ʻEhukai Pillbox Trail — Attraction in Oʻahu

Just writing the review so that people reading on other sites that the hike can take 15 minutes and it is 1 mile.. is way incorrect. That information might apply to a young person in super good shape who just dosed with 50 cans of red bull. Lol. But for the rest of us, expect 30+ min. The "1 mile" distance is only linear from hike start to finish and does not take into account how fast you ascend. It's probably more like 2+ when you factor in the extra terrain.

The entrance is a little weird. You enter by walking into school grounds parking lot. Half way in, it's along the fence. This must lead to a lot of unknowns walking onto school grounds. If I was the city, I'd probably create a new entrance off the main road and block that off. In this age of WTF-did-I-read-in-the-news, it's a little odd to see strangers being forced onto school grounds. Just saying.

The hike has quite challenging areas for being so small. You will sweat. Lol. Wear athletic clothes and good sneakers or hiking boots. I wore flip flops and while I lived to tell the tale, I went pretty slow to ensure footing. And you should too unless you're a pack of para-military people out to prove something to yourselves and the world.

The begins starts and ends easy with smooth-ish, flat-ish trail. The hard part is the middle, the ascension portion. You will find broken steps, big quad-burning steps, muddy or slick areas, areas with very little footing, and can even slip on a carpet of pine needles. Go slowly and ensure your footing. There are trees, ropes, branches to grab onto when needed. Don't know if there are any, but if you grab at stuff always watch out for critters.

Please be thoughtful and bring enough water for your furry 4 footed friends. When your dog RUNS towards strangers and hides in the shade, panting, while you march on.. uh that should tell you something. Let em have a little of your water, let them rest out of the shade. They're wearing furry wetsuits which makes them get hot fast. Unlike you and I, they didn't evolve with sweat and evaporation abilities. Thus they pant. Be a good human.

The actual pillbox was vandalized. It may be vandalism saying nice things like good vibes and peace, but it's still vandalism. Banksy was definitely not here. It was cool to go inside the pillbox and see the view the soldiers did. And envision what it was like to be in there. I'm glad we live in a time when this is no longer needed, at least on Oahu's...

Solo hiked this in the afternoon on a Saturday. It rained in the morning but was sunny when I did it. I wore hiking boots. The start of the trail is opposite the parking lot of the school. It looks off, but its definitely correct. Beginning of the trail is tall thin trees then starts a decent incline. It was wet and slippery. My boots did pretty good but even I slipped a few times. Watched some people do it in flip flops and one of the ate it. WEAR PROPER SHOES - also, there are so many roots you need to walk up that I was constantly kicking stuff on the way up. The ropes they put in are very helpful to keeping your balance. Trail flattens out and is completely dry about halfway up and its an easy walk from there.

Once you reach the first pillbox if you want to continue hiking there are 2 ways you can go. For the Loop: Look for the red 'R' thats painted on the trees and follow those (i only did this for a few minutes then ran out of water and bailed) OR - If you want to go to the second pillbox, find the purple 'P' painted on the trees and follow. This route is along the ocean and is pretty easy to follow. You will walk downhill a little bit to get to it but it's less than a 5 min walk away.

Solid hike. Did it solo, mid day Saturday and didn't feel sketched out at all. Well trafficked but not crazy busy. Saw a bunch of parents doing it with the little kids...

A great, moderately difficult hike. Very steep and muddy climb through beautiful forest with some views along the way.

There are two paths, one direct and one indirect. I would recommend taking the left fork, which is the only trail you can really see, on the way up, as it has ropes and good coastal views. This will take you directly to the top.

We heard that there were two pillboxes but were unable to find the second. However, you can see the main pillbox, and walking through the open woods you can see the entrance to a bunker and a few artillery mounts. The flora completely changes on the way up, from beach scrub and tropical plants to ghostly

The indirect path is more obvious on the way down. Head back along the path and you will see a clear trail on the left side that will take you up and then down. This route leads you through more forest and is a little less slick than the main trail, but has no ropes. It will take you past a large open cave which makes a great photo, and eventually merges with the main trail at the bottom quarter of...