Category: Camping

The best campsite in the world is in Kipahulu, Maui

May. 10 Camping, Haleakala Crater, National Parks, Other adventures 1 comment

Few people come to the Hawaiian Islands to camp or hike, but we do both. Beyond the excellent outdoor opportunities, we were married at Secret Cove in Maui and come back each year to get married again by our friend, Pastor Dennis De Rego. What started as a romantic ‘mission’ has become one of friendship and adventure as we’ve found Maui to be an excellent island for both.

After our recent hike from Haleakala Crater to Paliku Campsite in April 2012, we were back to complete the peak-to-ocean journey by completing the lower section from Paliku Campsite to Kaupo Trailhead near the beaches of Southwest Maui. We did our research and found the Kipahulu Campground in the Haleakala National Park, just 12 km (8 mi) from the Kaupo Trailhead and adjacent to the very popular Ohe’o Gulch and its ‘Seven Sacred Pools (locals will tell you they’re not at all sacred), 16 km (10 mi) beyond Hana.

When we first arrived we were almost ready to set up our campsite in the open field that makes up most of the campground. Each site has a picnic table and BBQ grill, and there is a centrally located pit toilet (but no water). We would have been perfectly happy. By chance, we happened to walk the perimeter and discovered sites that were set apart from each other and the rest of the campground and right along the cliffs over the ocean. We were fortunate to find the best campsite we’ve ever had.

The site doesn’t have easy access to the sea, but that’s not the point along this rugged coast. Watching the waves crash on the cliffs is one of the most peaceful activities we know. The steady breeze that blows past this part of Maui brings occasional showers (especially after sunset) but the breezes are steady and cool. Even in the warmest part of the day, the temperature was ideal. As we went to bed, the waves were a soothing way to fall asleep and to wake up in the morning.


Kaupo, Maui to Paliku Campsite in May 2012

May. 09 Camping, Haleakala Crater, Hawaii, Hiking adventures, Maui, National Parks, Other adventures 3 comments

Barely a month after hiking the Haleakala Crater to Paliku Campsite, we were back in Maui to hike the remainder of the trail that goes from Paliku Campsite down to the Kaupo Ranch Trailhead. The remaining distance was less than 12 km (7 mi) but a whopping 1800 m (5800 ft) elevation change over that relatively short distance. Instead of going down, as most do, we were going to hike up and down in a single day, meaning 24 km (14 mi) and 3600 m (11,600 ft) of total elevation change.

Kipahulu to Kaupo

We left the world’s greatest campsite at Kipahulu shortly after breakfast and continued clockwise around the island. The village of Kaupo is 13 km (8 mi) from the Kipahulu Area of Haleakala National Park but getting there involves one of the most torturous roads, at times both dirt and paved, in the Hawaiian Islands. There are sharp turns that require horns, and even with warning, meeting an oncoming car in the wrong moment would be disaster. It is a beautiful but deserted drive through the least-populated part of Maui.

Kaupo Trailhead

At the end of this isolated section and about 100 m before the Kaupo Store (and immediately to the right of the Haleakala National Park sign that you’ll need to see in your mirror, as it faces the other way), is the road that takes you to the trailhead itself. If you thought the road to get this far was rough, wait until you see the final stretch of narrow, broken pavement with tall grass growing in the center that leads to the trailhead.

Kaupo Ranch

The trail begins by crossing the Kaupo Ranch, owned by the Baldwin Family since the early days of Hawaiian settlement by Westerners. The trail wanders between wooded paths and ranch roads and at time is steep enough to make traction on the loose lava rocks a challenge. The day was getting warm by late morning and we were happy to make it to the woods at the edge of the Ranch that mark the start of the Haleakala National Park.

Entering Haleakala

While the cool shade was a relief, walking through the high grass was treacherous as it disguised the large lava rocks and holes beneath. We stepped carefully to avoid injuries but didn’t want to slow our very fast pace. It is a dangerous but gorgeous landscape that is beautifully green and lush, a reminder of the constant rains that come as the Trade Winds blow clouds into the peaks above.

