Honolulu | Kamehameha Highway | Happy Trails Stable | Haleiwa Bypass Road

HAWAII ON HORSEBACK

DRIVING TIME: About an hour from downtown Honolulu if you’re treated kindly by the city’s mercurial traffic. An hour and a half if you’re not.

DIRECTIONS: Take H1 out of Honolulu and pick up H2 at Pearl City. Take H2 all the way to Wahiawa, where you’ll pick up 99. Take Hwy 83, the Haleiwa Bypass Road, to Kamehameha Highway. Just past the popular Waimea Bay Beach Park, turn right at the Foodland on Pupukea Road. Look for the Happy Trails Stable sign about one mile on the right.

INFO: Happy Trails offers several rides per day, mostly one-hour trail rides on their ample grounds. Call (808) 638-7433. Reservations are required.

DIVERSION: Take time to visit the Puu O Mahuka Heiau (ancient temple) just down the road from the stable. The ruins are preserved as a state monument.

RESTAURANTS: Hawaiian plate lunches and burgers are available at the Sunset Diner (808-638-7660), where you can watch the big-wave surfers on Sunset Beach. Also, look for the periodic but tasty Oceanside Grill, which serves vegetarian burgers from a white trailer often parked on Kamehameha Highway just north of the Foodland. And there’s plenty to choose from in Haleiwa.