Overview
About Makahiku Falls Overlook
Why stop
- A named waterfall and its carved valley reward a short trail walk.
Heads up
- The unpaved path can be uneven and muddy.
Map
Where it is
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Road to Hana Tour Guide
Your drive to Makahiku Falls Overlook, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Road to Hana. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Road to Hana audio tourRecorded for this place
Kīpahulu’s Coast and Waterfalls“You’re coming up on Kīpahulu Visitor Center, the starting point for coastal walks and the Pīpīwai waterfall hike.”
Plays as you drive up to Makahiku Falls Overlook in the Parkwolf Road to Hana Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Bat in the Evening Sky
- Wailua Falls from the Bridge
- Where the Lava Went
- Kukui: The Tree That Gave Light
- 48 audio storiesacross Road to Hana’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Hawaiian Monk Seal, Green Sea Turtle, Frigatebird, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 13 trails, 39 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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
More about Makahiku Falls Overlook
A waterfall without the full hikeMakahiku Falls Overlook is a viewpoint on Pīpīwai Trail in Haleakalā National Park’s Kīpahulu…
Makahiku Falls Overlook is a viewpoint on Pīpīwai Trail in Haleakalā National Park’s Kīpahulu District, the trail’s first waterfall view. Makahiku Falls drops nearly 200 feet into a valley carved by the water. If you want the falls without the longer hike to Waimoku, turn around here: the overlook is about 0.5 mile from the parking area, or roughly 1 mile round trip. NPS estimates about 30 minutes each way.
The walk and the viewFrom Kīpahulu Visitor Center parking, follow the paved approach to the T-junction and turn left…
From Kīpahulu Visitor Center parking, follow the paved approach to the T-junction and turn left onto Pīpīwai Trail. The route climbs through green canopy, then continues on an unpaved path that can be uneven and muddy. The overlook is a railed dirt platform. For a photo, keep some of the valley around the waterfall; that shows the scale of the drop and the way water has cut into the landscape.
Part of KīpahuluNative Hawaiians have lived in Kīpahulu for hundreds of years.
Native Hawaiians have lived in Kīpahulu for hundreds of years. The district’s ahupuaʻa are traditional land divisions connecting resources from the mountains to the sea. Streams here support endemic fish, including gobies whose ancestors came from the ocean; watch for freshwater shrimp and rock-climbing gobies along Pīpīwai Trail.
Before you goKīpahulu is remote, about 12 miles past Hāna, and there’s no food or gas in the park.
Kīpahulu is remote, about 12 miles past Hāna, and there’s no food or gas in the park. Fill up and bring food; drinking water is available at the visitor center. Flash floods and sudden rock falls can happen, so stay on marked trails and out of streams. Pets aren’t allowed on park trails.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Road to Hana
10 sightingsHawaiian Monk SealMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
127 sightingsGreen Sea TurtleMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
86 sightingsFrigatebirdMost seen around noonSighting map
17 sightingsRed-footed BoobyMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
73 sightingsNene (Hawaiian Goose)Most seen around 6 AMSighting map
58 sightingsHawaiian StiltMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Road to Hana. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
