Words by: Rickey Gates // Photos by: Matt Shapiro
The intro theme from Jurassic Park was playing on repeat in my head. That shot where they’re flying towards the island in a helicopter, bantering about chaos theory. I wished it wasn’t but I’m a child of the 90’s. I can’t think of anything else when looking at the impossibly steep, green cliffs towering above us and the wild, blue ocean below.
I start whistling the tune and Matt pleads that I stop. A bird - a white rumped shama, I’d learn - sings a much prettier song from a branch above as though to change the subject. We were taking our time along the legendary Na Pali (na - many, pali - cliffs) Coast on Hawaii’s greenest and wettest island, Kauai - sometimes referred to as the “Garden Isle”. Superlative lists of trails claiming the “deadliest” or “most dangerous” invariably include the Kalalau Trail and for good reason. Since records have been kept, upwards of 100 hikers and swimmers have lost their lives along the coastline. Not needing much reason to take advantage of cheap airline flights to a tropical island, we jetted out to confirm the claim.
As we made our way to Kalalau Beach, the paradisiac turnaround 11 miles in, we observed the benign carnage that the trail was reaping on a calm, sunny day - exhausted backpackers, some visibly shook from their traverse across the crux of the trail: Crawlers Ledge - a short section of loose rock, chiseled into a crumbling cliffside a few hundred feet above the crashing waves.
Shortly after walking, not crawling, Crawlers Ledge we finally arrived at Kalalau Beach. Roughly a mile in length, shouldered by a flat grove of trees and a waterfall at the far end, my initial thought was, hmmm, i wish i’d have brought some camping supplies. We enjoyed a drawn out rest, a careful swim in the tugging waters and a rinse under the freshwater cascade at the end of the beach before the rain began to fall and encouraged us to start heading back before the creeks filled or paths became too slippery to pass.
Feral goats escorted us back to Crawlers Ledge. From there we picked our way back along the coastline. The rain increased in ferocity as the ground underfoot morphed into a red slime challenging any notion of stasis. When we arrived back at the trailhead, we weren’t surprised to find that the trail had been closed once the heavy rain had begun. We toweled off back at the car and made our way back into town. Poke was in order!
Rickey's Advice
- A permit is needed to hike/run the Na Pali Coast - yes, even for day trippers. Permits are only available online HERE. Though they oftentimes sell out quickly (90 days in advance), cancellations do occur, so it is worth checking in if you are making a trip on a whim.
- Trail users should feel comfortable with heights and varying terrain, including loose rocks and very slippery footing.
- Water can be obtained from several creeks along the trail - a dependable filter is essential as there are feral goats and pigs along the entirety of the coastline.
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About Rickey
For the past thirty years, running has been a central part of Rickey Gates’s life. Whether it be in the competitive realm of racing or the obsessive realm of curiosity, or a mindful space of meditation, running has long been the primary medium through which Rickey has interacted with the broader environment around him.
In an effort to understand his country, community, and self, Rickey completed two unbelievably ambitious, back-to-back running projects: TransAmericana (2017) in which he ran across the entire United States, and Every Single Street (2018) in which he ran, street by street, the entirety of San Francisco. His current obsession (which you are currently reading) is to paint a picture of North America through trails. He lives in Santa Fe with his wife and two children.
