If you want to stand under Hiilawe, wear a helmet!


We hiked to Hiilawe falls in the back of Waipio Valley a few weeks ago. The 1,800 foot waterfall is the tallest on the island, but it was less than impressive because it was just a trickle down the cliff. "Who turned off the water?," I asked. I assumed God had done it. But Lisa told me farmers have been using the water that feeds the falls ever since the Hamakua ditch was damaged in October's earthquake.

It was pretty neat to stand directly under the falls- normally there's too much force from the water to get underneath. We speculated what it would have been like in the bottom of the narrow valley during the earthquake. We saw a fresh landslide that we figured happened in the quake. About a minute after Chris got out of the waterfall we heard a loud crack, it sounded just like a gun shot. Several rocks were falling from the the top of the falls! We didn't get a good look at the size of the boulders- instead, we high-tailed it outta there!

I'll be back in Waipio tomorrow. We're camping there tomorrow night, then hiking nine miles to Waimanu for two nights. Don't worry, I won't be pitching my tent under any waterfalls.

Hiilawe trickling down the rocks:

Looking up: