.

Heleakala - Uhaloa - SML

While making our way up the rocky landscape, we saw many uhaloa, (Waltheria indica), an indigenous herb used by the Hawaiians for medicinal purposes.

Heleakala - Nikolaj - Climb - SML

Several rock faces confronted us during our ascent. Fortunately there were many footholds and handholds which made climbing up them easy.

Heleakala - Aalii- Climb - SML

The higher we climbed the more aalii (Dodonea viscosa) we saw. The foliage of aalii has a distinctive bright green color that is almost fluorescent when illuminated by the sun.

Heleakala - Sandalwood - Justin - SML

One of our more surprising finds were patches of coastal sandalwood (Santalum ellipticum) that grow as shrubs about 3 feet high on the rocky slopes.

Heleakala - Rays of the Sun - SML

When I saw the rays of the sun near the summit of Heleakala, I was instantly reminded of the story of Maui. Maui’s mother, Hina, could never dry her kapa cloth because the sun sped across the sky too quickly. In order to rectify the situation, Maui climbed to the summit of Puu Heleakala where he lassoed the rays of the sun. Ensnared by Maui’s magic, the sun could not escape and begged to be freed. Maui demanded that the sun slow its progress across the sky so his mother could dry her kapa. The sun agreed and from that day forward, the sun tracked across sky at a slower pace.

Heleakala - LualuaLeiPano - SML

Puu Heleakala provides a commanding view of Lualalei where the Navy maintains a set of communications towers. While the skies over the coast was clear, the Waianae Mountains were covered with clouds.

Heleakala - Speed Hikers - SML

Not long after reaching the summit of Puu Heleakala, we were joined by HTMC hikers, lead by speed hiker Steve Haus, who climbed to the summit by a different route we had taken.

Heleakala - Saddlde Drop Down - SML

Learning that the terminus of the club hike was the saddle on the ridge, we followed the HTMC hikers and dropped down nearly a thousand feet. As we made our descent, the wind was funneled through the low point in the ridge at what must have been at least 30 mph with gusts up to 40 mph. So forceful and persistent was the wind that it was impossible to hold a normal conversation and strong gusts blew lighter hikers around like rag dolls.

Heleakala - Descend - 1 - SML

After turning around and regaining the summit of Puu Heleakala, we began our descent down the dry rocky ridge. We had a commanding view of Nanakuli Valley as we made our way down to the coastline. The circular structures in the valley are part of Nanakuli High School.

Heleakala - Descend - 2 - SML

Although the afternoon sun beat down without mercy, the wind continued to blow and cooled us as we made our way down the barren ridge. As we neared the end of our hike, I reflected on the great time we had climbing to the summit of Puu Heleakala on a day when rain threatened the rest of the island. What a great place hike!