Kaūmana Caves

Closed-toe shoes are essential — the cave floor is rough ʻaʻā with sharp edges. Two flashlights per person if you go beyond the entry chamber; cell reception is none inside. There is no marked path; you are responsible for tracking your way out. Do not touch the walls with bare skin where you can avoid it — protects the cave's microbiome. Hawaiian hoary bats — ʻōpeʻapeʻa, the state mammal, federally endangered — occasionally use the cave; do not disturb if you see one. Pack out trash. The cave system extends miles uphill; do not attempt to explore deep without experience.