Maui
Red tape[edit]
Note: original author has no direct experience and this section was written based on information from someone else. It was originally drafted in 2020. When a contributor with direct knowledge of the situation is able to review and update, please remove this note.
All canyoneers considering canyons in Maui should review the information below.
Parts of Maui especially are considered sacred to Hawaiians and the Hawaiian canyoning community has stopped going into a number of canyons completely. The Hawaiian canyoning community is generally welcoming and happy to show people canyons with the context of places people just shouldn’t go and things people shouldn’t do. It is important to know which canyons may result in meeting an angry local and which canyons should not be entered at all.
While Maui has supported active canyoning for many years, the local residents of East Maui have become increasingly aggressive and harassing toward canyoning in the last few years. Canyoneers have been chased out of canyons with machetes, at gun point, and had people threaten to burn their cars. And canyoneers have seen a number of cars have their windows smashed and tires slashed in the parking areas. One canyoneer has seen the protesters pass around photos on public groups of pictures canyoneers have taken while canyoning, including those people's social media profiles and names, in an effort to get the community to track them down.
The main issue is that a minority of extremely vocal and active population of East Maui residents, mostly native Hawaiians involved in the Hawaiian Kingdom Sovereignty movement, do not want anyone besides east Maui locals in the forest in any capacity. Their complaints are many; destroying nature, spreading invasive species, disrupting hunting/gathering activities by natives, and generally violating sacred areas. Some canyoneers have tried talking with them a number of times, but the discussions were not productive as it appears that the only position they are prepared to accept is that everyone should stay out of the forest. The police presence in east Maui is minimal and these groups do not appear to be afraid of them - lately it was reported that they have been arrested many times for trespassing onto land they feel should belong to the Hawaiian Kingdom (but legally is private property) and harassing the owners.
One canyoneer reports to have verified with the state that canyoning (including bolt anchors) is fine on state land, while another has indicated a different understanding.
The protesters want to avoid bringing more people to canyons. They seem to consider anyone who posts photos of these activities a "commercial operation", and use that phrase when they post about confronting groups. They use the online evidence of canyoning (photos, posts, etc.) as a way to try to get more east Maui residents on their side. When the Hana Highway (which is the only road that transverses east Maui; the area is very rural and isolated) was closed except to local traffic from March to June because of the pandemic, many residents became accustomed to virtually no traffic and are now more vocal about trying to keep things from returning to normal. This has made the Sovereignty folk's arguments about canyoneers more attractive to the rest of the residents.
This has apparently only become a problem since mid-2016, slowly getting worse over time. When one canyoneer started in 2012, he did not have issues at the time; his group used to gear up for some canyons right on the road. Now they can't do that; they have been told to leave areas or have cars destroyed. Trying to get police to do anything about these sorts of situations in east Maui has generally been very difficult unless someone gets hurt, and police response time in the rural community is very slow. The protesters don't even seem to mind jail time anymore.
East Maui is a rural area with a very tight-nit native community. The canyoning community should aim to avoid giving these groups a reason to organize against canyoning specifically. Right now they are just against all general access, and focused on a few businesses. Their current main target is the World Surf League and the competitions held at Jaws surf spot. The DLNR here has shown willingness to close areas down in the past; they shut down outdoor climbing on Oahu and it took two years for a major lawsuit to re-open it. If confronted do not antagonize them or try to force your way. Leave the area for that day, as it’s not worth it to leave cars and property to be vandalized. Make sure that the areas you are entering are not private property and that before and after a canyoning trip all gear, especially footwear, is thoroughly cleaned to remove invasive seeds.
Every canyoneer should remember that they are a representative of the larger canyoning community and make good choices that reflect positively on the greater community. This continued vigilance will maintain our reputation as responsible stewards of the land we use and continue to make access to these wonderful places possible.
Region[edit]