Once through the grasslands, the trail climbs a series of perpendicular ridges, each a moment of hope that became just the top of another rise. The trail was good and even appeared to be at times a massive, ancient undertaking like some of the trails we’ve seen in Nepal and Europe.

We were surprised to see little water along the way and few waterfalls along the high ridges to our right as we climbed. This made reaching the water supply at Paliku an important objective as we finished most of our water in the heat of the way up.

Paliku Campsite

Arriving at Paliku Campsite was very similar to our previous hike, with light rain gradually increasing and the temperature dropping as we arrived at what must be the coldest, wettest place in Maui. We made tea near the cabin and finished just as the rain really started to fall. We were quite cold and hurried to make our way back down below that not-so-tropical zone.

Getting back down was easier but didn’t go significantly faster that our ascent, as so many sections had loose footing or grass-hidden obstacles. We were very sore when we finally reached the car, but realized we had just completed a significant challenge, perhaps one of the toughest we’ve done. We’ll be back to Maui, but first we need to tackle the Big Island and its even higher heights.

Part 2 of Hiking the Halemau’u Trail to the Paliku Campsite

Mar. 31 Camping, Haleakala Crater, Haleakala Crater, Hawaii, Hiking adventures, Maui, National Parks, Other adventures 10 comments

The following is a continuation of Hiking the Halemau’u Trail to the Paliku Campsite at Haleakala National Park.

One of the best parts of camping is sleeping when the sun sets and waking when it rises. We were awake a little after 5am with the pleasure of enormous slugs crawling on the tent’s screen. It rained extremely hard during the night, leaving us wondering if there would be a flash flood on the hillside where we were camped. Fortunately, by the light of day the rain slowed down to a drizzle.

We made our breakfast and debated the best way to pack up our soaked tent. We finally decided that the best approach wasn’t to wait for the rain to stop, but to move as quickly as possible once we emerged. We packed the backpacks first so that the tent breakdown was as simple as dropping the poles, pulling the stakes and rolling up the rest.

Rainbows

We were essentially dry as we left the campsite but our pants were quickly soaked as we walked through light rain and wet vegetation. It was warm enough for us to be comfortable and we were delighted with rainbows over our trail as we hiked back toward the Haleakala Crater.

Even though we’d walked this route, by morning and in a different light, it was like a new adventure. We stopped for an early lunch at the first lava flow just as we left the rain behind, and were soon hiking once again through the lunar landscape of the Haleakala Crater. Our trip on day two was significantly more uphill and we could feel it.

Once across the Crater, we once again entered the rainy area that gradually became more green and less desolate. The final nearly 7 km (4.2 miles) was entirely uphill but a great way to finish such an amazing hike. The Halemau’u Trail is an excellent adventure for those who come prepared for the many climates of this unique landscape.

Hiking Maui in March 2012

Mar. 22 Camping, Hawaii, Hiking adventures, Maui, Other adventures no comments

You can have no doubt by now that we love the Hawaiian Islands. While they are just one of fifty states, they are in every other way almost nothing like the Mainland. The palm trees, warm breezes and gorgeous tropical flowers can be found elsewhere, but in no other American state can you find the combination of backcountry hiking, deep blue waters, ocean adventures and Polynesian laid-back culture.

We were married in Maui a few years back and decided to return as often as we could, annually if possible, to get married in paradise.

Day 1 – Arrive and stay at the Sheraton Maui in Ka’anapali. This hotel sits on a point of land known as Black Rock and has some of the best protected snorkeling and beaches on the same stretch of Maui’s West Coast. Being in a hotel the first night lets us rest up from the flight and be ready to hike.

Day 2 – Stay at beautiful Camp Olowalu near Lahaina and see a Switchfoot concert in Kahului on the East Coast of the island. Camp Olowalu has both cabins and tent sites and we’ll try each as we enjoy sleeping at the edge of the surf.

Day 3 – Get married (again) by Dennis DeRego in a small, sunset ceremony on the Molokini Atoll just offshore from where we were originally married at Makena (AKA ‘Secret’) Cove. We’ll take Dennis’ boat out to the island.

