Wai'anae Mountains

The Wai’anae Mountains were formed by an ancient shield volcano

Walking along the 2.5-mile long Ka’ena Point trail, I was amazed by the mountainous peaks that were to my left. I would later come to learn that these were the Wai’anae Mountains, also known as the Wai’anae Range. This rock formation includes the highest point on the island of O’ahu, Ka’ala. At a towering 4,025 feet, it pales in comparison to the 13,802 feet of Mauna Kea on the big island of Hawai’i, the 10,023 feet of Haleakala on Maui, the 5,243 feet of Kawaikini of Kauai, or even the 4,961 feet of Kamakou situated on Molokai. This ranks as the 143^rd highest point on an island.

Waipi'o Valley

The Wai’anae Mountains were formed by an ancient shield volcano. A separate volcano, called Ko’olau, formed the eastern portion of O’ahu. There had been a third volcano, named Ka’ena, that helped form this island, but it now sits below sea level. After 2.5 million years without an eruption, the volcano slowly eroded away to its current state. When it was active, Lualualei Valley was the epicenter of the volcano’s activity.

The volcanic zone that this range was a part of is the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain. This contains volcanoes that erupted up to 85 million years ago. The Hawaiian Islands were all formed by volcanoes, and the oldest eruptions are from the Wai’ale’ale volcano that formed Kauai. This last erupted more than 5 million years ago. There are currently three active volcanoes, Kilauea and Mauna Loa on the big island of Hawai’i, as well as Kama’ehuakanaloa Seamount, which is to the southeast of the big island and is currently below sea level.

Kauna'oa Point

If you would like to visit the tallest point on O’ahu, you’ll be in for a fun hike. Mount Ka’ala has a 7-mile hike that you can enjoy in order to reach its summit. Throughout the hike you will venture up about 3,600 feet of elevation gain. The summit has a tracking station that is maintained by the FAA and is secured by the US Army.

Throughout the hike you will venture up about 3,600 feet

Did you know?

Kama’ehuakanaloa Seamount may begin emerging above sea level in 10,000-100,000 years.
There is an observatory at the northwestern most end of the Wai’anae Mountains. This is the Ka’ena Point Space Force Station. It tracks satellites in orbit, and it can also control satellites.