I am fortunate enough to live by 3 of the most beautiful mountains on Oahu…Mount Olomana. They are 3 steep distinct peaks that shoot out of the ground.
Technically, Olomana is the name of the highest of the three peaks only, which is also the first peak along the Olomana Trail that links all three. The second peak along the trail is Paku’i, better known as Olomana’s “second peak,” and the third is Ahiki, better known as (surprise) Olomana’s “third peak.” The striking peak has been called “Oahu’s Matterhorn” by Stuart Ball in his book “The Hikers Guide to Oahu” while the translation of the Hawaiian name is roughly “divided hill.”
Legend has it that Olomana was a renowned warrior that was over 30 feet tall and ruled the lands from Makapu’u to Kualoa. The mountain was formed when the King of Oahu, Ahuapau, sent one of his foremost warriors, Palila, to confront Olomana. During the ensuing battle, Palila, gifted with supernatural powers, sliced Olomana in half with the top portion landing near the ocean while the bottom portion became Mount Olomana.
Geologically it’s in the center of the Ko’olau caldera, remnant of the giant shield volcano that makes up this part of the island of O’ahu. The mountains in the distance are the rim of the caldera, and these three peaks of Olomana are left over from lava that pooled in the caldera in it’s heyday, perhaps 2.7 million years ago.
The hike to the first peak and back takes about a 1/2 day but is very steep most of the way…with some climbing/scrambling involved. The view at the top is totally worth the effort though. I’ve heard the other two peaks are even harder…with the third peak bordering on extreme.
When I was at the top I took a 360 degree panorama shot and stitched them together in photoshop:
Map of trailhead, parking, and access:
View Larger Map
Hey Cory, Man you are making me want to go hiking. I’m the guy who just added you on Twitter btw, I just discovered it, cool little way to communicate with people.
Hey man,
I have made to the third peak twice, gone up once, and am planning on going again in the next couple weeks. It has been a while, but last time I had one of the ropes on the third peak snap on me. I made it out with a couple bruises, Just want to know if anyone replaced any of the ropes of if I should bring one with to replace some of the less reliable ones.
That is sketchy! I’ve heard its a tough scramble to get to the 3rd peak. Glad you survived. It might not hurt to have a spare rope to replace the one that almost killed you.
Let us know how it goes, and thanks for writing