Pu'u Pihea

Overview

Pu'u Pihea is located in the remote and scenic Hawaiian island of Kauai. Based on the elevation of it's saddle (4,020') with Kawaikini, Pihea does not quite rank as an "official" summit on Kauai. Despite this fact, it is one of the only accessible peaks on the island, and feature fantastic views down into the Kalalu Valley to the northwest and across the Alakai Swamp to the south. On a very rare day, one could see across the interior of the island up to the highest point on the island, Waialeale.

The Koke'e Visitor's Center has many interpretive maps of the area providing a great deal of information on the flora, fauna & history of the area.

This high part of Kaua'i is home to many of the indigenous bird species that have all but disappeared at lower elevations. Mosquitos carrying all manner of diseases hazardous to the birds cannot live above about 3,000'. On Pihea and the rest of upper Koke'e, you can likely hear a chorus of strange and beautiful songs!

Getting There

From the intersection of HI-50 (Kaumualii Highway) & HI-550 (Waimea Canyon Drive) in Waimea:

• Drive North on HI-550 for 6.7 mi to a junction with HI-55 coming in on the left.
  
• Continue on HI-550 for another 8.6 mi, reaching the Kokee State Park Visitor's Center at mile 15.3.
  
• Stay on HI-550 another 3.6 mi, reaching the end of the road, and the Kalalau Valley Lookout, at 18.9 mi. If the parking area is full, you can drive back down the road 1 mile to another pull-out on the right overlooking the Kalalau Valley.
  

An alternate approach follows HI-55 (Kokee Road) north out of Kekaha, and joins with the route described above, 8.6 mi before the Visitor's Center. As this approach is less curvy, more of the tour-buses tend to take it which makes for slower going.

Red Tape

The park and road are open year-round. Please visit the Koke'e State Park website for the latest information on access. As of the date of publishing this page, there is no admission fee to the Waimea Canyon area.

Camping

Camping is available at the Koke'e Campground near the State Park Visitor's Center. Numerous individual and group sites are available, so please visit the State Park website for up-to-date information.

External Links

- Koke'e State Park
- Hawai'i Department of Land & Natural Resources
- Kaua'i Visitors Bureau
- Kauai Sea Tours

Images

View Pu'u Pihea Image Gallery - 47 Images