Day 4 and 5  – Hike from the top of the Haleakala Crater at 2435 m (7,990 ft) down to the remote campsite of Paliku at 1,944 m (6380 ft). The campsite is at the base of cliffs that form the boundary of the rainforest that dominates the Southeast Coast of Maui. Few people associate backpacking and Hawaii, and we’re about to change that.

There’s no limit to what you can do in a tropical paradise like Maui and the other Hawaiian Islands. That’s why we keep coming back here and know we’re only getting started. Watch our blog over the next week as we tell the story of another amazing adventure.

Aloha.

Two days in Death Valley in February 2012 – Part 2

Feb. 21 Camping, Death Valley, National Parks 4 comments

This is a continuation of Two days in Death Valley in February 2012.

Morning in the Panamint Valley was cold and very clear. After an unbelievably starry night, the dawn was gradual and brilliant. The best reason for going to sleep soon after dark is to be able to enjoy a very gradual dawn. The first purple gives way to blue, which grows lighter until the sky is entirely consumed by the color. The source of blue becomes the source of increasingly golden tones until the sun makes its first appearance.

We had our customary coffee before packing our tent and gear and making our way into Death Valley proper. The drive starts with a considerable descent down a long canyon from Panamint Valley. As Death Valley stretches out in full view, the road becomes flat and passes the first campground and cabins come into view.

Stovepipe Wells isn’t much, but it is far more than anything around it. To call it an oasis would be a stretch. The winds were blowing as well, a bleak landscape for tents and campers alike. We had to take a moment, of course, to check out the used car lot that we came across.

Dunes

Beyond the excellent view of the valley, the first attraction on the route is Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. The high mountains on each side of the Valley combine with powerful winds to bring tiny grains of rock from the mountain tops to this particular spot. We were fortunate that it was early in the morning and the tourists were still sleeping. This gave us a chance enjoy the moment without buses and flocks of photo seekers.

Furnace Creek

A great brunch is one of the most valuable ways to enjoy a day without taking too much time to eat. We stopped at Furnace Creek Visitors Center and watched a movie about Death Valley before moving on to breakfast at the nearby restaurant. Jeanne complained of suffering the opposite of altitude sickness…”low-titude sickness”. The symptoms included laughing, energy, healthy appetite and absolutely no headache. She hasn’t recovered since we we left Death Valley, leading us to wonder if this isn’t a chronic condition for her. Only time will tell.

Badwater Basin

No visit to Death Valley is complete without a stop at the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere. There are lower places, like the Dead Sea, but the proximity to Mt Whitney, the highest point in the Lower 48 States, makes Death Valley all the more interesting.

Hole-in-the-Wall

Based on great advice, we decided to camp at Hole-in-the-Wall, a remote area accessible by four wheel drive. Soon after starting down the dirt road we had a great warning…a stream of oil that a previous vehicle leaked as it drove. We were very careful to keep the center of the care away from the occasional rocks to avoid the same fate. We saw few other cars as we made our way back into the interior of the park. It was wonderfully quiet, in fact.

We found a great spot far from anyone and set up our camp. We wanted to be sheltered from the infamous Death Valley winds, have an early view of sunrise (so no mountain to the southeast, and peace and quiet. We found all of those things and had an extraordinary time in our cozy campsite.

Two days in Death Valley in February 2012

Feb. 20 Camping, Death Valley, Dog fun, National Parks 1 comment

Part 1 of Two Days in Death Valley in February 2012

Sometimes places are so close and accessible they become a less urgent destination. Death Valley has been that way for me. Jeanne has been in the US for eight years and has been there five times, where I’ve lived here all of my life, and in California twelve years and never made my way there. It isn’t my first experience with that phenomenon. I grew up in Western New York, an hour and a half from Niagara Falls but never made it there until my late teens.

