Wailua Falls & Wailua River State Park Forest

@mattaleong

Hawaii

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Kauai

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Waialua

With a towering height of 173-feet, this powerful waterfall is a must-see spot in Kauai. It's one of the only waterfalls where you can safely walk behind and experience the natural showers of a veil of fresh water in front of you. These falls also can also produce a rainbow due to the mist, so after taking a drone perspective of the multicolored haze, capture the prismatic colors of the waterfall with your camera. (before flying a drone, check and follow local drone regulations and permit requirements)

Plan

Overview

Skill level

Moderate

Accessbility

Public Location

Hours

Anytime

Fee

Free

Pack

Drone
Batteries
Remote
Camera/tripod (optional)
Hiking clothes/shoes
Snacks
Water
Swimwear
Bugspray

How to get there

N22° 02' 02.2524"W159° 22' 42.294"

This image was taken at the base of Wailua Falls on my DJI Mavic Pro 2. I shot a vertical panorama and stitched the photos together in Lightroom. If you're coming from Lihue, you'll need to drive North on Kuhio Highway and then exit off of 583 onto Maalo Road. Follow Maalo Road all the way to Wailua Falls. You'll know when you're there as you'll come across a very narrow parking lot that overlooks the falls on the righthand side (22.034461, -159.379157). The trailhead down to the waterfalls is over the rock wall and past the fence. It'll take about 10-15 minutes to get down depending on how fast you are or how big your group is. You'll see a trail down (please be careful, it's very slippery!) and there are also a lot of mosquitos. Once you're down the trail, Wailua Falls will be their in all of its glory. I recommend adventuring to the grassy area to the right or to the left towards the falls where you can launch your drone.