5 Things You Must Know
1. The hike is up old railroad tracks and though it is like climbing stairs, they are not stair steps
2. The steps can be as much as 2½ to 3 feet apart so you have to stretch to go up or down
3. You must wear athletic shoes that grip dirt/sand; NO slippers, loafers, or sandals.
4. Hydrate in advance of your climb and bring water, even if a small bottle from 7-Eleven
5. Wear sunscreen – you will be in direct sunlight the entire time you are on your hike
I’ve gone on hundreds of hikes worldwide and though each is challenging physically (i.e. it gets your heart rate up to 170+ for a sustained period, up to an hour or more), what makes the Koko Crater trail hike unique is that you are going up old railroad tracks; NOT stairs, though they have added steps where there are large gaps in the tracks. (2) The average vertical rise in stair steps is 7 inches, the rise in these “steps” can be 20” to 30.” Or put another way, it is not going up 1,050 steps which are of equally distanced rise, but it can be a step-up of 2-3’ in certain sections. (3) Going down is more difficult than going up, and certainly more dangerous (i.e. slipping and falling, not down the mountain but on your bottom). You have to be mentally prepared that even though gravity is your friend when going down, you have to be mentally alert and take each step down very carefully. (3) NO place for water or food, NO water fountain even in the parking lot before the hike; bring fruit, protein bar, etc.