An Un-sort vacation

We packed quickly on a Saturday morning using our trusted checklist. We knew this would be no-frills camping (‘un-sort’, the opposite of ‘resort’, in Jeanne’s words) on a holiday weekend with no reservations. Death Valley allows camping anywhere two miles from the main roads, but that also means no water, showers, or easy access for last-minute supplies. “Dry camping” as it is called in the West, and our trips to Johnson Valley, CA camping prepared us well for this…bring lots of water.

Of course we brought the dogs along as well. Mitch and Gwenn love every part of camping from the ride, to the new sights and smells, to sleeping in a tent, usually on top of our sleeping bags. Dogs can’t hike on trails in National Parks but we always find ways to have an adventure off the beaten track.

Mojave Desert

Not too far out of Los Angeles the horizon opens, the land dries out and the Mojave Desert takes over. Getting to Death Valley is much of the same route as heading to Mt Whitney or Mammoth, and we know the best gas stations, restaurants and each turn by heart. This time, however, we wouldn’t be passing the turnoff for Death Valley and commenting yet again that we should go there ‘sometime’.

Death Valley

Once on SR190, the main highway through the Valley, we filled up our gas tank and were given the advice to camp near Panamint Dunes on Lake Hill Road. This took us down a dirt road for a couple of miles until we found and excellent, sheltered spot at the foot of a small mountain and near sand dunes and a dry lake bed. We immediately began our routine of setting up camp with both of us knowing exactly our part. Dinner was beef stew and bread, and we were in The Babymaker by 6pm., just as it became truly dark outside.

Up Next: Part 2 of Two Days in Death Valley in February 2012

Leo Carillo State Beach in January 2012

Jan. 08 Beaches, Camping, Dog fun no comments

It’s too bad that most of the beaches that allow camping in Southern California put the tents so closely together. If you’re not careful, you can be in a tent a few feet away from an RV’s generator in the middle of the night. Leo Carillo is not one of those beaches. We made our reservation at the California State Parks reservation site. The total cost for the reservation was $35 per night and $8 processing fee, so our one night came out to $43. We had been to Leo Carillo in past but only to the beach side.

Dogs on leash

Leo Carillo is also one of the few beaches in Southern California that allow dogs, albeit on leash only. As the only dog beach that also allows for camping, Leo Carillo State Beach is an exceptional treasure for people like us who love our dogs and want to bring them with us everywhere.

Arriving

As soon as you enter the park, you face two decisions; head right to the campground or left to the beach. We chose to set up our site first and have it ready when darkness fell. We quickly had our tents set up and were ready to walk to the beach, only ten minutes away. All of the campsites seems reasonably good, but if you’d like to get specific, there is a site that ranks each. We used it to get an “A” site, and it was a large, beautiful spot under several sycamore trees.

Leo Carillo Beach

Reaching the beach means crossing under the Pacific Coast Highway through a tunnel that is very artfully painted with scenes from the forest just behind you as you walk. Even though a major road cuts through the park, the murals and tunnel make it not nearly so obvious. As soon as you emerge from the tunnel, the beauty of Leo Carillo is immediately evident. The path to the left enters the sand immediately, and to the right climbs up a hill to the cliff above the rocky point that bisects the beaches.

The cliff

We went to the right, toward the dogs-allowed northern section of the beach. In the early part of January, there are very few people on the beach even though the temperatures were the same as they can be on a Summer day. The dogs vibrate in excitement from the smells in the air, the birds circling off the coast, and the other dogs playing down below. Getting down to the beach meant being careful not to be dragged down by the very-excited dogs. Once on the sand, we had nearly a half mile of beach completely to ourselves and enjoyed watching the dogs going through sensory overload.

MRE’s

We normally love cooking over a campfire, but a last-minute trip makes that tough, and makes MRE’s an easy choice. There’s something Cracker Jack-like about MRE’s and not knowing what will come in the package besides the main course. Once the MRE’s are open, the trading begins. By the time the bargaining finishes, its time to create the magic with the build-in heat source and to enjoy a hot meal from what started as a vinyl-covered package. We made a great fire after the meal and were off to bed early.

