Best Hikes on Oahu: Diamond Head Crater Trail

Basic Information

• Name: Diamond Head Summit Trail
• Where: Oahu, Hawaii
• Distance: 1.6 miles round-trip
• Difficulty: moderate (560 feet gain in altitude)
• Time: 1.5 hours round-trip
• More Info: Diamond Head State Monument website

Topographic Map of the Diamond Head Crater Trail

Google Earth Map of the Diamond Head Crater Trail

Directions

Getting to Diamond Head from Waikiki is extremely easy by taking Kalakaua Avenue east until it intersects with Monsarrat Avenue.  At Monsarrat Avenue take a left where the road leads up a hill towards Diamond Head State Monument.  Just follow the signs to the monument.

Parking

There are two options for parking at Diamond Head State Monument.  Most people will drive up into the crater through the entrance tunnel:

Inside of the crater there is usually a long line of cars for the paid parking, so be prepared to wait.  Like just about everywhere else on Oahu to avoid crowds get here early.  The other option for parking is to park at Kapiolani Community College outside of the crater.  Parking at the college is free and from the parking lot visitors just walk through the entrance crater to the trailhead.

Narrative

Hawaii has many recognizable landmarks, but there is probably not one view more iconic than the one of Diamond Head Crater from Waikiki Beach in Honolulu.  What few people realize though is that Diamond Head is actually a large volcanic crater that was once an important military base.  The crater is no longer an active military base, but the old fortifications around Diamond Head are now a popular hiking destination for visitors to the island:

After finding parking my family and I walked across the large flat grassland which fills the inside of crater:

All this land provides plenty of room for Honolulu residents to play catch with the football or throw a Frisbee around.  However, my wife and I didn’t drive up to Diamond Head to throw a Frisbee around; we came to hike up the mountain.  Before heading up the mountain though we stopped to learn a little more about the crater.  There is a visitor that has plenty of signboards around for those wanting learn more about Diamond Head Crater’s history:

Here is one signboard that shows the various military bunkers that composes the trail to its summit:

Here is a signboard that explains the military history of the crater:

Here is a couple more signboards that explain the natural history that formed this crater:

Diamond Head Crater was created 300,000 years ago when a massive volcanic blast along the base of the Ko’olau Mountains rocked the island.  When the ash and gas stopped what was left was Diamond Head crater which geologists often call this type of crater a Tuff Cone.  Koko Crater on Oahu was formed during the same volcanic blast as Diamond Head.  When the first Hawaiians arrived on Oahu about 1,500 years ago they named this striking crater Le’ahi, which means “wreath of fire” which was from the navigational fires the ancient Hawaiians used to light from the crater’s summit.  In the late 1700’s western explorers misidentified volcanic crystals located around the mountain as being diamonds, which gave this striking crater its western name of Diamond Head.

After getting our history lesson about the crater my wife and I followed the paved trail up to the summit.  The trail was paved pretty much the whole way and had many benches to rest on, which was a good thing considering how steep the trail was.  Considering the number of older and out of shape people I saw on the trail, the benches were put to good use:

This trail was built in 1908 by the US Army Corps of Engineers to aid in the construction of the various bunkers located around the summit of the crater.  This trail saw an army of mules haul up supplies to build the various concrete tunnels and bunkers:

Now this trail just sees a daily army of tourists hiking to the summit of Diamond Head to get that iconic views of Honolulu and Waikiki.

Here is a view looking back down the trail towards the crater:

Due to the steep sides of the crater and the amount of foot traffic it receives there are a lot of signs warning visitors of falling rocks:

As we gained altitude we eventually had some good views of the nearby Ko’olau Range to include of the beautiful Manoa Valley:

The Manoa Valley is home to some great hikes such as the ones listed below:

• Best Hikes On Oahu: The Manoa Falls Trail
• Best Hikes On Oahu: Pu’u Pia Trail

On the way up the mountain I noticed this beautiful bird in a tree:

I anyone knows what this bird is please leave a comment. As we climbed up the mountain the vegetation was mostly dry though there was some scrub brush and a few trees that were able to draw enough moisture from the lava rock to survive:

As my wife and I ascended the mountain we eventually had to climb a long staircase:

At the end of the staircase we then entered into the first tunnel complex:

As we exited the tunnel the various bunkers along the summit of the crater came into view:

These bunkers were used as positions to defend Oahu from air attack during World War II and later as a radar station. After some climbing up some stairs we entered into another tunnel complex:

The trail ends inside one of the bunkers where visitors can climb out of the bunker and join the hordes of tourists on Diamond Head Crater’s summit:

The actual summit of Diamond Head is located up a staircase that leads to the top of the bunker:

From the top of the bunker there are some incredible views of Honolulu:

Here is the view looking down into Diamond Head crater from where we started our hike:

We also had some nice views from the summit of a lighthouse right below us:

As well as views on the Honolulu neighborhoods built on the slopes of the extinct volcano that formed this island:

Of course the most popular view is of Waikiki Beach:

Here is a panorama of the view from the top of Diamond Head Crater:

Here is a wider angle panorama picture:

There are more than just beautiful natural views to see from the summit because there are plenty of beautiful women who liked to go up this trail as well:

The trail from the summit loops around the bunkers we previously passed through in order to prevent a bottleneck.  This side trail had some really nice views of the inside of the crater:

Here is another view of the inside of the crater:

Here is an even wider angle of the view:

Conclusion

Overall, we had a great time climbing to the top of the crater and taking in the views.  It takes only about 45 minutes to walk up to the summit so it is not a big time commitment to undertake if time during a visit to Hawaii is limited.  I would rate this as one of the must dos for anyone visiting the beautiful island of Oahu.