The Honua’ula Forest Reserve protects a large tract of cloud forest at elevations above 3000’ on the slopes of Hualālai volcano uphill from Kona. The Makāula 'O'oma Tract is a smaller portion of the Reserve with a number of trails and old roads that allows hikers to access this lush and beautiful ʻōhiʻa and hāpuʻu tree fern forest. It is very cool and wet at this higher elevation, especially compared to the hot Kona coast. The entire trail system is 4.5 miles, but you can obviously hike less than that for a shorter outing.

PATH, People’s Advocacy for Trails Hawai’i, pioneered and maintains these trails.

Trailhead: Turn mauka (uphill) between the 34 and 35 mile markers on Hwy. 190 onto Kaloko Drive. Follow Kaloko Drive for almost 4 miles and turn left onto Makahi Street. Drive to the end of this dead-end street and park on the side of the road near the trailhead. There are no services. Dogs are allowed. Be respectful of the people that live in the area. Remove all trash. Do not park on Hao Street or use that area to access the Forest Reserve. While this used to be a common way to access the trails, there is no public parking here and no way to access trails without trespassing on private property.

Weather

Gear: Sturdy waterproof boots are recommended for this rocky, wet trail. Bring your raingear and don’t forget the mosquito repellent.

Hike: From the trailhead, the trail quickly forks into uphill and downhill sections. This is the upper and lower portions of the Jurassic Trail. I’ll describe this hike going uphill first, but you can obviously do the trails however you choose. Turn uphill (right) and follow the Jurassic Trail as it switches back and forth gaining about 200’ of elevation as it travels to the top boundary of the reserve. When you reach the top boundary, turn left and follow the Crosstown Trail. The Crosstown Trail eventually passes The Mallway Trail which travels downhill. This is a faster way to loop back to the trailhead. Passing The Mallway Trail, the Crosstown Trail travels to another edge of the reserve. There’s a short dogleg of trail here that goes to the actual edge of the reserve, but there’s no good reason to take this small detour. Turn downhill on the Pig Skull Trail and descend through the forest. Find the Pipeline Trail at the bottom of the reserve. The Pipeline Trail will pass the Mallway Trail discussed earlier, then intersect the Lower Jurassic Trail which will ascend back to the trailhead. There is another short section of trail past the intersection with the Pipeline Trail that just travels to the edge of the reserve and stops. This used to be another way to access the reserve, but traveling out of the reserve here is private property. Climb back to the trailhead on the Jurassic Trail.

This loop (minus the out-and-back sections) is 3.4 miles and 700’ of elevation gain. Adding the out-and-back sections makes the hike 4.5 miles. The shorter loop using the Mallway Trail is 2.3 miles and 636’ of elevation gain.