Hike up Diamond Head

I woke up at 5 a.m. this morning so I could get ready and be at the base of the Diamond Head crater by 6 when the park opens. It was just after sunrise, so driving along Waikiki to Diamond Head, seeing the gray-blue waves in the early morning sunlight was a real treat.

(View from the base of Diamond Head at dawn)

It only took about 15 to 20 minutes max to reach the highest viewpoint, from where you get a spectacular view of all the hotels and resorts along Waikiki, an isolated lighthouse just below the crater, the inside of the crater–now overgrown with vegetation and once home to the U.S. Coastal Artillery Defense System (1904-1943).

(Above: Honolulu and Waikiki as seen from the highest point at Diamond Head.)