Canyon Trail to Waipoo Falls is a 3.2 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Waimea, Hawaii, Hawaii that features a waterfall and is rated as moderate. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from October until February.
Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, 2270 Kalakaua Avenue, Suite 801 , Honolulu, HI, 96815, Phone: 800-GOHAWAII, Fax: 808-924-0290
Please note that though this trail is moderate, it may be difficult during muddy conditions.
Directions from Waimea: Follow Highway 550 northward into Koke'e State Park. Turn right on to Halemanu Drive, which is a short distance past mile fourteen. Follow this road to the Halemanu-Koke'e Trailhead. (A four-wheel drive vehicle is necessary on this road if rain is in the forecast.)
Amazing hike with beautiful waterfall and canyon views. Spent a lot of time taking pictures and enjoying the view.
If you have car with 4WD and can drive down the road to park at trailhead, then this hike is ~2 miles and pretty easy/moderate. If you have to park at top of road leading down to trailhead, then all in hike is closer to 3.5 miles. A bit muddy and steep at times. Great vista from the endpoint
Great, quick hike. Will need footwear with proper grip because trail was muddy/slippery even on a sunny day.
We went on a day that had a lot of cloud cover by the time we got there, so we didn’t get to see many of the canyon views. Highly recommend going earlier in the morning to get the best views. But the falls were great and it was an enjoyable hike. Definitely grab a hiking stick if there’s any sitting at the trailhead. My husband wiped out at one point due to mud, so the stick would have been helpful for extra traction.
Slippery and muddy in spots but worth it! Can drive down first part to forest trail but worth it to just start at the top. Bring lunch for a great picnic view!
Great short hike with amazing views of Waimea Canyon and the waterfall.
It was raining as we started out. A little more than half way down, we caught glimpses of the far side of the canyon through the trees and the clouds. Then, near the end, we came up to the vista and the clouds lifted, giving us an awesome view of that part of the canyon that cannot be seen from the road. We then continued down toward the falls. Toward the bottom, we came to a T intersection. We could hear water falling to the left, so we went that way and were surprised that such a small waterfall would even have a name, but there was a nice pool where one who was so inclined could swim. We then returned back the way we had come. The next day, I read in a local guide book that the actual Waipoo Falls were to the right from the T intersection and that they were 80 feet high. Guess I'll have to go back.
It shaves off about 15-20mins of dirt road having a 4WD. The trail is lovely. I would call it a easy-moderate hike. If you can drive down. The views are magnificent of the canyon (better than any lookout) and the trail takes you through a Koa forest. I like to hike barefoot and if you don’t mind a little bit of rocks the trail for the most part is worn in enough to go it with no shoes. The trip back is a little more effort than the trip to the falls. Light effort and compared to the value of the views.