#2 of 19 sights in Haleakalā
Sight · Haleakalā National Park
Bamboo, bridges and banyan trees lead to a waterfall payoff.
Overview
Waimoku Falls is a narrow waterfall spilling down a dark, forested cliff in the Kīpahulu District. It sits at the end of the Pīpīwai Trail, so this is a hike with a waterfall finale, not a quick pull-off. From the trail start near the Kīpahulu Visitor Center, the signed viewing area is two miles in: four miles round trip with about 800 feet of elevation gain. Choose it if you want a varied rainforest walk as well as a waterfall; skip it if you only have time for a short view.
Parkwolf’s verdictThe falls are the payoff, not a roadside stopMap
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Haleakalā Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Haleakalā National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this place
Pīpīwai Trail and Waimoku Falls“You're coming up on the access for Pīpīwai Trail and Waimoku Falls. The falls are a four-mile round-trip hike from Kīpahulu Visitor Center, taking about three hours on rocky, sometimes muddy ground.”
Plays as you drive up to Waimoku Falls in the Parkwolf Haleakalā Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
At about half a mile, an overlook gives you the first view of Makahiku Falls. Farther on, a broad banyan and streamside forest lead into bamboo around the one-mile mark. Boardwalks and footbridges carry you through the dense grove before the trail opens toward Waimoku. The changing scenery is a big part of the payoff, not just the last view.
Kīpahulu’s streams hold endemic gobies and other fish descended from marine ancestors. From the trail, you may also spot freshwater shrimp or a rock-climbing goby. Take a moment to look into the water as you walk, but stay on the path and out of the streams.
Kīpahulu has been inhabited by Native Hawaiians for hundreds of years and remains part of a living culture. The park protects intact ahupuaʻa, traditional land divisions that connect resources from the sea to the summit. Native Hawaiians have lived on and cared for Haleakalā for more than 1,000 years; this coast is more than a scenic backdrop.
The falls are viewed from the trail’s signed endpoint. Don’t cross the stream or leave the marked route to get closer: flash floods and sudden rockfalls can happen at any time, and entering or wading in streams is not recommended. For a photo, keep some of the dark cliff and rainforest around the falling water so the height and setting stay in the frame.
The Kīpahulu District is about 12 miles past Hāna on Hāna Highway. There’s no food or fuel for sale in the park, so fill the tank and bring a meal. Carry water, sunscreen and mosquito repellent, and wear sturdy shoes; the trail is moderately strenuous and the weather can be hot, humid and rainy.
Wildlife
446 sightingsHawaiian GooseMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
28 sightingsHawaiian Short-eared OwlMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
22 sightingsGreen Sea TurtleMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
648 sightingsʻIʻiwiMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
363 sightingsʻApapaneMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
209 sightingsHawaiʻi ʻAmakihiMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Haleakalā. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModeratePīpīwai Trail4 mi · 3 hr · 1.4 mi awayFollow a stream to a banyan, bamboo, and two waterfalls.
EasyKūloa Point Trail0.5 mi · 30 min · 1.4 mi awayHalf-mile loop for ʻOheʻo views and Kīpahulu’s history.
EasyKahakai Trail0.3 mi · 20 min · 1.6 mi awayA short coastal path under hala trees, with ocean views.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayPīpīwai Bamboo ForestA bamboo tunnel where the wind makes the stalks clack.
Sight · 1 mi awayPīpīwai Banyan TreeA broad canopy built from roots that grow back down.
Sight · 1.1 mi awayMakahiku Falls OverlookA short Pīpīwai walk to a nearly 200-foot waterfall view.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayHale HālāwaiStep inside a reconstructed Hawaiian meeting house at a trail fork.
Visitor center · 1.5 mi awayKīpahulu Visitor CenterA carved waʻa and local history before the walks into Kīpahulu.
Sight · 1.5 mi awayKūloa Point Banyan TreeA forest of hanging roots on Kūloa Point’s short loop.Sight · 1.5 mi awayPools of ʻOheʻoCascades meet the Pacific here, but the pools are for looking.
Sight · 1.5 mi awayHale NoaA small stone sleeping-house foundation on the Kīpahulu coast.Parkwolf’s Haleakalā ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
