Koko Crater Tramway (Koko Head Stairs)

HI · Koko Head District Park → Koko Crater summit

A wartime incline railway that became Hawaii's most famous stairway.

Heads up: Steep and hot, with no shade. The trestle section has open gaps between ties (use the bypass path if you're unsure), and loose or broken ties are common. Bring plenty of water.

In 1942, right after Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Army set up a defense post on top of Koko Crater on Oahu's southeast shore, with a camp at the bottom and a radar station and bunkers at the summit. To get people and supplies up the steep crater wall, it built an incline tramway, finished in 1943. Cars were pulled up the track by a gasoline-powered winch.

After the war the summit stations passed to the U.S. Air Force and the Hawaii Air National Guard, which used them to help track aircraft around the island. The radar station closed in 1966, the land went to the City of Honolulu, and the tramway was abandoned.

The rails came out but the ties stayed. Today they're the Koko Crater Railway Trail, better known as the Koko Head Stairs: roughly 1,048 ties when built, around 800 still in place, climbing about 1,000 feet in under half a mile. About halfway up, the track crosses a ravine on a short trestle where you step tie to tie over open air. At the top are the old bunkers and some of the best views on Oahu.

⚠️ Before you go: every railroad on this map is private property. A line that looks abandoned may still be owned by a railroad, used to store rail cars, or put back into service at any time — sometimes with no warning. Before going near any track, make sure it's truly abandoned (no recent use, rails not polished, no signals or cars stored on it) and that you're allowed to be there. Never assume a track is dead.

📷 Photos & stories from riders

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