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Beetles crawled in my hair. Mosquitoes swirled around my nose and eyes. I could only feel the tickling of their wings in the black night as I sat by Kalalau Stream, in Kauai, Hawaii, alone. My friend Marcie, once on the other side of the riverbank, had just been taken away by two men with miner lights on their heads.
"You can do it! You CAN do it!" I'd shouted to her just minutes before, trying to coax her into the rope swing that would get her across the rushing waters to where I was. Terrified of the prospect, she cried as I instructed her to grab hold of the rope, just as I had, then hoist her rump into the burlap ring. After that, it was just hand-over-hand to the other side. "You can do it!" My voice echoed through Kalalau Valley. I reminded myself of a Nike shoe commercial. Funny thing to think about as I sat on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with no food or water, and little more than bare legs and a wet swimsuit to protect me from the encroaching cool of the night. Na Pali means "the cliffs" in Hawaiian. The 11-mile Hanakapi'ai Trail that pierces the north side of the Na Pali is a known dangerous route for hikers. The area is so inaccessible that no marked trail exists beyond the end of Hanakapi'ai. That's for good reason, I would later learn. In ancient times, hardy Hawaiians cultivated taro in the isolated valleys of the Na Pali. In fact, Kalalau Valley (where I sat streamside) was once a thriving native community. As sugar became a cash crop elsewhere on the island, residents left Kalalau. By the early 1920s they were gone. Today the only trace of these traditional peoples is left in their temples and burial grounds, and perhaps in the akuas, the spirit-beings thought by old Hawaiians to exist in the earth, air and water. Why couldn't anyone be here now? I thought. The guidebooks tell you to be cautious of the crumbling cliff faces, loose riverbed rocks and narrow precipices. They also "suggest" starting a hike early in the day if you want to finish before sunset. Bring plenty of water and food, too, say the guidebooks, because the up-and-down trail and tropical climate will tire even the hardiest of trekkers.
The copyright of the article Twentysomethings on the Trail: Kauai's Na Pali Coast in Alternative Travel is owned by . Permission to republish Twentysomethings on the Trail: Kauai's Na Pali Coast in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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