Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail, National Historic Trail on Hawaii Island, United States.

The Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail is a coastal pathway that runs along the shoreline of Hawaii Island, connecting multiple walking segments through different landscapes. The route passes through lava fields, sandy beaches, and rocky coastal areas, creating a varied walk along the water's edge.

The trail was officially established in 2000, though it follows ancient Hawaiian pathways that people used for thousands of years to travel along the coast. These routes were vital connections between different coastal communities and settlements throughout the islands' early history.

The trail passes through areas where you can see how Hawaiian communities organized their coastal lands into divisions called ahupuaʻa. These sections reveal practical systems that people used to manage resources and move between different zones.

The trail is not continuous: it is reached at broken segments along the Big Island coast, and only one section carries signage. Much of the route crosses private land and receives limited maintenance, with parts eroded or turned into roads. The northern end is at Upolu Point in North Kohala, at Moʻokini Heiau; the route ends in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.

The Ala Loa section, running from Kiholo Bay to Kalahuipauaʻa near Puakō, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 as number 87001127 and added to the state register on 14 January 1989 as site 10-10-11,334. Only one section of the whole trail carries signage.