Niu Valley

Niu Valley was pretty dry.  The mangoes were so ripe it smelled like a distillery.

 Most of the group made it to this waterfall

 A few went on to the fallen tree forest but after that it was just David and I forging our own trail

 It was fairly easy going, no real bushwacking but we did have to do some climbing to get up and around waterfalls.

 We turned around here but we were almost to the back of the valley.  I didn't know until I checked my gps at home. We tried going up to the ridge on our left but just turned around.

 Back at the fallen tree forest.  There were trees down all over the place.

Only in HI

O'Kona

This was a super cool hike, I can't wait to do it again.  It started at the beginning of Kuliouou on a secret HTMC trail.  All the times I passed by and never knew it was there.  It heads up and over to the Hahaione trail, then across the KST past the top of Kuliouou to the top of O'Kona, which I have been dying to get to the top of, then down O'Kona.  It's a big awesome loop.

 This is the trail that parallels Kuliouou

 then it goes right over into the next valley

 Hahaione valley, and then up the ridge

 to the KST junction

About this point on the KSY, before Kuliouou Clayton comes by and says he is going all the way to O'Kona so I follow him, actually I chased him because he is super fast. 

At some point there is a junction for O'Kona, there's no sign, glad I followed Clayton.

Heading down O'Kona

   And almost back to the start.

Recital