Best Camping Trails in Hawaii, Hawaii

We did this trail on Thanksgiving and weren't able to finish due to time constraints. We had dinner reservations to rush back to, and I was heartbroken to miss the whole thing. I highly recommend taking an ATV down and up the hill. That long road is no interesting hike, and it just wastes your time. Local ATV drivers charge about $20 for the trip. Hardest part of the trail is the trek into the ridgeline - after that, it's really simple. The trail is very easy to follow. There is a water crossing, so plan for that. Bring your stuff and enjoy a day at the beach after.

Nov 20-22, 2019 We did this trail as part of a 3-day one-way excursion from Mauna Loa trailhead to the summit then down to Weather Observatory. Day one began at Mauna Loa trailhead to Red Hill cabin (7.5 miles) starting at 10am ending at 3pm. I wrote a review of that separately. Day two from Red Hill to Summit Cabin 11.5 miles (830am-3pm). This hike was amazing with all the vast volcanic views, plenty of cones, craters and caves. I was able to do it in shorts and quarter sleeve shirt most of the way until about 12,000 ft where it got chilly and windier so I put on a hoodie. It was very sunny most of the way. Sun hat is essential. Trail is well marked with Ahu (cairns) and elevation signs every 1,000ft. Definitely keep track of the cairns though because it's easy to start wandering off trail since most of the terrain is vast and looks the same. At the cabin (13,200ft) it's very cold and windy so I layered up with pants, hoodie jacket, rain jacket, gloves and winter hat. At night it probably hit high 20s with strong wind gusts. It snowed about 2 inches overnight which made for a magnificent wintery sunrise with views of snowcapped Mauna kea. The cabin has plenty of bunk beds with mattress pads and there were about 15 extra sleeping bags and blankets up for grabs. Even though my group brought our own sleeping bags we still used the extra ones to add insulation layers to our beds (forts) and cover up a window that didn't close fully. Super grateful for the extra bags. The water catchment was full but make sure to filter your water during the day or afternoon before it freezes overnight. In the morning the water spiket was frozen so we had to melt snow for extra water. Have you ever pooped at 13,000ft overlooking a massive crater of the world's largest active volcano? Day three we set off from the cabin to the true summit at 9am (4.6 miles). We took our time enjoying the snow, the grand crater views and taking photos. Descended from the summit at 12:15pm and reached the Weather Observatory by 3:15pm (6 miles). Our shoes were all beat up by the end. Highly recommend strong sturdy boots and extra duck tape just in case. One of us just wore running shoes and feet made it fine but the shoes are basically non-existent now . There are several ways to do the Mauna loa summit depending on time and transportation. We were able to leave one car at the Mauna Loa trailhead and arrange to get picked up at weather observatory. One couple that was with us most of the trip started from the Mauna Loa trailhead to Red Hill cabin. Then next day went all the way up to the summit and spent night at Summit cabin. Then third day hiked all the way down back to the trailhead where their car was. You could also do the summit as a day hike from the weather observatory. The elevation can be a little more intense since you gain so much in such little time. Either way, highly recommend exploring Mauna loa trails and spending the night at the cabin! Be prepared to elevation sickness, hydration, sun exposure and cold weather!

