The Kawainui Marsh Trail (better known as the levy in Kailua) is a scenic, paved trail that is about 1.5 miles in length. Go for a run, trial a novice biker, bring the stroller – it’s perfect for families. The Kaha Street access even has a native plant garden and an area to feed the ducks. Sounds idyllic, right? In theory, yes, but from our experience, not so much.

We used to take Micah on his little bike and it was great, but after Mila was born things went downhill. When she was about a month old, I took the kids on a playdate with friends and it turned into a disaster. Due to a series of unfortunate events I found myself 3/4 of the way down the levy with an empty water bottle, a toddler that no longer wanted to bike and an overheated newborn that was screaming. It gets HOT out there. In the end I had to carry the baby, the toddler and the bike back to the car and to top it all off, the car wouldn’t start. Ah, memories.

When I dared try the levy again, we biked for about 5 minutes before a surprise downpour forced us to turn around. I guess in the light of those 2 trips our most recent could be considered a raving success. Mila was more interested in making rock piles than biking. We spent about half an hour making rock piles on the bike, in the helmet and on the grass. She managed to get into a patch of sandbur and we spent another half hour picking all the burs off her clothes and shoes. We called it a day. At least we made it to the start of the levy and no one fell in the water.

Go early morning or evening, watch for rain squalls, avoid tall grass and i’m sure you’ll have a great time. Don’t forget to check out the Keiki Monday archives for more kids activities on Oahu.