Makapuu Sunrise Trek To Welcome New Year

Windward residents are invited to join a New Year’s Day sunrise hike to the summit of Makapuu ridge, organized for the second year by the Division of State Parks as an inspiring way to start 2013.

Curt Cottrell, assistant parks administrator, will open the gate at 5:30 a.m. Jan. 1, for first-come, first-served parking. For such a special occasion, the state DLNR also will provide a few portable toilets. Everyone – from elders to infants in strollers and dogs on leashes – is invited to gather at the trail’s end and along the side of the ridge to witness the sunrise at 7:09 a.m. It will be greeted with a traditional oli by chanter Sam Gon III (who also is a member of the land board).

Last year’s inaugural sunrise hike attracted 500 people to Makapuu. Similar hikes were repeated across the nation as a “First Day” initiative at 550 state parks to “promote healthy lifestyles and encourage year-round recreation at state parks.”

For more information on the First Day-Makapuu Lighthouse Trail hike, call 587-0300. The 1.5-mile round trip is considered to be moderately difficult.