so uhh, hypothetically if one were planning to do the stairway, what might one expect in terms of parking?
We did this hike about 14-15 years ago, and IIRC things were pretty chill then. Now I read on wikimapia (http://wikimapia.org/1693283/Haiku-Stairs-Stairway-to-Heaven) that irate residents are having hikers' cars towed. Has anyone, uhh, hypotethically done this recently, and what was your solution for parking?
Hypothetically, any car near the base of the stairs would be towed. One could, in theory, walk in earlier than the occasional guard stationed there after parking outside the neighborhood. It might be a mile or so walk from the college, if one were to consider such a silly thing.
+1
ahh... WCC. :) Looked at google earth and it looks promising. The uppermost portion of the campus looks just a hop & a skip from the access path. Some recon may be in order. Hypothetically of course.
When I did it about 4-5 months ago, I parked my truck on the street. Legal parking, so I couldn't be towed without a reason. Got to get there around 5am, before the guard comes on duty. When you go pass the gate you be walking on a long road, private property. Off to the side you should see a cut-off that takes you into a Bamboo forest - there is a path that leads to the upper road and to the beginning of the hike OR you can follow the road until you get to a fork, go left and you can see the trailhead - really crappy and muddy, at the top is a fence. Hop that (be quick and quiet) and you are right across from the entrance. The guard WILL be there when you get down, they just tell you not to do it again and escort you to the path through the bamboo forest and tell you to be on your way. [thumbsup]
I parked here (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=stairway+to+heaven&sll=21.420009,-157.80715&sspn=0.011826,0.01929&g=haiku+trail&ie=UTF8&hq=stairway+to+heaven&hnear=Haiku,+Kaneohe,+HI+96744&ll=21.409148,-157.821374&spn=0,359.997589&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=21.40909,-157.821453&panoid=Q25Fet3zgJNq5d2EfjwR9Q&cbp=12,273.62,,0,9.54) gate to the road/trail is to the right past the stop sign.
Oh, hope you aren't afraid of heights. [evil] The view is totally worth the hike though. Just a taste of what you'll see:
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4046/4434468172_44e4e70684.jpg)
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4001/4433693649_fd818397cf.jpg)
These are only about 1/4 of the way up....