April 01, 2007 Entry Submitted by: Merlin I've seen the Kaipapa'u Gulch in google earth for some time now and finally took a group one Saturday to go see what it was all about. I took my GPS to mark the trail, waterfall, elevation, etc. I added the info to my google earth file and added a snapshot below (The Kaipapa'u Gulch is dark purple). Trail distance is 3.5 miles with elevation gain of about 900 feet.
The Kaipapa'u trail and hike is similiar to it's neighboring gulch - Ko'loa. The trail starts off under the canopy and is fairly easy to hike for the first mile and half. Just make sure that you follow the pink trail markers. The second two thirds of the hike is mostly through the stream and rock-hopping (not much trail to follow, although the pink ribbons are still visible along the way).
As usual with river-bed hiking, we all slipped quite a bit. Most of us came home with bumps and bruises and banged up shins. It probably wouldn't have been so bad if the weather had been dryer, but then the waterfall wouldn't have looked quite as pretty. Anyway, that's my word of warning. Keep anything non-waterproof sealed and protected.
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