Let the crowds beat YOU to Diamond Head
The following is a guest blog from Kim Tracy Price and the original article can be found here.
I didn’t do much research before I went to Oahu. There, I said it. I was fine just going with the flow, no guidebook to refer to, consulting the internet for information. So when the airplane was touching down in Honolulu and my seatmate, a local resident, pointed out Diamond Head to me and said that you can hike to the top, I mentally put that on my to-do list. Other island dwellers suggested I hike early, before it gets too hot, and at sunrise if possible.
No, not possible. I was on the run from the moment I woke up until the moment I went to sleep every one of the few days I was there, so the best I could do was set my alarm for 6:15 on a Sunday morning, the day I was scheduled to catch a 12:30 PM flight. My hotel was just a short ride from the Diamond Head Visitor’s Center, and my internet research told me the hike would be short, so I figured I could fit it in before breakfast.
And so I did. And because I was not up there literally at the crack of dawn, I had a better time of it. You see, this is one of those bus tour type of attractions, and that morning there were several on site with loads of tourists who had ascended to watch the sun come up. I had the pleasure of greeting them all on their way down, which left a few stragglers at the top once I arrived, and even pockets of pure, quiet solitude.
The thing that made this gaggle of tourists so funny to me was their footwear.
The trail up the inside of Diamond Head crater starts off pretty easily with a concrete path. Then it gets steeper and consists of lava switchbacks. Lava! THEN you have to climb 74 concrete steps that lead into the first tunnel, and then another set of 99 steep stairs that lead to a spiral staircase and the interior of the Fire Controll Station which used to be a lookout for a military fort. Finally, you emerge from the tiny slit in the side of this enormous concrete fort to the exterior of the crater and sheer drop to the Pacific Ocean, hundreds of feet below.
I wore sneakers, short, a t-shirt, and carried a backpack with water and a snack. As I climbed the switchbacks, I watched the tourists on their way down. They wore wedge sandals. High heels. Huaraches. Flip flops. Peep-toe pumps. And none of them seemed uncomfortable, although I was, just looking at them.
Regardless, I was grateful that I shared the summit lookout with only a few other latecomers, including this fabulous group of women whose names I remember as ???, Susan, Sonya, and Angie. They’re from the South and they gave me verbal permission to use this photo. Email me, ladies, and I’m sorry I forgot the fourth name…
One thing about traveling alone is that if you want pictures of yourself, you have to risk looking like a dork as you take self-portraits, or ask a stranger to photograph you.
It was good to get a little fresh air and exercise and to climb inside a volcanic crater to see the ocean and the shore of Waikiki from this viewpoint. I said a fond farewell to Oahu that morning. I hope to get back very soon.
About Kim Tracy Prince
Kim Tracy Prince is a television producer and freelance writer in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. With two little boys under 4, she writes about the messy underbelly of family life at House of Prince, contributes to the colorful group of voices at Los Angeles Moms Blog, and guides parents to enriching activities at Being Savvy San Fernando. Kim also writes a column in the local newspaper The SFV News. When she and her husband can wrestle the kids into their car seats successfully, they enjoy trips within a 7-hour drive, max. Kim’s Favorite Vacations: My favorite vacations are the ones that get me away from as many people as possible. My honeymoon, spent aboard a 32-foot Beneteau in the British Virgin Islands, was the most relaxing time of my life. That said, family trips to places that delight my children can be worth the crowds. A recent vacation to SeaWorld for the opening of Sesame Place now ranks up there among the faves.