Makaleha Trailhead

"Loved this hike...we have done it twice. Wear good grippy water shoes and be prepared to get wet and dirty and some shin bruises. Watch for lots of river crossings, and some backtracking because you're gonna miss some of them...if the trails starts to disappear that's your clue. Waterfall at the top makes the scramble worth it. Have three points of contact while climbing over and under trees and rocks or you can fall. Go slow and deliberately in questionable terrain. Worth it all!!!"

"The most beautiful and exciting hike I have ever done. It is one huge obstacle course and if you go early you will have the entire trail and waterfall to yourself."

"This is definitely a harder hike, you’ll get muddy and weave in and out of trees and rocks. We only made it has far as we did because we followed people familiar with the trail. Dress light, be prepared to get muddy and wet, bring water, and follow the river up!"

"The hike is technical, but not overly difficult... that is if you can find and stay on the trail. There were four in our party and we were making good time for about the first mile and then the trail gets lost in the trees. It looks like you can manage your way up the river, but there are no clear trails, and those that are clear add quite a bit of time and increased difficulty. As for the quality of the hike it was unbelievable. I love the obstacles that we had to manage throughout the hike. And the waterfall at the end was about perfect. All in all, it was one of the best adventure hikes we were able to do on Kauai. I would highly recommend it, but give yourself more time than you think you need in case you lose the trail and wander for a bit. Also, don't wear new light gray shoes. :) My friends shoes came clean, but not a recommended activity for brand new shoes."

"Pretty difficult hike! A lot of climbing under and over trees, river crossings, bolder hoping and lots of mud. We started with our hiking shoes but ended up switching to water shoes. I would recommend downloading the alltrails app we got a little lost at the start but was able to use that app as a guide to get back “on track”. Just try to stay as close to the river as possible. Beautiful falls at the end so pack your swimsuit!"