Photo Credit: Tim DelaVega
hawaii wave

**IMPORTANT PARK NOTICES**

Monitor local surf and weather reports prior to your park visit.

[KAUAʻI] UPDATED 3/18/24 – Kōkeʻe State Park: The gate to Puʻu O Kila Lookout will be closed to vehicular traffic due to road repairs beginning 3/19/24. The lookout will still be accessible by pedestrians, parking is available at Kalalau lookout.

STATE AND KAUAI COUNTY RELEASE KALALAU TRAIL SAFETY VIDEO

Posted on Aug 7, 2015

The Kalalau Trail in the Nāpali Coast State Wilderness Park is likely the most heavily used hiking trail in Hawaiʻi. An estimated 500,000 visitors and residents use the spectacular trail each year. Sandwiched between the ocean and the towering cliffs of Nāpali Coast, the trail is widely featured in guide books, on travel websites and in blogs.

A new six-minute-long video, produced by DLNR in cooperation with the Kauai County Fire Department and Civil Defense Agency, highlights some of the challenges hikers might face on the Kalalau Trail. It focuses on the first two miles of the hike to Hanakāpīʻai Stream, which is the length the majority of hikers make.  A state permit is required to traverse beyond Hanakāpīʻai Stream or Hanakāpīʻai Falls. The entire trail is 11 miles long and those wanting to go beyond Hanakāpīʻai can obtain permits from the Division of State Parks.

Rescues along Nāpali Coast happen frequently. This year alone, dozens of people have been flown out of the Hanakāpīʻai area after the stream flooded and they became stranded on the wrong side. Often hikers ignore weather forecasts, warning signs, and verbal cautions from state and county staff and put themselves at unnecessary risk. Due to the steepness of the trail and the fact that it is almost always quite slick, the hike is not as easy and straightforward as many people think.

PLEASE VIEW OUR NEW KALALAU TRAIL SAFETY VIDEO HERE.