On other days we crossed the river to the west (back) side of the valley. Wading the river was impossible on the first day, dangerous the second, and exciting the third, thanks to rain swollen current going out and and a vicious rip tide coming in and across. Once across our choices were to go up the cliff on the Waimanu Valley Z-trail (permit needed for overnight camping) and a fantastic back-view of the valley, or to go into the valley on the primitive trail along the back side. The latter leads to Waiamea Falls, Na'alapa Falls, Nanaue Falls and Papala Falls. All four are continuous cascades of more than 1,200 feet. We visited the base of Naalapa Falls with a final 100 foot cascade and 30 foot fall separated by a small pool. You can't see much of this waterfall from the base due to the dense jungle and steep cliffs. We also visited the base of Papala Falls.

The trail along the back of the valley is not so great -- it's poorly marked and maintained and wanders around through thick jungle to avoid private land. We got the distinct feeling that hikers on this trail are tolerated, but not welcomed.

The prize hike was to Hiilawe Falls, actually two hikes. The first was up the stream to the base of the falls, a demanding hike and much longer than it looks since your sense of scale is somewhat twisted. The main part of Hiilawe Falls is 1,300' and we estimate that there is an initial drop of 150 feet above that. The second hike was to the abandoned, very surrealistic "Tea House" with its formal gardens almost totally reclaimed by the jungle. It's about 1/4 mile from the base of the falls with a commanding view of the falls on one side and the Waipi'o Valley and ocean on the other. Evidently it was a millionaire's folly left to rot when it turned out that his wife wouldn't even stay there the first night. (This happened about 20 years ago although the locals were somewhat vague about its history.) Both of these hikes are on private land and we understand that hikers are strongly discouraged unless you hire a local guide. We couldn't find either a guide or anyone to ask permission... nor did we encounter anyone on either hike.