Judd Trail

Beautiful loop trail with creeks and waterfalls. Easy to park, not too difficult, easy to follow path. Better with sturdy sandals that can get wet and a bit muddy. Bring your swimsuit.

It's actually a pretty nice little trail. Great access to water close to the trail and the trailhead. The main loop trail is pretty flat, so no spectacular views, but it's a nice and quiet escape without too many other people and I didn't see any mountain bikes. It's well marked with signs with arrows, but pay attention and stay in the loop if the and what you want to do, and maybe make sure you have a basic mapping app to keep you on track. It's doesn't sound necessary, but shortly after going onto the Nuuanu Trail there were some tourists who had no idea where they were and they were headed up Nuuanu to Tantalus, and they may not have ended up back out on the road, so hopefully they listened to me when I pointed them back to the Judd Loop and the Pali. There's no dedicated parking and it can get pretty crowded on the weekends. There's also definitely broken glass along the road near the TH, so don't leave any valuables in the car. On AllTrails it looks like you can pop up the Nuuanu Trail and make a bigger loop. That's tricky and I'd say only for experienced hikers. If you want to take Nuuanu out and back, that's fine, although it's steep because you're climbing up to the ridge and Tantalus, so know that. But the Makuku Ridge Trail gets a little gnarly and hard to find in the middle, although it's really lovely just above the Judd Trail--towering pines whispering on a windy afternoon, and you'll probably have the trail to yourself.

This is a fantastic place for a short hike. The loop takes approximately 30 minutes to complete, and the trail offers plenty of shade and beautiful scenery. I wish I lived closer so I could come here more often. You can park your car on the side of the road, and the trail entrance is marked by an information sign. As with all hiking trails on the island, it's best to avoid going when it's raining or has rained the day before. On a sunny day, the trail is peaceful, and you can enjoy the tranquil waters. The water pool is 5 minutes into the hike if you start on the right side and there were some that was jumping in and swimming. Definitely a must see with ease of access and with a couple of waterfalls.

An epic trail off the beaten road where locals go.We loved the various vegetation and beautiful surroundings. It's a short Nu'uanu jaunt which takes hikers to an enchanting 10-foot waterfall and swimming hole.To find Judd Trail, you get access from Nu'uanu Pali Drive. Head mauka, you'll see the entrance on the right side of the road. Once on the trail, cross a rambling stream. At the next trail marker, head right staying close to the water while walking downstream. Within half-mile, you'll hear the sweet sound of waterfall with a clearing on your right. Make your way down the hill, and you will be greeted by an enchanting swimming hole--which was supposedly been popular among Hawaiian royals. Continue hiking the Judd Trail loop, and you'll pass through groves of pine, eucalyptus, guava and bamboo trees. I got a natural hiking "stick" which I picked up in the trail that was helpful for the hike. I loved it as my companions did!

Judd Trail is fairly short so we combined with another trail. The trail is muddy in spots but not so bad that we needed crampons.This is a great trail for warm sunny days since most of it is covered by a canopy of trees. Really beautiful foliage and the creek flowing through it. Some very interesting trees along the trail. Definitely a pleasant short hike on warm day.If heavy rain is expected it would be best not to hike this one because of the chance of flash flooding.Parking is along the road and fills up later in day.

Mahalo to my cousin who brought me to this trail!There's a lot to see for a short and easy hike: bamboo forest, large boulders, plenty of cool flora and a refreshing pond to swim in. There's also a small rock cliff in continuous use that makes for some fun jumps! I'd definitely recommend this as a short and easy hike with plenty of shade and a refreshing swim at the end. As others said it can muddy in some areas, but still worth the hike for taking in the scenery and a swim!

This review is for the Nuannu trail, which has the same trailhead as Judd trail. - Should have known better knowing this trail is in Nuannu. Very VERY muddy. I've done my fair share of Manoa trails and this trail exceeded all of them in muddiness. That's because most of it is canopied and Nuanuu barely ever see the sun so the trail doesn't dry out. Do it on a sunny day if you can find one. - Not much elevation gain so nothing to write home about in terms of views. You're surrounded by a lot of vegetation - it's one of the greenest trails I've been on - but that's about it and things get old quickly after a mile or so. - The Alltrials distance and time estimate are off more than marginally. Budget more time especially on a rainy day.

11/26/20- I HIGHLY recommend this hike. I normally prefer a hike up the mountains with a view of the ocean, but this hike is great with all the trees which keeps you nice and cool. There's a small river you have to cross which is fun. I would rate this hike as easy and very kid friendly. It shouldn't take you more than an hour to complete. The only downside is finding parking which is basically just to park on the side of the road. After a rainy few days this hike was more muddier than normal so be prepared to get dirty.Even on a holiday there wasn't too many people around so it's easy to socially distance. We kept our masks on the entire time, only taking them off when we needed to drink water.Please kokua and don't leave any trash behind. There's no trash bins in the area so be sure to take your trash with you and dispose properly. Have fun!

Over the course of several years I've managed to hike almost all of the Oahu hikes listed in a book called "Hiking the Hawaiian Islands" (Suzanne Swedo). Three hikes however, I'd not hiked because they were so short that they seemed not worthy of rising from the sand to do so. This year though, I endeavored to check off two short ones by hiking both in a single day. Judd Trail was the second of the two I hiked on a dry, sunny day in January. The Judd Trail is accessed by crossing a creek which was deep enough to require that I take off my shoes before crossing. I got wet up to my knees but later saw a group get through without taking off their shoes. Half of them wound up with soaked shoes; the other half successfully navigated the rock crossing. Once across the creek there's three trailheads and only one trail marker. Take either the middle trail or the one to the left and you'll be on the Judd Trail, a muddy, shaded loop which takes about 40 minutes to navigate. The trail isn't particularly well-marked and we did see people who managed to get lost but I do think that most people should be able to follow the loop without that happening. Just pay a bit of attention and keep your eyes open for some colored ribbons in the trees (marking the trail) that appear infrequently here. The real payoff of this trail though and the reason you probably want to come here? For that, after crossing the creek, take the trail on the far right. You'll not go far at all but as you go you'll be beside that creek. Quite soon you'll find the ginger pools to wade in, with the small cascading falls as a backdrop. The one I was with got in up to his neck and I think that's what you should come here for. It created the sort of video footage that, when shared with others, caused them to say "I want to go there next time I'm in Hawaii" and start asking for very specific directions. Because I'm all about the reward I'd recommend you do the hike first then reward yourself with a soak in the ginger pools. Good things come to those who wait, so wait. A pretty easy hike followed by a soak in the pools won't take up much of your day.

......so much mud.. maybe 2 hours to do a full loop but just way too much mud- there is a nice stream +waterfall and lots of paths/loops