Tag Archives: Oahu (Island)

Climbing Diamond Head Crater: Oahu, Hawaii

A trip up the 762 ft Diamond Head crater from our most recent trip to Oahu, Hawaii. A 0.75-mile (1.1-km) hike leads to the edge of the crater’s rim. Signs at the trailhead say that the hike takes 1.5–2 hours round-trip, and recommends that hikers bring water. Although not difficult, the signs also say that the hike is not a casual one: the mostly unpaved trail winds over uneven rock, ascends 74 steps, then through a tunnel and up another steep 99 steps. Next is a lighted tunnel to a narrow spiral staircase (43 steps) inside a coastal artillery observation platform built in 1908. From the summit above the observation platform both Waikiki, Honolulu and the Pacific Ocean can be seen in detail.