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Reservoir Road (Hiking Trail)

Reservoir Road (Hiking Trail)

**NOTIFIED THAT “NO TRESPASSING” SIGNS HAVE BEEN POSTED!** Mahalo to Lava Dogs fan Kristin C. for sharing this dog-friendly hiking trail.  We have yet to traverse it, but it looks and sounds amazing! Location: From Wainuenue Avenue, it is the first left after Akolea Road (just after Manaolana Place on the right). As of Fall 2017, parking is no longer allowed by the gate. There is a spot on the side of Waianuenue JUST after the Akolea turn.  The road with a chain gate just above that spot is where you enter.  The no trespassing sign refers to what is on the left.  The sign is misleading.  The gate itself has a sign – “No vehicular traffic beyond this point.”  (There’s another “no trespassing” sign on a gate further in, which is always open. That can be ignored, too.  It is most likely for when the gate may have been closed in the past.  Even when the water company is working there during the week, they ignore anyone wandering around in...

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Ala Kahakai Trail (Access Point: Spencer Beach Park)

Ala Kahakai Trail (Access Point: Spencer Beach Park)

Location: Ala Kahakai Trail is a 175-mile long trail broken up into segments.  Spencer Beach Park is just one access point that is 3 miles long, ending at Hapuna Beach.   ***NOTE: Dogs are prohibited in any County of Hawaii beach park, including Spencer Beach Park.  While many of us have hiked with our dogs from Spencer Beach Park, we have been (innocently) doing so under the radar due to a lack of County Parks & Recreation employees present at Spencer Beach.  We are currently looking into options, possibly other access points that welcome dogs.  I have been talking with both Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail personnel and DLNR (who has also has jurisdiction over the Na Ala Hele trail system) to see if we can find a solution.  Mauna Kea Resort will not allow any dogs on property, so that entrance is not an option either.  It’s interesting and a predicament…The person at the guard shack told me to enter from Spencer Beach Park “since no one from...

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Manini Beach – Captain Cook

Manini Beach is a beautiful, secluded beach on Kealakekua Bay located directly across from the Captain Cook Monument.  Dogs must be kept on leash.  While the beach is made up of lava rock and and coral, there is a sandy shoreline area that provides easy ocean access, great for snorkeling, launching a standup paddleboard, and SCUBA diving when the ocean is calm.  Ocean entry is chilly due to the natural springs, but warms up a bit once you swim out.  Enjoy a picnic there at one of the picnic tables in the shade. Directions: Manini Park is close to both Kealakekua Bay and Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park (City of Refuge).  Just a few hundred yards south of Napo’opo’o Beach Park and the Kealakekua Bay boat launch on Pu’uhonua Road (Hwy 160), turn onto Manini Road. Parking: Parking is limited, so we suggest going early and avoiding the weekends.  Please respect that this is a residential area and obey the No Parking signs. Beach Etiquette for Dog Owners Dogs must be...

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Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park

Every year we take the pooches to Volcano area for a few days and try out a new dog-friendly vacation rental (There are many, and here are just a handful of the ones we have checked out:  https://lavadogshawaii.com/dog-friendly-lodging/).  While the Hawai’i Volcanoes NP allows pets in the park, they are prohibited on any hiking trails…Bummer, I know, but it is for the protection of the federally-protected, endangered Nene goose, which nest in the Park.  We take our dogs there on one day during our trip, and we enjoy driving through the park, walking with them on leash from the visitor center parking lot toward the sulfur vents.  And then we drive and stop periodically in parking lots with overlooks, including the Jaggar Museum (which is CLOSED now, but dogs were allowed at the overlook only, not inside the museum). ( **PLEASE NOTE: Pets are no longer allowed at the end of Chain of Craters Road where Holei Sea Arch is located. There are many that rely on this area for...

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Hawaii Island Retreat (trail) – Kapa’au

Hawaii Island Retreat (trail) – Kapa’au

Directions: As you enter Kapa’au and pass Fig’s Mixed Plate on your left, drive past the guard rails and turn left at Maluhia Road.  It is a gravel road, and there will be a “Shoreline Public Access” and “Hawaii Island Retreat” signs.  Follow these signs.  Turn left at the “T” through the tunnel of trees, and turn right. Address: 54-250 Lokahi Road, Kapa’au, HI  96755 Website: http://www.hawaiiislandretreat.com/ About: Hawaii Island Retreat’s “50 acres of needled grove and valley trails include legendary council stones and native trees, planted generations ago by a Hawaiian kahuna and his beloved wife.”  The owners of Hawaii Island Retreat have graciously allowed LEASHED dogs and their owners to use their hiking and jogging trails.  The one time I visited, I was unable to locate any type of trail, but I’m sure it’s somewhere here, and it’s such a beautiful location, it’s nice to just stroll around.  KEEP IN MIND: Visitors come here for meditation and a healthy living retreat, so I suggest bringing only your quietest,...

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Kalopa State Recreation Area Horse Trail

Kalopa State Recreation Area Horse Trail

(The Horse Trail is 2.6 miles ONE WAY, so you have to come back the same way you went.) Where: This Park is just past the village of Honoka’a on the Hawai’i Belt Road, Hwy. 19 (Mamalahoa Hwy.). Travel either 15 miles east of Waimea or about 40 miles north of Hilo, and find the well-marked turn for Kalōpā State Park on the mauka (uphill) side of the road between the 39 and 40 mile markers. Keep following signs for the Park as you drive uphill on paved roads.  Upon entering the Kalopa Recreation Area, park immediately to the left in the small dirt lot where you will see the “Hunter Access” sign.  You will see a narrow trail off to the left of the sign. *Important Note: **The Horse Trail is the only Kalopa trail that allows dogs.**  It is frequently used by hunters for pig hunting with their dogs although it is common to see everyday hikers with their non-hiking dogs.  On the evening of Labor Day 2015, we saw...

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