ʻAiea Loop Trailhead

实用信息

• Hiking area
• Open daily7 AM–6:45 PM
• 4 kmfrom 'Aiea center
• Wheelchair accessparking lot
• Parking
• 4.7 / 5799 reviews
• 'Aiea

Walking the Ridge

Park at the trailhead off the upper eastern end of the park road, marked by parking lots, picnic pavilions and a restroom, then look for the trail sign. The loop can be walked in either direction and finishes at the lower campgrounds, where a short walk back along the one-way park road returns you to your car. It is not a strenuous route, but the gradual climbs, exposed tree roots and muddy stretches—especially after rain—make sturdy walking shoes worthwhile.↗↗↗

As the trail crests the ridge, the canopy opens to some of the best southern-coast panoramas on Oʻahu. On clear mornings the whole sweep from Pearl Harbor west to the Waiʻanae Range and east to Diamond Head lies laid out below you, a fine reward for the climb to Puʻu ʻUaʻu, the midpoint high point where native koa and ʻōhiʻa trees grow.↗↗

Forest, Birds and Hidden History

Keep your eyes and ears open. The ʻAiea ridgeline is one of Oʻahu's better chances to spot native forest birds such as the Oʻahu ʻamakihi, the Oʻahu ʻelepaio and the crimson-plumed ʻapapane, alongside startling introduced flocks, including endangered Mariana swiftlets and loud red-crowned parrots.↗

The forest also keeps secrets. Watch for the scattered remains of a B-24 bomber that crashed here in 1944, a quiet reminder of the wartime years when soldiers were camped on these same hills. At the park entrance, meanwhile, sits Keaīwa Heiau, a sacred Hawaiian healing temple (heiau hoʻola) enclosed by a four-foot stacked-rock wall, traditionally linked to a 16th-century Oʻahu chief and his kahuna and rededicated in 1951.↗↗

Before You Go

There is no entrance fee, and the park is open from 7:00 a.m.; hours close at 7:45 p.m. in summer (from April 1) and 6:45 p.m. in winter (after Labor Day). From Honolulu, follow H-1 to Moanalua Highway (Route 78), take the ʻAiea cutoff to the third traffic light, turn right onto ʻAiea Heights Drive and follow it about three miles up to the end of the road, then continue along the park road to the trailhead.↗↗↗

Bring water, wear good shoes and be ready for light passing showers, since the trail can turn muddy with slick roots. Stay on the designated path rather than side trails and shortcuts, pack out at least what you pack in, and remember that mountain biking is no longer permitted and open fires are prohibited. Dogs that come along must stay on leash. A few picnic pavilions and barbecue grills near the trailhead make it easy to add a meal to the end of your hike.↗↗↗