“Final Hike: Mysterious ‘Shadow Man’ Photo Sparks Haunting Search for Missing Teen”
On February 27, 2015, an adventurous spirit named Daylenn Pua embarked on what should have been a thrilling hike up Hawaii’s iconic Haʻikū Stairs—affectionately dubbed the “stairway to heaven.” But this journey turned into a haunting mystery when the 18-year-old vanished without a trace. Amid a sea of unanswered questions, a photo he sent during the hike has sparked intrigue, hinting at potential clues surrounding his disappearance. What could a seemingly innocuous snapshot reveal? With dedicated search efforts yielding no signs of Daylenn for over nine years, the narrative takes a chilling turn as a mysterious figure dubbed the “shadow man” appears within one of his last messages. Did Daylenn encounter something sinister during his solo trek? Or are the perils of the hike, combined with the dangers of uncharted territory, to blame? The unraveling of these questions leaves us on the edge of our seats—pondering the unknown in life’s unpredictable adventure. LEARN MORE.
A photo sent by a teenager who went missing on a hike may contain clues as to what happened to him.
On 27 February, 2015, 18-year-old Daylenn Pua headed out for a hike up Hawaii’s popular Haʻikū Stairs, also known as the ‘stairway to heaven’.
He’d been visiting his grandma when he decided to go on the hike, but he’s never been seen since making the journey.
The stairs were constructed during the Second World War to provide access to a former communication station on Hawaii’s O’ahu Island.
It’s a total of 3,922 steps, and Daylenn was sending his grandmother pictures of his journey along the way, though she had warned him not to go.
However, the pictures stopped coming, and the 18-year-old has not been seen since.
The 18-year-old went missing in 2015. (Family Handout)
Significant search efforts were launched to try and find the teenager, or at least recover his body, but he’s not been discovered, and has been missing for over nine years now.
One of his pictures in particular aroused suspicion, as it contained a mysterious figure crouching.
This figure was dubbed the ‘shadow man’, though people don’t really know what it was. It looks like a figure crouching, but the exact identity isn’t clear.
This strange figure is in one of the last photos that Daylenn sent, so if it is a person, then they may have been the last person to see the teenager alive.
Of course, it may be entirely unconnected to his disappearance, and the 18-year-old might have suffered from the perils and pitfalls of going hiking alone on a dangerous trail.
This mystery figure was in one of the last photos he sent. (Crime Stoppers Honolulu)
In 2021, a decision was made to dismantle the stairs, and earlier this year, work started on taking them down.
Trying to access the Haʻikū Stairs now counts as trespassing and is illegal.
Members of the public did used to be allowed to climb the stairs, but they featured in an episode of Magnum P.I. which made them more popular and there were too many visitors.
A number of people have been arrested as a result of climbing the stairs, with CNN reporting that 14 people were arrested for it in the past couple of months.
With the steps being demolished, the climb is dangerous, and given the location, it’s a hard place for emergency services to reach.
Jason Redulla, chief of Hawaii’s Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement, said it was ‘incredibly disrespectful and self-centred’ for anyone to be trying to make it up the stairs.
