Details:
Length (one way): 1.3 mi / 2.09 km - Elevation Change: 1,200 ft / 365.76 m
General Summary:
Mānoa Cliff Trail is a 2.3 mile hybrid trek dotted with small switchbacks and a variety of native plants, the end of the trail also connects to a natural forest reserve.
For additional information refer to the "Route description" below.
NOTICE: Special pig control hunt in progress on this trail. Hunting with hunting dog activity is permitted on Wednesdays and Sundays from sun-up to sundown. Hunting may be in progress on these days on or near this hiking trail. Hunting dogs may be off-leash while engaged in the hunt. Hikers with pet dogs should consider using other trails during control hunt period to avoid possible encounters with hunting dogs. Hikers must keep their dogs leashed at all times and remove dog waste while on this trail.
Do not use any trail or access road that is not delineated by name and color and that may also be displayed on these maps. The marked features are managed for public recreational use. Other trails or roads that branch off from the public features may be on private property, and are not managed for any public recreational use. Access is subject to adjacent landowner approval, and if used without authorization, you will be trespassing and possibly putting yourself at risk.
Downloadable resources are provided below
Hunting may be in progress on or near this hiking trail. Hunting dogs may be off-leash while engaged in the hunt. Hikers must keep their dogs leashed at all times and remove dog waste while on this trail.
Mountainous, mixed forest and tree types, nice sections of native forest, views
The Mānoa Cliff Trail was a project of the fledgling Hawaiian Trail and Mountain Club in 1910-11. The route was widened and re-graded by the Honolulu Unit of the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1935. The cliff trail has a long history as a nature walk. In 1936, Territorial Forester Charles S. Judd erected wooden, hand-painted signs identifying forty native shrubs and trees along the route. Since then the signs have been renewed periodically, and the current ones are keyed to an inexpensive pamphlet, Mānoa Cliff Trail Plant Guide, available from the Hawai`i Nature Center.
While contouring around Tantalus (Pu`u `Ohi`a) on the Mānoa Cliff Trail, notice the black cinder underfoot and embedded in the cliff on the left. Tantalus is a cinder cone formed by an eruption from a nearby crater and is a remnant of the last volcanic activity on O`ahu, known as the Honolulu Series. At the viewpoint look for native `ohi`a `ahihi trees, which are found only on O`ahu. They have narrow, pointed leaves with red stems and midribs. Their delicate red flowers grow in clusters and are similar to those of the more common `ohi`a. Queen Lili`uokalani mentioned the `ahihi lehua (blossom) in her haunting love song, Aloha `Oe. The Mānoa Cliff Trail passes through a fenced native forest restoration area. Within the enclosure a small group of dedicated volunteers has weeded much of the introduced vegetation, allowing the native species to thrive. Look especially for Clermontia kakeana, a small native tree with spindle-shaped leaves clustered at the branch ends and lovely purple and white tubular flowers. Just before the second gate watch for kopiko, a native member of the coffee family. It has leathery, oblong leaves with a light green midrib. Turn the leaf over to see a row of tiny holes (piko [navel]) on either side of the midrib. The kopiko produces clusters of little white flowers and fleshy, orange fruits. Other native trees in the restoration area and along the cliff trail are the native hibiscus, koki`o ke`oke`o and the mamaki. The hibiscus has dark green, oval leaves and large white flowers with pink to red stamens. The showy flowers frequently fall right on the trail. Mamaki has leathery, light green leaves with toothed margins and prominent veins. Along the stems are the white, fleshy fruits. Early Hawaiians used the bark and sap in making kapa (bark cloth). They also steeped the leaves to prepare a tea as a tonic.
The trail begins in a thick swamp mahogany and guava forest, ascending slowly. Shortly, the trail bursts out onto the cliffs above Manoa Valley. The trail contours the cliffs above Manoa Valley, and around Tantalus Crater to Pauoa Valley. This trail offers spectacular views of Manoa Valley, and three waterfalls in the back of the valley. Once out of the thick guava forest, the trail becomes mostly native, offering hikers the opportunity to view koa, o‘hia, mamaki, haha, kokio‘keo‘keo, and many other native plants. This trail is also a good place, close to town, to view native birds. Look carefully over the ginger, just before the Pu‘u O‘hia junction, for a unique view of Kaneohe. This trail will intersect three other trails. The first intersection will be with Pu‘u O‘hia Trail on the left. The second intersection will be with Pauoa Flats Trail on the right. This intersection has a map of the Honolulu Mauka Trail System. The Mānoa Cliff Trail ends at a junction with Kalawahine Trail, which you may take 1.1 miles back to Tantalus Drive.
Descriptions for route, history, plants and birds were provided by Stuart Ball, author of The Hikers Guide to Oahu and other hiking books.
If driving, proceed mauka on Round Top Drive, past Pu‘u ‘Ualaka‘a State Park. Continue winding up the road, until you begin to see brown and yellow trailhead signs along the side of road. Mānoa Cliff Trail shares a small parking lot on the makai side of Round Top Drive, with Moleka Trail. The parking lot is directly adjacent the Moleka Trail. Mānoa Cliff Trail is across the street from the lot.
Please note that the Mānoa Cliff Trail (in yellow) is part of the Honolulu-Mauka Trail Network, comprising of 18 interconnected trails (in turquoise). The system may be accessed via the Makiki Arboretum Trail (dark blue) as part of an extended hike. The shortest route from the Makiki Arboretum Trail to the Mānoa Cliff trailhead is 1.85 miles.
The Mānoa Cliff Trail starts at a signed junction by a small parking lot along Round Top Dr. Ascend a small gulch on a trail lined with plastic planks. Bear right and cross a broad ridge through strawberry guava. At a signed switchback turn left and down on the cliff trail. On the right pass a valley overlook with a bench. Contour around Tantalus (Pu`u `Ōhi`a), working into and out of several small gulches. Enter a native forest restoration area through a gate in a fence. Reach a signed junction. Continue straight on the cliff trail. (To the right the Pu`u `Ohi`a Trail leads toward the top of Tantalus.) Leave the restoration area through a second gate. Almost immediately reach another signed junction with a posted trail map. Keep left on the cliff trail. (To the right the Pauoa Flats Trail leads to an overlook of Nu`uanu Valley.) Switchback several times to descend the side of Tantalus. Reach the end of the Manoa Cliff Trail at a signed junction with the Kalawahine Trail.
