This 5-mile Wai Koa Loop Trail located in Kilauea is suitable for hikers and bikers alike. While we give it an “Intermediate” rating, don’t fret, as the difficulty is due more to its length rather than any aggressive terrain or elevation gain.
Starting out through the Kilauea Woods, with soaring Albizias and Norfolk Island Pines, it’s a pleasant introduction to the amount of lush greenery that visitors will encounter along the trail. Continuing through the United States’ largest Mahogany Forest, with approximately 86,000 Honduras Mahogany trees, the trail comes to a clearing where the West Makaleha Mountains offer the first expansive views and put everything in perspective.
Moving along, hikers will pass community gardens, guava orchards, and a large hydroponic facility that supplies many local restaurants with greens. Passing Kalihiwai Lagoons, which once grew fresh water prawns and today holds tilapia, bass, and koi, the pinnacle stop on the journey will be the historic stone dam lookout and gardens.
Over 130 years old, this dam was constructed as a water source for sugar plantations of days gone by. Still providing irrigation to Wai Koa Plantation, this hidden treasure holds numerous pockets of peace and serenity and offers a phenomenal inland contrast to Kauai’s mostly coastal activities.
In Kilauea, look for Kauai Mini Golf at Anaina Hou Community Park on Kuhio Highway (Hwy 56). The trail starts and ends there.