Kauai police on Friday identified the man who died after falling during a hike on a popular yet notorious Na Pali Coast trail Thursday night as 29-year-old Zachary Rose of Maui.
Rose was hiking with four friends on the remote Kalalau Trail at about 7 p.m. near mile marker 7 in an area known as Red Hill when he tumbled over the edge and landed on the rocks roughly 50 feet below, according to police. One of Rose’s companions climbed down the cliff in an attempt to help but ended up injuring his own leg, officials said.
The Coast Guard launched an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Oahu’s Air Station Barbers Point at 11:45 p.m. and rerouted a helicopter crew, which arrived at the scene at 12:04 a.m. Friday.
According to a Coast Guard news release, the helicopter lowered a rescue swimmer who conducted CPR for 30 minutes, but the man was unresponsive. The man with the leg injury was flown to medics at Lihue Airport, but he declined medical treatment.
A Kauai Fire Department helicopter airlifted the three remaining hikers at first light Friday morning while firefighters hiked in to recover Rose’s body. He was taken to Wilcox Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
A counseling service was made available to assist Rose’s friends and family, officials said.
Foul play was not suspected in the death, police said, but an investigation is continuing. An autopsy is scheduled for next week.
Kalalau is a popular hike, traveled each year by thousands of locals and tourists alike. It is the only access by land to the rugged Na Pali coastline, from Haena to Kalalau, and it passes through five major valleys before ending at Kalalau Beach where it is blocked by sheer cliffs.
But the 22-mile round trip can be tricky, especially for those who are not prepared. Bad weather has been known to unleash falling rocks and flash floods and create dangerous conditions along hazardous cliffs, and there have been many injuries, deaths and rescues over the years.
In April, the Kauai Fire Department rescued 121 stranded hikers on the Kalalau Trail after fast-flowing waters made the Hanakapiai Stream impassable.
Kalalau was named one of America’s 10 most dangerous trails by Backpacker Magazine in 2008. Outside Magazine included Kalalau in its 20 most dangerous hikes around the world.