Morning at the beach

The best part of camping at the beach is going to the water’s edge first thing in the morning. The cool morning air and the absence of nearly any other human beings has a wonderfully calming feel. We walked the beaches, climbed the rocks and had a wonderful morning before packing up and heading home. Leo Carillo State Beach is a great  place to camp and take dogs to the ocean. We hope you have the chance to enjoy it.

Ice House Canyon to Kelly’s Camp in March 2011

Jul. 05 Camping, Dog fun, San Gabriels, Southern California 1 comment

Getting ready for our trek in Nepal meant having some great practice hikes in the local Los Angeles area. We chose Ice House Canyon, just south of Mount Baldy, only an hour from Pasadena.  Ice House Canyon is a very popular hike in this area, but is typically a late Spring or Fall hike, when the temperatures are lower and there isn’t snow to contend with.  The fact that it was March and this had been a heavy snow year was offset by the need to get our legs trekking shape.

Getting permits

Permits are required for a camp stove (no fires) and anything beyond day hiking into the Cucamonga Wilderness, so getting to the Mt Baldy Village Visitors Center while they were open was key.  They closed at 3:30pm that day, so we needed to hurry to get there in time.  We reached the Visitors Center on Mt Baldy Road moments before they closed shop, and it was only ten more minutes until we were at the trail head, which is just past the turn off for the Mt Baldy Ski Area.   We brought Mitch and Gwen, since dogs are allowed in Cucamonga Wilderness on leash, and we weren’t going to leave them home after being gone so long just recently.  Besides, they love to hike and we enjoy having them along, especially since they have packs that they use to carry their own food and water.

Our hike

We planned to spend two nights on the trail, so it made sense to make our first stopover at Cedar Glen, which is reached by taking the Ice House Canyon Trail to the Chapman Trail, and then following that to Cedar Glen.  The Glen is very aptly named, as it is a very peaceful, shady and flat spot on the side of a mostly treeless mountainside.  After the dry trail approaching the site, the Glen is a beautiful spot to rest or to spend the night. There are several great spots to camp, but bring water if you come later in the season, as the stream that passes just below the Glen is seasonal.   We enjoyed a dinner and a great sunset before getting into the tent with the dogs for the night.

Day 2

The next morning meant packing up and continuing higher to Ice House Saddle, the junction point for several trails that lead to other peaks (“Three T’s”, which are Timber, Telegraph and Thunder, and also Cucamonga and Ontario) and also down toward the High Desert east of Los Angeles.  From the Saddle, a clear day provides a view both toward the desert and also the Pacific Ocean, making this a great place to take a break and enjoy the scenery.  There is also a reliable stream for water that can be treated to refill Camelbaks and bottles.  We chose to head southwest toward Ontario Peak and to overnight at Kelly’s Camp, another shaded bench where we could rest and decide whether to climb the peak or just relax.

Kelly’s Camp

This camping spot is less flat than Cedar Glen but has running water during the summer months from a pipe that was installed years ago.  In April, however, the only source of water was from the snowpack that covered about half of the area.  Melting snow take a significant amount of fuel and time, so anyone planning to stay at the camp in the colder months should bring as much water as possible from the Ice House Saddle.   Few people passed by, as Ontario Peak is less popular than the others and it was still early season.  This turned out to be the perfect remedy for post-Nepal blues.  Rather than climb the peak, we chose to relax and recover.

Day 3

The last morning was spent as a very enjoyable hike down to the trail head.   Though we didn’t hike a great distance, the variety of terrain along our hike was surprising and the weather, while cool, was perfect for strenuous activity.

Ice House Canyon is a very well maintained trail and very popular with day hikers, so don’t expect much solitude when heading up or down.  It follows the path of a beautiful, rocky stream and there are plenty of cool and shady places to stop and enjoy nature.  Its proximity to Pasadena and the many choices in final destination make this one of our favorite hikes in the San Gabriel Mountains.

For more pictures, go to our Maximum Adventure website.  To read our other dog adventures, click here.

For a very detailed resource on Ice House Canyon and the nearby peaks, check Dan’s Hiking Pages Ice House Canyon post.  To read our other dog adventures, click here.