The Climb Up to the Top of Diamond Head

Diamond Head is an extinct volcano located in very close proximity to Waikiki. Here's a satellite close-up of it.
I was a bit surprised when the Bus #23 dropped us off down at the main road. This meant that we had to walk up the access road to get to the base of the volcano. Not a problem for me but every extra incline made it tougher on my Mom. In any case, this first part of the journey up had some nice vistas of the Southeastern edge of Oahu.


The access road leads up to this tunnel, which is bored through the Northeastern wall of Diamond Head.

Once through the tunnel, your eyes are blessed with a magnificently large valley, that appears to have very little intrusion by mankind. I'm going to review some Lost episodes and see if any might have been filmed here.
The cost for each person is just $1.00, though more if you want to bring a vehicle in.
It was an exceptionally hot day so before venturing up the actual path to the top, we opted to get a snow-cone and eat in the shade. A wise decision!


Most of the hike is along relatively gentle grades, many of them paved with concrete. But it's best to bring a lot of water, especially if the sun is shining brightly.
After the concrete ends the path turns into a seemingly endless number of switchbacks.
We met this fellow coming down as we were heading up. He said that this was his first time to Hawaii and there was no way he was going to miss seeing the view from the top of Diamond Head. What a trooper! And an inspiration to all future hikers!
I could tell that my Mom was getting exhausted and perhaps a bit dehydrated. When we reached the winch & cable platform, she decided to stay there, though encouraged me to continue on up to the top.
There were these interesting prickly plants along the way. I'm hoping that someone can help identify them.
Here's a good shot of the overall Diamond Head "bowl". The buildings below were where we started at the base of the volcano.
This is the first of 4 sets of stairs before you reach the summit.
It leads to a long tunnel.
This elevation marker was near the top of the 2nd set of stairs - the steep and long ones!
The 3rd set of stairs is a spiral staircase, reminscent of what one might find in a lighthouse.