Sometimes jet lag has its advantages. We were still adjusting to Hawaiian time, but decided to use that in our favor. The plan was to hike to the top of Diamond Head first thing in the morning. The state park opens bright and early at 6:00 a.m., and we had read that getting there early was best in order to a) beat traffic, b) secure a parking space inside the mountain and avoiding having to hike in, c) beat the tour buses, and d) beat the heat. We used our standard Disney World trick of showering the night before so we'd be able to wake up and get moving quickly.
We got up about 5:30 or so and stuffed our faces with more Costco muffins. Everyone got dressed fairly quickly and we were on the road just before 6:00 or so. We were hoping the infamous Honolulu rush hour hadn't already started. I'd watched the patterns on
this traffic monitoring website and expected a slow-down even at that hour.
Unfortunately, I was right. Right about where H-1 and H-2 merge, traffic started slowing down. Brake lights as far as we could see. We were moving, but it was a steady crawl.
Except for the "Express Lane" (or High Occupancy Vehicle "HOV") lane next to us. Cars were zipping past like they were on the track and we were in pit row. I looked around the car and did the math on my fingers and toes: yup, we had 5 people. We would be legal in the HOV lane. I figured only an idiot would stay in the regular traffic when that lane was available.
As you all know, I am not an idiot. A dummy, maybe, but not an idiot. So I moved over to the HOV lane the first chance I got. We immediately got back up to 55-ish mph and enjoyed life in the fast lane.
I knew I wanted to take H-201 around the airport and the city rather than going downtown. So I looked carefully for the exit sign that would lead me there as I drove.
Rule #2 for driving in Honolulu: there are no signs. You're on your own.
You would think you'd want to give commuter traffic an idea of where the main beltway around the city was, but no dice. As it turns out, you have to take H-3 to H-201, but there's nothing that tells you that. You just have to know to take the H-3 exit. Oops.
We dubbed H-201 as the Phantom Highway thereafter.
Next thing we knew, we were driving past the Honolulu airport. Ok, no problem. I knew that it was a bit out of our way, but H-1 and H-201 would eventually meet back up. So we kept on merrily zipping through the Express Lane. I saw an exit off to the right on the main highway for "Downtown" and figured we'd turn back towards H-201 shortly thereafter.
Imagine my surprise when our Express Lane suddenly left the main highway and lowered us down a ramp into downtown Honolulu. Turns out the "Express Lane" was designed Express-ly for commuters. D'oh!
This seemed like an appropriate time to finally consult a map. Julie frantically flipped through the guidebook looking for the right page to guide us out of the mess. She found a possible connection back to the Phantom Highway. I just needed to make one turn.
Of course, there was the small matter that the Express Lane was still marked off with cones and separated from the rest of traffic. It was designed to keep going.
So, on this fine morning in paradise, the transportation engineer stopped traffic in the express lane, generated a cacophony of angry shouts and horns blaring, and made an illegal left turn.
But the important thing is, we found the Phantom Highway.
With no more incidents, we got around the city, took the 6th Ave. exit, and made our way to Diamond Head. After turning onto the short entrance road, we were greeted with this:
How cool is it that you get to drive through a volcano?
Diamond Head Crater is the remains of an ancient volcano that has been dead for ages and slowly eroded away. It was used as a military base beginning in 1908, when fortifications and gun emplacements were ingeniously built into the crater, and was ready to defend Oahu for a few decades. Today it's part of the Hawaii State Parks system and one of the most popular attractions and hikes on the island.
We arrived around 6:45 or so and paid $5 to park inside the crater. The good news was that we had no problem finding a spot--it was only about half-full or so. Or was it half-empty?
The bad news was that there were two tour buses already there. We found out that Japanese tourists don't play around. They'd arrived promptly at 6:00 a.m.
We'd been watching the weather carefully the whole way in. The Ko'olau Range had been socked in with dark clouds all morning, and they were threatening to spread further west over the crater and the city. This, of course, would ruin our view at the top. But this was our only chance to do the hike, so we pressed on.
As we started the hike, it began to rain. A drizzle at first, but then it got a little bit heavier. Many of the hikers had come prepared with umbrellas. Only a few dummies didn't have any protection from the elements.
Here's the
official brochure of the park. It gives a good overview of the hike.
We kept on going. The rain wasn't hard enough to make us turn back, and we had heard the saying about Hawaii weather: if you don't like it, wait 5 minutes. As we learned, some clouds and rain would sometimes make for advantageous conditions:
The left end of that rainbow landed right on the observation deck where we were headed. Spoiler alert: we did not find a pot of gold up there.
The battle between clouds and sun made for some cool lighting conditions throughout the hike.
The hike itself is just under a mile, and you climb about 560 feet from the crater floor to the summit. There's a paved portion and then it turns into a dirt trail that makes its way up the mountain via switchbacks. It's not a difficult hike, but it is a healthy climb. Julie, still adjusting to the pregnancy, was struggling with having to climb constantly. No problem--we just stopped for a rest here and there.
I think this actually worked out well. The tour bus groups were already making their way down by the time we made it up, so we didn't have as many crowds to deal with as we'd first thought.
Eventually, we had to walk through a tunnel.
And then we had to climb 99 steps (yes, we counted). Julie LOVED this part.
From there, it was a short climb on a spiral staircase and a walk through the low ceilings of the bunker (as cool as it sounds) to get to the summit.
We were hoping against hope that the clouds would hold off and we'd get a decent view. We climbed to the observation deck.
And then:
Christmas card?
As long as that rainbow was visible, we just kept enjoying the view and firing away with the camera.
There's just more beauty than I can describe in this picture:
We felt blessed, awed, and inspired by the view. Even looking back at the pictures now, I'm grateful we got the chance to stand at this spot and drink in the beauty.
Our proud climbing crew stands at the bottom of the stairs here. I was really proud of Julie for pushing through her struggles. And I'm sure she was glad she did.
Typical Hawaii weather:
All in all, the Diamond Head hike is a must-do on Oahu. Not only do you get a spectacular view, but how many times in your life can you say you stood inside of a volcano? It's unforgettable.
Coming Up Next: We have a lot more of Oahu to explore. And a stop for a culinary masterpiece that doesn't exist on the mainland anymore.
Mark was a great cheering section for me. We hadn't told the kids yet at this point so I'm sure they were wondering why mommy was slower than usual. The view WAS worth it. The rainbows were an incredible God-appointed bonus.
Traveling east is always harder. Luckily, we didn't have to worry about that for another couple of weeks.