This trail is sooo beautiful and definitely worth as a day hike, overnight out and back, or part of thru hike to the summit of Mauna loa. Great stargazing at night and incredible sunrise with views of Mauna kea and otherworldly escapes at red hill cabin. 11/20/19 We (group of 4) set off at 10 am from Mauna loa trailhead after spending the night at the Nāmakanipaio camp ground at HVNP. We were blessed with great weather on the trail, despite rain at 4000ft, which made the trail very easy to follow (cairns/ahu). 99% of the trail is lava rock of various types (a'a and pahoehoe) so good sturdy footwear is essential. Bring emergency duck tape if your shoes get torn up. We took plenty of breaks about every 30-45 mins to eat, drink rest and acclimate as we ascended. Definitely felt the elevation past 9000ft as the trail gets steeper. We made it to Red Hill cabin at 3pm with plenty of time to set set up and have dinner before sunset at 5:45. Two people in our group had never hiked at elevation before but they did just fine. Made sure to stay hydrated and rest plenty to acclimate. The cabin had plenty of beds with mattress pads. There were 2 light sleeping bags up for grabs. It got very chilly at night so definitely bring warm sleeping bags or blankets if planning to spend the night. The cabin had a kitchen area with some leftover propane, pots and dry food if anyone found themselves stranded without it. There was a water catchment tank with plenty of water that we filtered to drink and a pit toilet. Bring your own supplies and toilet paper! Don't forget to pack out your trash :) The cabin had lots of interesting things to read on the walls and in the various logs books in case you get bored. There are some short trails around the cabin to get some nice panoramic views. After spending the night and waking up to a glorious sunrise, we set off at 8:30am next morning to continue our adventure to Mauna Loa Cabin and summit.

We went until Napau crater in 6 hours (round trip) including pictures and 20 minutes lunch time at Napau Crater viewpoint. The trek is really easy to follow. Take 2-3 liters of water because it’s very sunny. Lots of vegetation before Napau crater, wear a trouser and just go inside :-) The beginning of the trek is a lava desert before entering a forest, it was a nice hike !

Awesome, but definitely bring at least 3.5 / 4L of water per person to make sure. The heat is crazy, I was lucky enough to have a cloudy ascent, but the descent with the sun was hardcore, I can't imagine having clear sky for the ascent. Little "private" (no one there) beach is an awesome reward.

Strenuous, if you are not accustomed to walking across long distances of lava rock, beware of your feet! Bring mole skins

This trail gets pretty sketchy after the bench at Honokane Nui lookout. I would say trekking poles are a necessity. Many sections are right on the edge of a cliff and the terrain is that super loose, pebbly, dusty, slippy kind. I am a pretty seasoned hiker and I was pretty scared through a few spots. Found a couple walking sticks which helped tremendously. it's not too bad if you're just day hiking but with a full pack/camping gear, it's tricky. There is a small rope section descending into Honokane Nui. I recommend gloves. Bring plenty of water as the rivers in both Honokane Nui and Honokane Iki are almost dry. Definitely bring a water purification system to filter water from fresh water pools when you find them. Overall, it's a pretty challenging hike due to elevation gain and trail being really loose and slippy on the cliffs edges. Worth it though. Just be cautious and bring a friend or two. Went from Pololu to Honokane Iki. Takes about 4 hours at an eady pace with backpacking gear.

Full out and back is about 12.2 miles. This feels like two separate trails. Initially you start on a field with minimal shade and volcanic rocks as far as the eye can see. They you abruptly move into the rain forest. The first crater was easy to get to; about 3.7 miles out from the start with with a volcanic field. Just watch your footing on the aha. The second crater had quite a lot of over grown brush, but still easy to navigate. All the hills were not very steep, just gradual and long. Bring lost of water as it gets hot. In the end, totally worth it.

Well worth the hike in. If you plan on camping the night over at one of the camp sites there is a permit that needs to be acquired before doing so. The views are amazing down there!

Biked down the Canyon. Beautiful views.

Loved the views. Biked down Waimea canyon too.

Nice and cool up high with shade. Still hot and humid overall. Bring water filter. Used running shoes but trail shoes and poles would have been better.

Me and Brendan Gomera just hiked this today. After the 3rd valley the trail entry is non existent due to land slides. You have to walk along the river and trail blaze a little bit upwards until you’ll find a semi useable section back onto the trail. Parts of it have massive landslide damage but still passable. Definitely not for the faint of heart. We did make it up onto the 4th valley ridge but the trail shortly disappeared due to an overgrowth in vegetation. We’ll be back when we have more time to set up base camp in the 3rd valley to conduct trail clean up and reconstruction. We round tripped today’s 24 mile hike in just under 12 hours.