Makawao resident Cole Christie, 22, catches air off the Akamai Track in the Kahakapao Recreational Area of Makawao Forest Reserve on Tuesday. Kahakapao mountain bikers said a recent state announcement on “illegal trails” built by area mountain bikers cast the riders in a poor light and they want to spotlight the positive work they have been doing. The Maui News / KEHAULANI CERIZO photos
MAKAWAO — Mountain bikers who volunteer their time to maintain trails in the Makawao Forest Reserve said they’re not to blame for the illegal trails that have become an ongoing problem for state forestry officials.
Earlier this month, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources publicly warned against “illegal trails” that it said were built by mountain bikers at Kahakapao Recreational Area, a portion of state land in the Makawao Forest that holds hiking, equestrian and biking trails.
State staff have been “spending an inordinate amount of time blocking and erasing illegal trails,” the department said in a news release issued Dec. 2. “These were built by mountain bikers looking for even more technically challenging routes than the marked, established and legal trails.”
Citing human safety and native forest concerns, the state warned about “serious fines and penalties” for such trails.
Members of the biking community said the state should backpedal the announcement because it vilifies riders who volunteer time to keep the area safe.
Makawao resident Patrick Doster, 20, takes off on the Akamai Track in the Kahakapao Recreational Area of Makawao Forest Reserve on Tuesday.
“I felt like they pointed out all the bad stuff and didn’t give us any recognition for all the good stuff we’ve done,” said Tom Armstrong, past president and part of the nonprofit Maui Mountain Bike Coalition since 1989.
Armstrong and Aaron “Moose” Reichert, one of the coalition founders, said they don’t know who’s to blame for the user-built trails and that the majority of riders use the state-sanctioned trails.
State trails include the multiuse Kahakapao Loop and Pa’ahao Road, along with bike routes Pineapple Express, Renegade, Ravine, Secret and Tweener trails. Mountain bikers also use the Pauma, Akamai and Akahi Akahi tracks.
Armstrong and Reichert emphasized that Makawao Forest Reserve mountain bikers have collaborated with DLNR for decades, culminating with the construction of “Pineapple Express,” a popular state-sanctioned mountain biking trail that’s beloved by kids and adults of various ages and backgrounds.
The state news release “made mountain bikers look like villains, that we had no regard for Maui or the environment or native species,” Reichert said. “It made us look like we didn’t care. We are the first to care.”
Aaron “Moose” Reichert wants to highlight the positive volunteer work that mountain bikers at Kahakapao Recreational Area have done over the years to protect the area.
Reichert acknowledged that people should only build trails sanctioned by the state.
“I do believe there is a process and people need to know to protect others and the environment,” he said. “But in any sport, you always have the rogue, lone wolf person who doesn’t want to conform.”
DLNR spokesman Dan Dennison said Wednesday that officials are not suggesting any particular group or individuals created the trails.
Armstrong, who uses the recreational area about twice a week for mountain biking and trail running, said he tried to get the announcement amended after it was released. He said the information was “one-sided” and he wanted to highlight that mountain bikers are the only group in Kahakapao who are building and maintaining trails.
“There’s no hiking group doing it and no equestrian group doing it,” he said. “We are the majority of the ones working with the state.”
The nonprofit organizes frequent state-permitted trail work days where volunteers repair, clean and enhance the trails, according to Reichert.
Reichert, who owns Krank Cycles in Makawao and holds multiple annual bike charity events for kids, said mountain biking boomed during the pandemic, with bike sales skyrocketing across the nation. He said there are more hikers and bikers at the recreational area and he believes the state can benefit economically from building more resources for mountain bikers.
Armstrong and Reichert said the fact that there are more user-built trails shows that there needs to be more sanctioned trails.
“This situation could create more cohesion and community with the state, helping to fill a need,” Reichert said.
Dennison confirmed that DLNR has worked well with the coalition over the years. He added that there was a “time lapse” between when the information on the trails was collected and when it was released.
“After collecting the information and the closing of the illegally built trails, work with the Maui Mountain Bike Coalition has yielded substantial results,” he said. “The illegal trail construction has stopped and the Mountain Bike Coalition is working with Maui Na Ala Hele to create additional and better legal trails in the Kahakapao Recreational Area. A working relationship between NAH and the MMBC continues to build and result in benefits to both parties.”
When asked about whether the DLNR release cast mountain bikers in a bad light, Dennison said he didn’t believe so.
“I’m a longtime mountain biker and if I didn’t build an illegal trail, I wouldn’t be worried about being painted in a bad light,” he said.
Overall, Reichert and Armstrong said that many working with DLNR on Maui have collaborated with mountain bikers over decades, and they expect healthy communication will continue.
“I truly believe greater things will come out of the negative that was spun,” Reichert said.
* Kehaulani Cerizo can be reached at kcerizo@mauinews.com.
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