Hiking the Mauna Lahilahi Trail (Turtle Rock) on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi
Distance: 0.6 miles / 1.0 km
Mauna Lahilahi, commonly referred to as Turtle Rock, is one of the best west Oʻahu sunset hikes because of how short the trail is to the panoramic views above Papaoneone Beach, Mākaha Valley, and much of Oʻahu’s west side!
Mauna Lahilahi Trailhead Parking
Parking for the Mauna Lahilahi Trail is located on Lahilahi Street in Mākaha.
Out of caution, consider this west side trailhead to be a high-crime area for petty theft. Never leave bags or anything valuable in your car.
Google Maps Directions: Mauna Lahilahi Trailhead
Hiking the Mauna Lahilahi Trail
Don’t forget to pack a headlamp for a sunset hike.
The Mauna Lahilahi Trail begins at the same path on Lahilahi Street as Papaoneone Beach.
At the first intersection, go left.
The trail to the right is the path for Papaoneone Beach.
After a short distance, the trail for Mauna Lahilahi will be on the right.
At the base of the ridge, there are essentially two paths up the first part of Mauna Lahilahi.
The first is to stay directly on the ridge, which is the easiest of the two paths, and it’s route shown below. Additionally, there’s the 'Mountaineers Route,' which is the path to the right of the ridge shown at the end of this post.
I don’t recommend the 'Mountaineers Route' just for the sake of making an easy hike more difficult. It’s truly an unnecessary risk, but I thought I’d show both routes because they may not look like much of a difference at first, until the climbing section.
After a short climb up the ridge, Mauna Lahilahi levels off for the rest of the hike to the top.
Mauna Lahilahi
Looking back from the summit, you can see Waiʻanae to the right and Mākaha Valley nearly straight back.
The peak directly behind Mauna Lahilahi is Puʻu Kamaileʻunu, with Keaʻau Ridge to the left.
Hawaiian Princess Resort (Papaoneone Beach)
Mauna Lahilahi sits directly above the beautiful Papaoneone Beach, more commonly known as Turtle Beach.
If you’re looking for a less common local place to stay on Oʻahu, consider the Hawaiian Princess Resort on Papaoneone Beach. Compared to busier places, such as Turtle Bay, this hidden west Oʻahu gem sees far fewer visitors!
Papaoneone Beach
Lahilahi 'Mountaineers Route'
In hiking terms, a 'Mountaineers Route' can either mean one of two things.
First, it’s truly a route meant for mountaineers only; or second, it’s a joke commonly referred to routes that are slightly more difficult than the main trail just for the sake of making something more challenging, which is exactly what this route up Mauna Lahilahi refers to.
The alternative route to the side leads to this small scramble, but like I said, it’s not worth making the straightforward ridge trail up Turtle Rock more difficult.
Native Plants on the Mauna Lahilahi Trail
Mauna Lahilahi is a low-elevation, coastal trail, which typically mean that most of the plants are non-native/ invasive, like the Fountain grass that covers this hike.
However, there are still a few native plants that you can find, such as ʻIlima, Maʻo, the Hoary Abutilon, and ʻUhaloa.
If you would like to learn more about these and tons of other native Hawaiian plants, check out my separate post below.
Read My Separate Post: Native Hawaiian Plant Guide
